I am in the mood for something comforting, tasty and very informal. Something that I can eat with my closest friends and family and not care if it's dripping all over my chin.
On the other hand, that doesn't mean that I want to eat less than gourmet food.
Sandwiches... They are making such a huge buzz lately in foodie world.
I don't know about you, but for me anything that is put between two pieces of bread tastes much better.
The bread of course, has to be great quality, but what should we put in between?
A big trend these days is to re-define old classics.
I am thinking about a turkey breast sandwich where the turkey is home made and not cut at the deli counter, the mayo is superb, and the crunch is planned to bring it to the next level.
Also, I'm a big fan of tuna sandwiches, but instead of the stuff from the can, let's poach it (or a salmon), in olive oil and re-tell the story of a great sandwich.
Finally I am going really wild with a steak and pate sandwich that pulls all the stops.
So you see, I'm actually cheating. It's labor. Not too hard though, and the result is so worth it.
Note: My camera betryed me, so I found an image that is close to what I made. But mine was nicer...
Turkey and pickled onions sandwich with honeyed mayonnaise: (makes 4)
2 ciabatta breads, sliced horizontally into a top and bottom.
Pickle the onions:
2 red onions, sliced
1 cup cider vinegar
1 tsp salt
Blanch the onions: put the slices into boiling water for 1 minute and cool them in a bowl with ice and cold water. Drain.
Then, return the onion to the pan with the cider vinegar and the salt. Add water to just barely cover the onions. Bring to boil, and simmer the onions for 1 minute.
Pour the onions and the liquid into a glass jar and chill. Can be kept for weeks in the fridge and is great with steaks. The onions turn into a beautiful pink.
Roast the turkey breast:
1 breast of turkey on the bone
½ teaspoon of smoked paprika
½ teaspoon salt
1 tsp good steak seasoning
¼ teaspoon chili
3 tablespoons oil
preheat the oven 400F.
Mix the oil with all the spices and rub the turkey well from all sides.
Put the turkey on a roasting pan and roast for
Let rest covered for 15 minutes.
Take the turkey breast meat off the bone, and slice thinly.
Prepare the mayonnaise: ( yields about 2 cups)
2 large egg yokes ROOM TEMPRATURE
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
11/2 cups canola oil
11/2 tablespoons honey
Using a food processor, whisk together: yokes, mustard and salt until combined well.
Add about ½ cup of oil drop by drop until the mixture thickens and is glossy. Add the vinegar.
Next, add the remaining oil in a thin,slow stream while the processor is running all the time. The oil has to absorb in the paste.
When the mayonnaise is done, add the honey and mix well.
Assembly: (from bottom to top)
Bottom of the ciabatta- smear with mayonnaise
turkey slices
pickled onions
mayonnaise on top part of bread. Cover the sandwiches. Slice each ciabatta in half.
Tuna and sunny side up egg with red cabbage coleslaw sandwich:
French Baguette, halved diagonally and horizontally.
Pickled jalapeno, sliced
Butter, 2 tbs
Poach the tuna in olive oil:
2 piece of tuna steaks.
About a cup olive oil.
Salt and pepper
one clove of garlic, pealed and smashed
1) Pat the tuna dry and sprinkle salt and pepper pro chef way.
2) Heat the oil on medium heat with the garlic in it.When the oil is hot but not bubbling, let the garlic stay in the oil until you can smell it. Take it out and discard.
3) Put the fish into the oil. Add more oil until fish is covered if necessary. Poach on medium- low heat for about 3 minutes until the fish is almost cooked through.
4) Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon. Leave about 2 tbs oil and discard the rest.
Make the red cabbage Coleslaw:
4 cups red cabbage, thinly sliced
4 scallion greens, thinly sliced
1 small carrot, grated
1 tbs olive oil
¼ cup white or red wine vinegar
2 tbs sugar
Salt and pepper to taste, about ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp pepper.
1) In a large bowl combine the vegetables.
2) In the microwave, put a a microwave safe bowl with the oil, vinegar and sugar. Heat for 45 seconds so the sugar dissolves well in the mixture.
3) Pour over the vegetables, add the salt and pepper. Mix well. Let stand in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Taste, and correct the seasoning if necessary.
Sunny side up eggs:
4 eggs
2 tbs “tuna oil” drippings
Salt and pepper to taste
heat the oil in a non stick pan, when it's really hot, crack the eggs into it. Cook so the white is solid but leave the yoke runny. Sprinkle salt and pepper. Remove from pan and place on top of the tuna fish in the sandwich.
Toast the baguette.
Smear with butter.
Assembly: (From bottom to top )
Baguette, toasted
butter
tuna
egg
pickled jalapeno
coleslaw
Buttered baguette.
Steak and duck pate with caramelized onions and feta/chives cheese spread sandwich:
2 ciabatta bread, halved horizontally, brushed with olive oil and toasted
Duck pate- D'Artanian Mouse Troufe is very recommended
Prepare the caramelized onion and prunes:
5 prunes+ 1 cup of warm water
2 large vidalia onions, sliced into long slices (half the onion and then slice)
olive oil
1 tsp sugar
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
1) Soak the prunes in the warm water for 30 minutes. Drain.
2) Use enough olive oil to coat a large frying pan, let it warm and then put in the onions and prunes. Stir to coat with oil and flatten so that there will be maximum contact of the mixture with the pan. Saute for 10 minutes, stirring all the time.
3) After 10 minutes, sprinkle with some salt and the sugar and lower the heat and saute for 25 minutes, stirring every few minutes. The onions need to brown but not burn so let them fry but with a watchful eye. If you feel they are on the verge of burning, add more oil.
4) Add the balsamic vinegar, mix well and cook for 5 more minutes.
Prepare the steak:
1 Skirt steak
1 tbs Demarera sugar
3 tbs soy sauce
1 tsp ketchup
2 tbs canola oil
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
1) Marinade: In a zip lock, mix the soy sauce, ketchup, balsamic vinegar and oil. Put the steak in and let it marinade for at least 1 hour.
2) After an hour, take out of the refrigerator, bring to room temperature, and grill until medium rare or thermometer registers 130F. Let rest 5 minutes and slice thinly against the grain.
Make the feta-chives Spread:
½ cup crème freche
chives- 1 tsp thinly chopped
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
Mix well. Use food processor to mix very well.
Assembly: (bottom to top)
ciabatta
spread
steak slices
pate
onion and prune jam
spread over ciabatta
Caramelized onions
