I used white cheddar cheese, granny smith apple, thick sliced bacon and sourdough bread spread with dijon mustard for the sandwiches.  You could make these in a skillet, or in a panini press (which is what I chose to use).  Serve along side a bowl of tomato soup or a green salad.

Grilled Cheese with Apple & Bacon

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 4 slices of sourdough bread
• Dijon mustard
• 8-10 slices good cheddar cheese
• 4-6 slices cooked bacon
• 8-10 slices tart green apple
• butter

Directions

1. Spread bread with Dijon mustard, then layer cheese, bacon, apple and cheese.  Top with second slice of bread.
2. Butter outside of the bread and grill on hot skillet or panini press.
3. Eat!

I got the idea for this meal from the Tasty Kitchen blog.  Here is the link.

Since I am only cooking for the two of us, I used 3 small chicken breasts, and could have easily gotten away with 2.  We have enough leftover chicken for a few more pitas and plenty of sauce also.

For the tzatziki sauce I made just a few changes.  I could only find a ridiculously huge container of plain yogurt, and I just didn’t want to buy it.  So, I bought light sour cream instead.  When I mixed up the sauce I added a little milk to thin it out.  I also added some chopped parsley, which made this sauce incredible.  A little chopped mint with the parsley would have been extra special.  There’s something just plain wonderful about fresh herbs.

I filled the pita with the chicken and sauce, but adding some chopped tomatoes and feta cheese makes these even better.

For a side dish I made a tomato and cucumber salad with red onions and feta.  Simply toss chopped, seeded tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, thinly sliced red onion, a bit of olive oil, red wine vinegar, oregano, salt and pepper.  Oh my.  The perfect meal.  Enjoy.

Greek Chicken Pitas

Ingredients

Chicken

• Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (1 chicken breast per person)
• Cavender’s All Purpose Greek Seasoning
• Olive Oil
• Pita breads
• Crumbled feta

Tzatziki Sauce

• 8 ounces light sour cream
• 1-2 tablespoons milk
• 1 whole Cucumber, Chopped
• ½ whole Yellow Onion, Chopped
• Lemon Juice, from 1/2 a large lemon
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• Salt
• Pepper

Directions

1. Rub chicken breasts with Cavender’s seasoning, then place in a plastic bag with some olive oil.  Let marinate in the fridge for a few hours.
2. For the sauce: Mix sour cream and milk to desired consistency.  Add in vegetables, then seasonings.  Taste as you go and adjust to your liking.  Cover and let sit in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
3. Heat grill (or skillet) and cook chicken, about 6-7 minutes per side, until cooked through.  Let sit for a few minutes, then slice.
4. Open pita halves and fill with chicken and tzatziki sauce, and sprinkle with feta cheese.

I made 2 of these sandwiches for 3 couples, and we had some leftovers.  If you’re serving 6 ladies, one sandwich would be enough.  If you’re serving 6 gentlemen, I’d go ahead and make two of them.  I doubled the dressing, which is lovely, light and tangy, and I had just enough.  I baked 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, and fried up about a dozen pieces of bacon.  I used spring mix instead of the arugula, and a jar of julienned sun dried tomatoes of which I used about half.

To make putting this together a breeze, cook and slice the chicken a day ahead.  You can also make the dressing a day ahead and keep it in the fridge.  I would fry the bacon right before you assemble the sandwich so that it stays nice and crispy.  We didn’t take this on a picnic, but I think it would be a nice, fancy picnic sandwich.  Enjoy!

Chicken Caesar Club Sandwich

Courtesy of Ina Garten

Ingredients

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 6 slices bacon, cooked
• 1 large garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise
• 1 large ciabatta bread
• 4-6 ounces spring mix
• 12 sun-dried tomatoes, in oil
• 2 to 3 ounces Parmesan, shaved

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan skin side up. Rub the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until cooked through. Cool slightly, and slice the meat thickly. Set aside.
3. Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until minced. Add the mustard, lemon juice, and mayonnaise and process again to make a smooth dressing. (Refrigerate the Caesar dressing if not using it immediately.)
4. Slice the ciabatta in half horizontally and separate the top from the bottom. Toast the bread in the oven, cut side up, for 5 to 7 minutes; cool slightly. Spread the cut sides of each piece with the Caesar dressing. Place half the spring mix on the bottom piece of bread and then layer in order: the sun-dried tomatoes, shaved Parmesan, crispy pancetta, and sliced chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and finish with another layer of spring mix. Place the top slice of ciabatta on top and cut in thirds crosswise. Serve at room temperature.

