The world of sandwiches is wide and varied -- everything from BLTs to hamburgers, and hot dogs to pitas (yes, hot dogs are sandwiches). And you can use Venn diagrams all day long to break sandwiches down into a multitude of categories and sub-categories. But when it comes to the sandwiches I make at home, I tend to think of them as either meal sandwiches or snack sandwiches.
The difference between meal sandwiches and snack sandwiches mostly have to do with the size (or "heft," as I like to say when I'm feeling spry), sweetness, ingredients, and amount. It's not a clearly defined set of rules, but rather a bit like porn -- I know it when I see it.
A grilled cheese is a snack sandwich. Double roast beef with avocado, sliced onions, and triple mayo is a meal sandwich. Peanut butter and jelly is a snack sandwich. Hot dogs are both a snack sandwich AND a meal sandwich, depending on if you're having more than one. If you're just having one hot dog (even if it's fully loaded), then it's just a snack as far as I'm concerned.
Okay, so let me tell you about my favorite snack sandwich. You start with two slices of white bread, slather one side with Nutella, slather the other side with crunchy peanut butter, and stick slices of banana in between.
Sounds awesome, right? The soft white bread is the perfect porous canvas for the two spreads. And, yes, you have to use crunchy peanut butter to texturally offset the soft and gooey texture of the other ingredients. Chocolate, hazelnuts, peanuts, banana... It's sweet, savory, and fruity all at the same time!
I can't remember when I started making these sandwiches, but I know I've been making them for over 20 years. As far as I knew, I was the only one making them, and to this day, I don't personally know anyone else who makes them. Now, I'm not saying that I "invented" this sandwich or that I was the first person to ever throw this combination together. But what I am saying is that no one taught me this sandwich. I came up with on my own, and as far as I know the sandwich doesn't have a name other than simply rattling off the ingredients.
I Googled "banana nutella peanut butter sandwich," and only found a few examples of other people making this sandwich. (One fool took the extra step to grill the sandwich. I'll keep an open mind and try making it that way someday, but I don't think I'll like it grilled.) Furthermore, and again, there doesn't seem to be a name for the sandwich. This leads me to believe that it's not an "official" or widely made sandwich.
I think I should try to come up with a cool name for it. I don't want it to have a goofy name like "fluffernutter," and I certainly don't want it named after me or anything like that. But... I gotta come up with a name.
