Spread: To butter or not to butter, that is the question. So personally, I think it depends on what you are putting in it. If you have 'wet' fillings (sliced tomatoes, sliced gherkin/pickle, apple), there is definitely a need for something oily to keep that moisture from seeping into the bread and making it soggy. However, mayonnaise is usually just as good, and is my usual preference. It's also going to come down to diet. If I'm on one, the butter stays in the fridge. I am really not a margarine fan - it has a very peculiar taste and some varieties leave an unpleasant film on the roof of my mouth.
Condiments: mayonnaise, as discussed above, can be a great butter substitute, and definitely is a great compliment to any sandwich with lettuce. I like it spread thinly on one of my bread slices, but not usually on both - I reserve the other slice for the mustard. Now if this is an egg or sausage sandwich, obviously I'm not going to sky rocket my fat intake further by putting mayonnaise in the sandwich as well, so in those cases, that gets replaced with ketchup, and the two pieces of bread have mustard and ketchup on them, respectively. Other speciality condiments, where appropriate, might include: pesto, other tapenade, pate, cream cheese, humus, and even salad dressing.
Fillings: oh god, this is an infinite topic, and can include everything and anything, being mixed and match to suit individual tastes (but usually, for me, what happens to be sitting in the fridge). Some of my favourite sandwiches fillings:
fried egg
mature cheddar cheese and sliced apple
marmite and cucumber (reminds me of school packed lunches!)
cottage cheese and grated carrot
anything with avocado (particularly pine nuts)
sliced nut roast left overs (this could as easily be FieldRoast or meatloaf)
Slicing: any sandwich that is so over full it requires cocktail sticks stuck through to hold it together is just wrong (yes, America, I'm talking to you). Just put less in it, fools. But what is the best way to slice? Diagonally definitely is the most aesthetically pleasing, but it doesn't always make for easy eating - bits of tomato tend to slide out the corners. My vote is usually just for neat halves. Not as pretty, but very practical for getting yer paws round it.
What are your favourite sandwich fillings?