I made a few slight changes to Martha’s recipe.  I used a full pound of ground turkey, and instead of the 28 ounces of crushed tomatoes I used a can of diced tomatoes and 2 chopped roma tomatoes.  You could easily use just the one can of diced, but consider draining off some or all of the liquid depending on your personal preference.  Carrie and I had a little discussion about the tragedy that befalls tomato paste most of the time…it doesn’t all get used and so it gets tossed.  Use the entire small can and avoid the waste.

I really like sloppy joes.  It makes me feel like a kid to eat them.  These sloppy joes are a great choice for the adult who wants a sloppy joe and wants it to be tasty.  Enjoy, and get sloppy.

Turkey Sloppy Joes

Courtesy of Martha Stewart

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 carrots, coarsely grated (2 cups)
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 pound ground turkey (93% lean, dark meat)
• 1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons dark-brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 8 rolls or hamburger buns

Directions

1. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium; add carrots, onion, and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 5 minutes.
2. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add turkey; cook, breaking up meat with a spoon, until no longer pink, 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Add tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 12 to 14 minutes. Serve on rolls.

I have been convicted lately to use my cookbooks more.  I am often reminded of my dad saying to me and my sisters when I lived at home, “Why are you looking on the internet for a recipe?  You’ve got a whole bookcase full of cookbooks right here!”.  He only said it once, but he had a good point that has obviously stuck with me.  While I do still find myself browsing recipes on food sites, I am making an effort to use my cookbooks more and it is really paying off.

This chicken salad recipe is from Rebecca Rather’s cookbook and is one of my favorites.  I have made and have blogged about many of them, and have yet to be disappointed.  I often focus on her sweet treats, but decided to delve into another section of the cookbook this weekend.

I do prefer to use homemade items instead of store bought most of the time, but not for this recipe.  Rather instructs you to make your own mayonnaise.  This, I am sure, it spectacular.  She also includes a few ways to spice up your homemade mayo that make it extra special.  She suggests curry powder, saffron, garlic, chives or rosemary.  With the egg fiasco going on, and this whole pregnancy thing I’ve got going on, I figured raw eggs would not be the best choice for me…so I used store bought mayo.  I recently bought a bottle of Kraft Olive Oil mayonnaise that I used here, and I really liked it.

Other than my laziness in the mayo department, I made minor changes to this recipe.  My changes are shown in the recipe below.  The only thing I left out completely was 1/4 cup finely diced red onion.  I didn’t have one, so I just used 5 chopped green onions.  I also added the fresh tarragon.  Central Market sells a lovely tarragon chicken salad, so that was my inspiration.

I served this chicken salad on ciabatta rolls with lettuce and tomato.  I ate some leftover today on a bed of lettuce.  The almonds still had some texture, so two days in the fridge will not turn your almonds into mush.  Enjoy!

Apple & Almond Chicken Salad

Adapted from The Pastry Queen

Ingredients

• 2-3 cups chopped cooked chicken
• 1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced
• 2-3 stalks of celery, diced
• 4-5 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1-2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup slivered blanched almonds, toasted
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Combine the chicken, apple, celery, green onion, parsley and tarragon in a large bowl.  Mix until well combined.
2. Add in the mayonnaise, salt and pepper and stir until thoroughly mixed.
3. Add the almonds right before you plan to serve the salad so the almonds stay crunchy.
4. Serve on bread, rolls, croissants, crackers or salad greens.

When I went to France in high school I was less inclined to embark on culinary adventures.  We dined at The Hark Rock Cafe, and I even ate lunch at McDonalds…more than once.  In Paris!  Crazy.  I know.  Let’s blame it on me being a naive teenager.  Let’s also blame that purchase of raspberry cigarettes on naivety.  Moving on…

One day for lunch, famished from a morning visit to the Louvre, some friends and I stopped at the first cafe we saw.  Using some of my French food vocabulary I saw “croque-monsieur” on the menu and knew that a French grilled cheese with ham was something I could definitely enjoy.  A French version of fast food.  Warm, grilled bread, melted cheese and sweet & salty ham.  You cannot go wrong with this choice.

