Spunk and Bite: Acronym Acrimoniousness

Fellow logophiles will recognize my titular pun as a nod to the succinct reference guide Elements of Style, one of the many grammar and usage guides sharing the bookshelf with my cherished Harry Potter hardcovers.

My objective with this and future “Spunk and Bite” postings is to share a facet of the English language that intrigues and delights or – if focusing on howlers or bungles – irks and peeves me.

I hope you’ll scrutinize my writing, and point out any missteps. And I promise to include a (somehow relevant) recipe.

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Try not to confuse them with homonyms, homophones or initialisms.

An acronym is defined as a word (such as NATO, radar, or laser) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term.

Despite the care given to explaining the term – multiple resources provide specific definitions, with examples – it seems few grammar guides or web sites take the time to explicate how (and how not) to correctly integrate acronyms into your writing. This web site, though, closely examines the specifics governing the usage of acronyms. Where my beloved reference guides failed, this site pulled through, explaining the error that plagues everyday writing – which I most often observe in the workplace:

“Use the appropriate article (a, an, or the) with abbreviations and acronyms when you would use that article in speech…The choice between using a or an with an acronym or abbreviation is governed by how the acronym or abbreviation is typically spoken.”

So, it’s not, for example, “a SUV safety report” (because you don’t read it as “sport utility vehicle”), it’s “an SUV safety report.”

Got it? Okay, moving on to…

...what Epicurious calls "the best BLT" -- but in fairness, this sandwich's moved beyond the traditional three ingredients. It's complex and juicy (but not excessively so) rather than dry; and bear in mind, my experience involved a winter-quality (ick, right?) beefsteak tomato and limpy, wimpy winter basil. (Oh Weggy, how could you?) The addition of avocado (no aciduated water to cloud its sublime smoothness), homemade basil dressing and red onions contribute a creamy herbal bite (respectively, of course), and elevate the BLT to dinner fare. I opted to craft mine on toasted wheat bread, and selected Boston lettuce (so as not to overpower the delicateness of the basil). (I also cut the recipe [roughly] in half, and it yielded two sandwiches.)

The Best BLT

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
12 thick-sliced bacon strips (about 1 pound)
12 1/2-inch-thick slices fresh country-style white bread
3 large tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
2 ripe avocados, pitted, peeled, sliced
1 red onion, thinly sliced
6 lettuce leaves

Preparation

Mix basil, mayonnaise and butter in processor until basil is finely chopped and mixture is well blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

Cook bacon in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer to paper towels; drain.

Spread half of mayonnaise mixture over 1 side of 6 bread slices. Top each with 2 tomato slices. Sprinkle tomatoes with salt and pepper. Top tomato slices with avocado, then with bacon strips, onion and lettuce. Spread remaining mayonnaise mixture over remaining 6 bread slices. Place bread slices atop lettuce. Cut sandwiches in half and serve.