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This is a perogy sandwich.

This past week, Stefan and I had a chance to sit down with our friend Jonny and talk to him about his most recent culinary adventure. As Jonny rushed to get to work one morning, he was forced to hastily craft some sort of mid-day meal for himself. The quickest and most obvious choice was to grab the container of leftover cheese-and-potato perogies from the fridge, and that is exactly what he did. By the time 11:30 a.m. rolled around, however, Jonny was feeling like seven perogies just might not do for a proper lunch.
   
Being the 21st-century man that he is, Jonny turned to the social network to determine whether creating a perogy sandwich would be feasible and delicious. Receiving an overwhelming positive response, Jonny decided to run with the idea. After searching the kitchen at his work for something to beef up his seven-perogy lunch, it became clear to Jonny that he wouldn’t have much to work with. His hunt yielded nothing but a loaf of bread, some butter and some questionable Miracle Whip.
   
Jonny’s situation is one I find myself in from time to time. Rushing out of my house in the morning and being forced to grab the most convenient lunch option from the fridge is part of my line of work. Even though Jonny was attempting to construct a relatively humble meal for himself, he still wanted to provide the best experience possible. Neither Jonny nor I recommend that you dabble in the delights of expired Miracle Whip and work kitchen thievery. Jonny had the go-ahead from the owner of the loaf of nice soft rye bread, to take a few slices for his sandwich.
   
Despite the fact that he had so little to work with, Jonny maintained a methodological approach to executing the realization of his perogy sandwich. He knew that in order to counteract the inherent soft texture of reheated leftover perogies, he would need to toast the bread of the sandwich to provide a much-needed crunch. Although by toasting the bread, Jonny also knew he would need to apply some much-needed moisture to the dish in the form of butter and Miracle Whip. He entertained the idea of applying a number of other condiments available to him in the work kitchen. After contemplating the merits of caesar and poppyseed dressing, as well as some hot mustard, Jonny decided to stick with relatively neutral flavours.
   
Once Jonny had finished the construction of his new sandwich, he immediately dove into it. All things considered, it was good. Jonny, like Stefan and myself, is a great lover of perogies, and it came as no great surprise to any of us that the sandwich was a success. The lunch left Jonny feeling properly filled up and provided him with the energy he needed to carry out the rest of his work day.
   
During our little interview with Jonny about his sandwich, Stefan and I asked him what his ideal perogy sandwich would look like. The No. 1 thing on his list was, no surprise, bacon. Jonny made it clear that he certainly would have preferred to include sour cream in lieu of mayonnaise, and even  sautéed onions. We determined that sticking with rye bread was definitely the way to go, and that butter should still play a role in the dream perogy sandwich.
   
After hearing the story of his pioneering perogy panino, we made plans with Jonny to construct his dream perogy sandwich. Inspiration for new culinary adventures can sometimes come from the least likely sources. As long as you have a passion for good food and a bit of ingenuity, you can make something extraordinary for yourself out of some very ordinary components. I doff my cap to Jonny and his new signature sandwich, and can’t wait until we have a chance to make it.
   
Graham Blicq and Stefan Lytwyn are Winnipeggers who love to buy, cook, serve and eat the best food they can find.