I love researching food, its origins and its history.  I find it fascinating.  In French, croque = crunch, monsieur = mister, madame = misses.  The croque-monsieur’s first recorded appearance on a Parisian café menu was in 1910. Its earliest published use has been traced back to volume two of Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past (À la recherche du temps perdu) (1918.)  The difference between the Monsieur and the Madame is this…a fried egg is placed atop the madame, while the monsieur is topped with a simple béchamel sauce.  The Madame is thought to be named because the egg, with its yolk and surrounding white, looks like a woman’s hat.

The staples of the sandwich are a hearty white french bread, gruyere cheese and ham.  Some dijon mustard is spread onto the bread slices, topped with some cheese and ham, then the other bread slice.  The sandwich is then grilled in a skillet on both sides.  Spread a good amount of decadent béchamel sauce on each sandwich, then place them under the broiler for a few minutes to brown the tops.  You can quit here for a croque monsieur, or place a fried egg on top for a croque madame.  We made both variations, and I really like the fried egg.  I wasn’t sure I would, but it was delicious, and also very cute.

Croque Madame (courtesy of Epicurious.com)

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 3 1/2 ounces coarsely grated Gruyère cheese (1 1/3 cups)
• 8 slices firm white sandwich bread
• 4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/2 pound thinly sliced cooked ham (preferably Black Forest)
• 4 large eggs

Make sauce:

1. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, then whisk in flour and cook roux, whisking, 3 minutes.
2. Whisk in milk and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat and simmer, whisking occasionally, 5 minutes. Whisk in salt, pepper, nutmeg, and 1/3 cup cheese until cheese is melted.
3. Remove from heat and cover surface directly with a sheet of wax paper.

Make sandwiches:

1. Spread 1 1/2 tablespoons sauce evenly over each of 4 slices of bread, then sprinkle evenly with remaining cheese (1/4 cup per slice). Spread mustard evenly on remaining 4 bread slices and top with ham, dividing it evenly, then invert onto cheese-topped bread to form sandwiches.
2. Lightly oil a 15- by 10-inch shallow baking pan.
3. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately low heat, then cook sandwiches, turning over once, until golden, 3 to 4 minutes total. Remove from heat and transfer sandwiches to baking pan, then wipe out skillet with paper towels.
4. Preheat broiler.
5. Top each sandwich with 1/3 cup sauce, spreading evenly. Broil sandwiches 4 to 5 inches from heat until sauce is bubbling and golden in spots, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off broiler and transfer pan to lower third of oven to keep sandwiches warm.
6. Heat remaining tablespoon butter in nonstick skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides, then crack eggs into skillet and season with salt and pepper. Fry eggs, covered, until whites are just set and yolks are still runny, about 3 minutes. Top each sandwich with a fried egg and serve immediately.

This chicken salad came about like many meals do for me; I had to either use some chicken thighs I had in the fridge in the next few days, or they would need to be thrown away.  So, I made a decision to do something with them…that something was yet to be determined when I put them in a plastic bag to marinate in some Italian dressing that was almost empty.  After an overnight flavor bath, I still had no plan.  Well, I guess baking them would be a good idea.  So, that’s what I did.

While they were cooking, I went rummaging in the pantry and fridge for some inspiration. Celery…onion…mustard…mayonnaise…basil…Parmesan cheese…pine nuts…Carrie’s Chicken Salad was born.  I will say that the idea for the pine nuts was not my own.  A sandwich place in College Station, Blue Baker, put pine nuts in their chicken salad and it was one of my favorite items on the menu.  That and the Mediterranean pizza.  I sure do miss that place.  If you ever go for breakfast, you must get the spinach, egg and feta breakfast sandwich on a croissant.  It is decadent, but will also keep you full enough to not need a big lunch.  Ok, back to the matter at hand…

I wish I’d measured a bit better when I made this chicken salad so that I could have written an usable recipe.  Unfortunately, I didn’t think this would turn out that great so I just threw the ingredients together and didn’t bother trying to measure or remember how much of anything I used.   The recipe below is a guess, at best, as far as measurements go…so, just go with your gut!  The flavors are great together, so taste as you go and adjust as needed.

