Toasted Sandwich

This is really less of a recipe and more of an idea. About once a month we do our own version of Quiznos by toasting our sandwiches and creating a quick and delicious meal. The key to a great toasted sandwich is to start with great bread. I found these wheat mini-loafs at supertarget but I often use a large ciabatta loaf and slice it into 4 servings. The possibilities are endless for this meal. Use my suggestions as a guide but get creative!




Good quality bread - sliced in half

Place bread cut side up on a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil or spread with pesto.

Top each piece with desired deli meat and top with sliced cheese.

(I used Apple Gate's organic turkey and ham. We topped one half of the bread with Havarti cheese and the other half with shredded cheddar.)

Place under the broiler for 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and bread is toasted.

Place pickles, tomato, spinach, onions, lettuce, etc. (whatever toppings you like!) inside your sandwich and enjoy!

Caprese Pasta

This pasta dish is a no brainer. I looked in my fridge and saw I had fresh basil next to a ball of fresh mozzarella. And what do you know? Sitting on my countertop was a container of cherry tomatoes that I didn't even have a plan for (they were buy one get one free this week at the grocery store)! And so this caprese pasta dish was born. I also added spinach since I'm always trying to get more greens in. I made this as a sidedish, but it ended up being the main event since we all gobbled it up happlily. I love roasting the cherry tomatoes until they are literally bursting with flavor. You could add cooked Italian sausage to this and it would be a perfect meal.

Caprese Pasta

1 pint cherry tomatoes
2 Tbls extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper

2 c mafalda pasta (or your favorite pasta)
2-3 Tbls fresh basil, chopped
1 c baby spinach
1 c whole milk mozzarella, cut in chunks
1 Tbls extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400. On a half sheet pan, arrange cherry tomatoes and drizzle with two Tbls of olive oil. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes or until tomatoes start to burst.

Meanwhile, boil water for pasta. Add salt and pasta and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain pasta and place back in the sauce pan. Add basil, spinach, mozzarella, olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted cherry tomatoes. Heat through and serve.

Chicken Marinade

This is my sister Stacy's favorite marinade and it is now my favorite too. These are ingredients that I always have on hand and I love the fact that you can marinade the meat for only an hour and still have great results. With grilling season just around the corner, this is the perfect marinade to spice up your grilled chicken. Pictured is our grilled chicken: one plain and one topped with Havarti cheese.

 

 

 

 

Easy Chicken Marinade

1 c vegetable oil
1/2 c lemon juice
1/4 c yellow mustard
1-2 tsp garlic, minced
3/4 c soy sauce
1/4 c Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp pepper
In a gallon size Ziploc bag, combine all ingredients. Add chicken or pork and marinade for 1-4 hours. Grill and enjoy!