I may be a restaurant critic and food writer, but like many others, I still crave comfort food from my formative years — including my elementary school cafeteria.
My father worked as a high school art teacher at Greenwich Country Day School in Connecticut. The small-town feel of the institution extended to the faculty, and I grew up in a close-knit community. The head of the lunch room when I was born Brought crisp apples to my mother In the hospital. And my first pet was a feeder rat for one of the science teacher’s classroom snakes that was given to me in a butter cookie tin.
I’ve written about school dining hall favorites before, but with the exception of the famous apple crisp, I’ve rarely tried preparing them at home. However, my husband and I recently discussed one of the most popular meals at GCDS and I became a little obsessed with one: Jack & Jills.
What are Jacks and Jills?
In my elementary school, Jacks and Jills were basically French bread pizza. But under the sticky blanket of cheese was something far more exciting than tomato sauce to my 6-year-old sensibilities: minced meat. sloppy joe to fill.
However, it turns out that Jack and Jills aren’t the childhood classic I thought they were. In a Google search for recipes, I only found one, attributed to a Epic contributor’s homeowner, Vinnie SpazanoThe 2004 article reminds me of what I remember but is not an exact match.
The fact that it appears to be a lost recipe compelled me to make it myself. I called my chef brother, Volodya, to ask if we could recreate the elements. The only time I had that dish outside of the cafeteria was when he made it for me more than 30 years ago. To me, this was an early sign of his skill years before he went to culinary school. However, it was a bit embarrassing for him now.
But still, Volodya noted one important detail: while I remembered as stretchy cheese mozzarellaHe was certain it was the cheddar blend. As I recall, oven-blistered cheese was light-orange in color, not white.
I went to Walmart to shop for supplies. I bought lean ground beef, crusty Mini BaguettesAnd BetterGoods cheddar, Gouda, and Gruyère cheese blend, which I hoped would add a bit of flavor beyond the processed cheese mentioned in the single recipe I found.
I decided not to make my Sloppy Joes from scratch, instead buying a can of Manwich sauce to recall the 1980s flavor. Work done? Absolutely. Was it a hit in my house? For some children of the ’80s, it’s hard to get more nostalgic satisfaction than this. But I am sure your kids will love it equally.
This recipe also inspired my husband to create his own version of the dish, which we named Giacomos and Jills. After a meal of rigatoni, he spreads his leftover sausage bolognese sauce on leftover garlic bread. A mixture of mozzarella and asiago finishes it off before it goes in the oven.
How to Create Jacks and Jills Inspired by the Greenwich Country Day School Cafeteria
Alice Levitt
Material
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 can Sloppy Joe sauce (such as Manwich)
- 1 mini baguette
- 1 bag (7 ounces) grated cheddar cheese blend
guidance
- Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Crumble the ground beef into a large pan over medium-high heat, frying the pieces until brown. Add the can of sauce and stir until the meat is coated. Cancel.
- Cut mini baguettes in half lengthwise and up. Place the bread, cut side up, on a foil-lined baking sheet.
- Spread the saucy beef mixture evenly over the bread. Apply a layer of grated cheese.
- Place the baking sheet in the oven and cook for about 30 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and brown. Serve with light clothing green salad,