Carrie’s Chicken Salad

• 1 1/2 to 2 pounds boneless chicken thighs or breasts
• 1 1/2 cups Italian salad dressing
• 3-4 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 3-4 tablespoons whole grain mustard
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise (or more if needed)
• 3-4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chiffonade
• 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Marinate the chicken in the Italian dressing for a few hours, or up to overnight
2. Preheat the oven to 350 and bake the chicken for 20-30 minutes on a rimmed baking sheet
3. Let the chicken cool, then shred or chop into bite size pieces
4. Combine chicken, mayonnaise, mustard, celery, red onion, basil, Parmesan, salt and pepper.  Mix well.  Taste and adjust any ingredients as you see fit.
5. Add pine nuts right before serving to keep them nice and crunchy.
6. Serve on toasted bread, over a bed of lettuce, or as a snack with crackers.

Mexican torta is, simply put, a sandwich.  A crazy good sandwich.  I nicknamed these tortas “The Mexican Sloppy Joe”.  You must lean over your plate in order to eat the torta without making a total mess, and you can’t be afraid of having food on your face and hands.  This is a messy meal, but well worth it.

Chorizo and Black Bean Mexican Tortas

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus more for brushing
• 1 pound fresh Mexican chorizo, casings removed
• Two 15-ounce cans black beans, drained
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 Mexican bolillo or telera rolls, or kaiser rolls, split
• 4 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened
• 1 Hass avocado, thinly sliced
• Shredded romaine lettuce, sliced tomatoes and sliced pickled jalapeños, for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large skillet, heat the 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the chorizo and cook over moderate heat, stirring to break up any lumps, until the meat is browned and no trace of pink remains, about 10 minutes. Add the beans and, using a potato masher, mash until creamy. Cook, stirring often, until hot, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, cover and keep warm.
2. Heat a griddle or large skillet over moderately high heat. Using your hands, pull out some of the bread from the centers of the rolls to create a small cavity. Brush the cut sides of the rolls with vegetable oil. Transfer the rolls, cut sides down, to the griddle and cook until toasted, about 2 minutes. Turn and cook for about 1 minute longer, until slightly crisp. Transfer to a work surface, cut sides up.
3. Spread the tops of the rolls with the goat cheese. Spread the bottoms with some of the mashed black beans. Top the beans with the avocado, lettuce and pickled jalapeños. Close the sandwiches, cut in half and serve.

Ben is becoming quite the master at marinating and grilling New York strip steaks.  It’s almost disappointing to eat steak at a restaurant now.  He usually buys 2 strips and I almost never finish my entire steak, so we’re left with half of a great cut of meat that just cannot be thrown away or given to Ginger.  As much as I love that dog, I don’t think feeding her a piece of meat worth $5 is justified.

Panini is plural form of “panino” meaning “small bread roll” in Italian.  Italian panini that are toasted are usually filled with prosciutto and cheese…and that’s it.  Americans, it seems, have done their darndest to complicate this sandwich.  While I believe this to be a mistake, I have made several different variations of the panino with more than just meat and cheese.  I hope, someday, to try a real panino in Italy to discover the gloriousness that is a simple Italian panino.

I don’t overstuff my panini…anymore!  I learned my lesson more than once.  Melting cheese all over the place is OK most of the time, but not on a panini.  I have a Krups panini press, but a panini can be made easily with 2 hot skillet type pans.  A panini is essentially a pressed grilled sandwich, so a hot pan paired with another heavy skillet will do the job. Here are some other options for creating your very own panini without a press.  I will put in a plug for Krups here and say that I love my press.  I’ve even grilled vegetables with it.  It may seem like a uni-tasker, and I guess it is, but it is a great one to own.  It will prove itself useful.

Steak and Provolone Panini

Serves 2

• 3-4 slices provolone cheese
• 4-6 ounces thinly sliced cooked steak (or roast beef)
• whole grain mustard
• 1 tomato, sliced thin
• French, sourdough, focaccia, or other hearty bread of your choice
• olive oil

1. Slice your bread into 1 to 2 inch thick pieces, then slice horizontally.
2. Spread mustard on the top slice of the bread.
3. Place some cheese on the bottom of each piece of bread.
4. Layer sliced steak on top of the cheese.
5. Top with a tomato slice (or two depending on the size of your tomato) and another thin slice of cheese.
6. Place the tops on the sandwiches, and brush a bit of olive oil on the bottom and top of each sandwich.
7. Place on the panini press, or heated skillet.  Cook for 3-7 minutes or until all ingredients are warmed through and cheese is nice and melted.
8. Serve and enjoy.