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 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.

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.