The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur news and links for Tuesday, February 19

Hi, all!

Let’s talk about some classics today.

Ramble of the Day

Food is partly a game of mixing and matching. One has to find things that combine well together, and while we could sit (or stand) in our respective places and talk about the bad combinations, I’ve decided that we should talk about some good things in life today. By that, I mean the food combinations that we find to be truly special and enjoyable, well-established or not.

I remember once seeing someone on a corner of the internet somewhere celebrating the combination that is tomato and cheese. It’s absolutely worth celebrating; pizza and certain pasta spring to the mind immediately, but tomatoes and cheese work well together in several capacities. Both would go well on a taco, and in an omelette, if only to name a couple.

The one I was actually thinking of when I jotted this topic down in my notes a couple of weeks ago was chocolate and peanut butter. I was enjoying a dark chocolate peanut butter cup, a treat that really allows you to enjoy the sweetness of the chocolate and the saltiness of the peanut butter, when I thought to ramble about it. I’m craving one now, but I’ll resist. I haven’t had it in too many other capacities outside perhaps a cupcake or cookie on a rare occasion, but it is easy to understand its potential outside of the candy.

Expanding to meals, chicken tenders and fries is a personal favorite of mine, even if I only enjoy it rarely nowadays. I’ve mentioned this before in a previous ramble, but it’s a classic unhealthy food that tastes good regardless of its quality. The worst ones are fine, but the best ones are extraordinary, and there is a certain enjoyable quality to a chicken tender with a nice crunch.

A classic tortilla chip and guacamole can’t be beat, either. Unlike the chicken tender and the fry, finding good tortilla chips and guacamole is a little bit harder. There are plenty of tortilla chips on the market that are too salty, and enough guacamole out there that just isn’t seasoned well enough. A decent Mexican establishment should have you covered, though, with sublime results. There’s something comforting and enjoyable about a good selection of chips and guacamole; I wouldn’t call it plainly satisfying, but it’s close.

I’ll end with one more, and this one I would be mad at myself for not including: milk and cookies. It’s self explanatory, so I won’t add anything there, but there are fewer nighttime treats that I enjoy as much as this combination. I’ll usually opt for a classic chocolate chip, but will swap it out for a black and white cookie if I have one. For me, the milk always has to be cold, since I haven’t enjoyed a plain cup of warm milk since I was a child. Variations are plenty, but the combination is timeless.

There are probably a ridiculous number of combinations I’m missing, but I have to stop somewhere. Plus, that’s where the rest of you could chime in, should you choose to.

tl;dr: Enjoyable food partnerships.

Links of the Day

The Confederations Cup will not return, according to US Soccer president Carlos Cordeiro.

Leeds United has been fined £200,000 for spying on Derby County, which will soon become banned by the EFL.

Italian side Pro Piacenza has been kicked out of Serie C after fielding seven players and losing 20-0 over the weekend.

Nani has joined MLS side Orlando City on a free transfer from Sporting Lisbon.

Today’s longer read: Jeff Carlisle and photographer Robert Beck pair up on a photo essay of Landon Donovan’s indoor football debut with the San Diego Sockers for ESPN