Sardines and Pickles and Ham, Oh My! Ellio's Cheese Pizza (Ep 56)

-
It's Frozen Food Month, and we're celebrating with a long overdue review of a frozen institution. This week, we welcome back friend-of-the-pod Shaun for Ellio's Cheese Pizza.

After a review of Ellio's classic cheese squares, things get…creative. We asked our listeners to submit toppings for a special fan pizza, and the results range from inspired to inedible. Caramelized onions, sardines, anchovies, pickles, artichoke hearts, ham, pineapple, and more all make an appearance. Each Bro also brings their own personal Ellio's creation to the table, with results ranging from gourmet to quite questionable.

Plus: Trader Joe's recalls 3.4 million pounds of chicken. The Bros try to remember grade school math. The Weathermen were not, it turns out, meteorologists. Max pops Romanian rum candies like, well, candy. Shaun tells tales of YMCA poolside summers. And somewhere in Connecticut, Darren cooks with spirits while a blizzard threatens to knock out his power for six days.

FROST BITES

A Name With Three Fathers: Ellio's was founded in 1963 by three Greek immigrants—Elias Betzios, George Liolis, and Manny Tzelios. The brand name is a portmanteau of all three: EL-ias, LI-olis, Tzeli-OS. Manny got the short end of the pizza.

From Buses to Business Woman: After passing through six owners in sixty years—including, yes, the Greyhound bus company—Ellio's finally landed in the hands of Jo-Ann Obergfell, a New Jersey mother who bought the brand in 2020 and turned it into a certified Women-Owned Business. Her first year at the helm? A pandemic. Her first year's sales? 70 million pizzas. Not bad for a new owner inheriting a 50-something-year-old rectangle.

ROM Chocolates: The Romanian rum candies Max was snacking on are actually Romania's national chocolate bar, wrapped in the Romanian flag and sold since 1964. There IS real rum in there—about 0.1%. You'd need to eat an extraordinary amount to feel it. Max was not deterred.

The Weathermen: Darren mentioned the Weathermen during the episode—and no, they were not forecasting snow. The Weathermen were a radical militant group that emerged in 1969 as an offshoot of the Students for a Democratic Society, committing bombings in protest of the Vietnam War and racism. Good intentions. Terrible tactics.

Girl Scout Cookie Season: March is prime Girl Scout cookie season, and yes, of course you can freeze them. Thin Mints are the classic freezer cookie, but honestly any of them benefit from a stint in the cold. Max picked up Caramel Delights and the new Adventurefuls this episode and we're planning an official frozen Girl Scout cookie segment later this month. 

YOUR COLD CUTS

Oh, we'll be doing this again! But next time we ask for topping suggestions, go wilder! You were very reasonable this time around and we appreciate it, but we know you have it in you.

In the meantime: what's YOUR Ellio's memory? Pool? Cafeteria? After school? Hit us up on the Let's Chill page and let us know!

ENJOYING THE POD?

BUY US A COLD ONE

Your support means the world to us and keeps our freezer stocked. Every tip and donation helps us discover more frozen finds, cover production costs and improvements, and continue bringing you weekly episodes. Thank you for being part of Froze Nation!

And if you like us, RATE US WHERE YOU LISTEN—and TELL YOUR FRIENDS!

Fro yo' later!

Popular posts from this blog

Deep in the Heart of Glasgow: Deep Indian Kitchen Chicken Tikka Masala (Ep 62)

-
Image
We’ve been thinking about this one for almost a year. (Thinking’s hard, bro.) This week, Darren and Max finally review Deep Indian Kitchen Chicken Tikka Masala —roasted white chicken, creamy sauce, cumin basmati rice—and it was worth the wait. Before they dig into their meal, they dig into the history: a dish whose origins are genuinely up for grabs. Did chicken tikka masala begin on a stormy night in Glasgow when a Pakistani chef poured a can of tomato soup over a bus driver's dry chicken? Or is that story all wet? Whatever the history, a New Jersey family founded Deep Foods in 1977 when a mom started making Indian snacks in her home and selling them to neighbors. The company was named for son Deepak, and deep means lamp and enlightenment in Hindi. Almost 50 years later, every purchase benefits a foundation supporting over 35,000 children in rural India. Plus: The recalls keep coming. A listener has a frozen waffle emergency with a relationship hanging in the balance. The People...
Read more

Fool Me Once, Feed Me Twice: Tina’s vs. El Monterey Beef & Bean Burritos (Ep 60)

-
Image
The Bros are back—and we've got burritos. April Fools, Froze Fam! The fake breakup is officially cancelled, the freezer aisle is open for business again, and we have some words about what just happened. This week's face-off pits two of the cheapest frozen burritos against each other: Tina's Beef & Bean vs. El Monterey Beef & Bean . One of these brands claims to be America's number one selling frozen burrito. So does the other one. Somebody's lying—or maybe nobody is. Either way, we dig into the histories: a family that fled the Mexican Revolution and built an empire on Grandma Rosie's recipes, a mysterious company called Camino Real Foods that invented a mascot who doesn't exist, and a brief but unavoidable detour into why you may have heard the name "Tina" in a completely different context. In the closing segment, Darren unveils Stick Figuring—a game where Max tries to identify famous moments in frozen food and Froze Bros history from Da...
Read more

Dane Good Balls: Feel Good Foods Gluten-Free Buttermilk Pancake Balls with Shaun and Kristen (Ep. 61)

-
Image
We’ve got a full table this week. Returning guest Shaun brings along Kristen as the show's official Gluten-Free Correspondent, and the team reviews Feel Good Foods Buttermilk Pancake Balls —certified gluten-free, Danish-style, dippable, and poppable. We get into the company's origin story, the surprisingly deep history of the pancake ball, and whether the Danish really deserve credit for this. What exactly is an æbleskiver? And did Vikings seriously cook them in their dented shields? In the news: the Ajinomoto/Trader Joe's glass recall keeps growing. The source has been identified, and sufferin' succotash it's the carrots! Also: a Norwegian man once brought his grandfather's frozen body to Colorado. "Tuff shed," you say? Well, the town threw a festival about it. Plus: the gluten-free tax is real, the sog factor is realer, a serving size of two balls is a joke, Shaun brings a brand new game called Tip of the Iceberg, and that's just the—well, that...
Read more