A peanut butter and jelly sandwich made crunchy with a layer of Corn Flakes? Why not? Recipes follow (photos #5 and #6), but here’s how the idea began.

First came the chip butty.

A chip butty, chip barm* or chip bun (photo #5) is a British working class recipe, a sandwich filled with chips (British chips are like steak-cut French fries; potato chips are called crisps in the U.K.).

It originated in fish and chip shops in the Great Britain† in the 19th century.

A chip butty is different from a crisp sandwich, which is a U.K. sandwich that includes crisps—potato chips—as the filling (photo #6).

The crisp sandwich history is more recent: an Irish woman, Noreen O’Neill, invented it in 1961 as a cheap way to feed her 18 kids. (Is the American version of this a potato chip and mayonnaise sandwich?)

In addition to the crisps (potato chips), any other sandwich ingredients may be added to a create a more substantial crisp sandwich: BLT, ham and cheese, egg, tuna, even a fish and chips sandwich (fried fish and chips [fries] on bread instead of on a plate or in a paper wrapper).

Under the “don’t knock it until you’ve tried it” rubric, it’s a favorite of chef Nigella Lawson—great comfort food. While there are only three ingredients (bread, butter, potato chips), here are tips for making the best version, courtesy of Tara Holland in The Kitchn.

By the way, Nigella prefers sea salt and vinegar chips on her sandwich. Get creative with barbecue, cinnamon and sugar, jalapeño, sour cream and chive, or any other flavor.

Go “nouvelle” with sweet potato chips or vegetable chips; go retro with Fritos or tortilla chips.

Today’s food fun recipe ports the idea of a crisp sandwich to an American favorite: peanut butter and jelly.
 
 
RECIPE #1: PEANUT BUTTER, JELLY & CORN FLAKES OR CHIPS SANDWICH

We came across this recipe in another form: as a fried PB & J sandwich with a Corn Flakes crust—our own version. The fried recipe is below (photo #4).

If you like extra sweetness, use Frosted Flakes instead of Corn Flakes and use raisin bread or King’s Hawaiian sweet bread.

If you like salty and sweet, use potato chips instead of Corn Flakes.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

You know the drill:

1. SPREAD peanut butter on one slice of bread.

2. SPREAD jelly on another slice.

3. Place Corn Flakes atop the PB, and bananas atop the jelly. Join the two pieces, and slice as desired.
 
 
RECIPE #2: HOLLY’S FRIED PB & J WITH CORNFLAKES

While browsing online, we came across this simply delicious fried PB & J sandwich with a crunchy Corn Flakes coating.

It was created by Holly of Holly’s Cheat Day.

She added Frosted Flakes to her PB & J because she was out of crunchy peanut butter. Necessity is the mother of invention, and our inspiration for this sandwich.

If you have panko (Japanese bread crumbs), those work too.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. CRUSH the cereal with your hands or a rolling pin, place on a plate, and set aside.

2. WHISK the eggs and milk in a small bowl until well combined. Set aside.

3. PLACE a large pan over medium heat, melting a few tablespoons of butter into it.

4. SPREAD each slice of bread with peanut butter or jelly on either side. Stack into a sandwich and dip the top and bottom into the egg wash.

5. DIP both sides into the crushed cereal, making sure to heavily coat.

6. PLACE the sandwich in the hot pan for a couple of minutes on each side, or until the desired crispness is reached. Slice in half and serve.
 
 
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*In certain English dialects “barm” is yeast. The term is also used as an abbreviation for “barm cake,” a small soft-crusted white bread roll or bun leavened with barm).

*†The island country of Great Britain or United Kingdom includes England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The British Isles or Islands is purely a geographical term that refers to the islands of Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, along with some 5,000 smaller islands scattered around Great Britain’s coasts, including the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
 
 
 
 
 

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[1] Just add Corn Flakes to a classic PB & J (photo © Jif).

[2] Comfort food: peanut butter, jelly, and Corn Flakes (photo © S—— Food Porn | Reddit).

[3] We prefer the original, but there are also Kellogg’s Corn Flakes with Real Almond & Honey, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes with Real Strawberry Puree, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes with Real S Honey, Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes, and General Mills Reese’s Puffs Cereal [among others] (photo © Kellogg’s).

[4] A fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich with crushed Corn Flakes in the batter (photo © Holly’s Cheat Day).

[5] A chip butty is a French fry sandwich on buttered bread or a roll. Here’s a recipe (photo © Taste Of Home).

[6] In the U.K., ask for a crisp sandwich. In the U.S. combine white bread, potato chips, and mayonnaise (photo © Tara Holland | The Kitchn).

[7] The Mitrailette, from Belgium, combines fried potatoes with fried meat (sausage, burger, steak) and a sauce mayonnaise, ketchup, garlic sauce, bearnaise sauce, etc.) on a piece of baguette. Some add crudités (grated carrot, lettuce, tomato, cabbage) and cheese (photo © Renatus | Wikipedia).