Category: SANDWICHES & SLIDERS

PHILLY CHEESE STEAK SANDWICHES

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 medium green pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons butter
1 pound thinly sliced roast beef
6 hoagie rolls, split
6 slices part-skim mozzarella cheese
4 beef bouillon cubs
2 cups water

Directions: In a large skillet, saute mushrooms, onions and green peppers in butter until tender. Divide beef among rolls. Top with vegetables and cheese; replace tops. Place on an ungreased baking sheet; cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until heated through. Meanwhile, in a sauce pan, heat bouillon and water until cubes are dissolved; serve as a dipping sauce.

Here’s what you’ll need:
Modifications:
-I used 2 containers of pre-packaged deli style roast beef
-I used the left over Provolone cheese that I had from last week’s Baked Ziti.

Wipe off the mushrooms with a paper towel and cut them up.  Cut up the onion and green pepper, too.  
Put 2 cups of water in a sauce pan and add 4 beef bouillon cubes.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan. 
Slice open the bread while the butter is melting.

Saute the mushrooms, green peppers, and onions in the butter.

After the mixture has cooked for a bit, ladle in 1 cup of the beef bouillon stock into the onion mixture.

After the mixture has cooked for a while and onions were soft, add the prepackaged deli roast beef and seasoned the pan with Home Seasoning.

While the mixture cooks, slice up the meat into smaller slices.  Fill in the rolls with meat and veggies and then cover it with a slice of cheese.  

Pop the sandwiches in the oven for about 5-7 minutes so the cheese can melt.  

Here is what you’ll end up with:

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Comfort Food – California Roll my way!

Every now and then only comfort food will work to get you smiling again.

 

CALIFORNIA ROLL
Fresh baked croisant
Fresh sliced turkey
Fresh sliced avocado
Fresh sliced tomato
Are you seeing a pattern here yet?
Sliced Provolone
A little mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
and a smile

Fire Day Friday: Steak Sandwiches with Chimichurri Mayo

Sometimes I get so caught up in trying to find exciting new recipes that I forget about the simpler things in life….like sandwiches.  Sandwiches are so versatile and simple.  What’s not to love about that?  With a busy schedule and less and less time in the kitchen this week, I wanted to make something that would be filling and yet still make it seem like I worked hard to create a fantastic dinner 🙂  Enter the steak sandwich.  Simple, true, but add a little chimichurri mayo and, well, suddenly your steak sandwich is anything but simple.  It’s flavorful, it’s a tiny bit spicy, and it’s fresh tasting.  Definitely a great alternative to your usual sandwich spread.

I kept the steak marinade very simple, I knew the mayo would have a great flavor and I didn’t want that to be over shadowed.  You can marinate your steak in anything you want though, or even just drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, steaks don’t usually need much, they are usually so flavorful in themselves.
Steak Sandwiches with Chimichurri Mayo
Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen 30-Minute Suppers
Ingredients:
1 lbs. top sirloin (or any steak really)
1/2 cup beer (I used Bud Light)
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 Tablespoon Sambal Oelek (chili paste)
5 Tablespoons mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
4 hoagie buns, french rolls, or thick cut crusty bread
Lettuce (optional)
Tomato (optional)
Cucumber (optional)

Directions:
In a bowl, mix together the beer, Worcestershire, and Sambal Oelek.  Place steak in a resealable bag and pour marinade over it.  Let marinate for at least 4 hours.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, vinegar, garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes until smooth.  Add the parsley and stir to combine. Cover and place in refrigerator until ready to use. 

Preheat grill to 400 degrees.  Place the steak directly on the grill grates and grill until cooked to your liking.  I prefer medium rare so I put my steak on for about 5-6 minutes per side, depending on thickness.  Remove from grill and allow to sit for 5 minutes before slicing thin against the grain.   Slather some of the chimichurri mayo on the bread (I toasted my buns first..yum!!), arrange steak on bun and top with lettuce, tomato, and/or cucumber.  Enjoy!

HAM SPREAD DIABLO

Remember when we were kids and there were all these neat spreads and sandwich makings?  Things Like Under World um I mean Underwood Deviled Ham.
Hubby loved it, but now that we are really watching what we put into our bodies I make everything fresh.  So, I set out to make a homemade ham spread for hubby’s lunches.  Now back then we also ate things like this on processed white bread, but today’s sandwiches were served on Oatnut bread.  I toyed with the idea of adding pineapple but hubby put the kibosh on that and ate it on the side.  I still think it might be good!

4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup ham chunks
2 teaspoons Frank’s Red Hot Pepper Sauce

  • Process in batches in a small food processor until well blended.
  • Adjust hot sauce to taste.
  • Spread on sandwich.
  • Enjoy!

PEKING ASIAN CHICKEN WRAPS ~ HEALTHY MEALS

I’ve made these wraps a few times. I always forget how good they are and I end up saying “Why don’t I make these more often!”  They are super healthy, quick and delicious.  
They keep well in the refrigerator and I love to have them for lunches.   I did think that blanching the pea pods was annoying. I no longer blanch the pea pods when I make them, I just throw them in with the onions and cook them a bit. One less step. I’m all about cutting steps out of things and making it easier. 

Peking Asian Chicken Wraps  ~ Adapted from Eat Better America

1/2 cup uncooked brown rice
2 teaspoons sesame oil
4 green onions
1/4 pound snow peas, trimmed
1 heaping cup of shredded cabbage (I used cabbage mix)
1 cup shredded carrot (I used a bit less as I had cabbage in my mix)
2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar (recipe called for unseasoned, I like seasoned better)
2 teaspoons ginger (I used from a jar)
2 cups shredded chicken, cooked (I used 10 oz)
8 whole wheat tortillas
8 tablespoons Hoisin sauce
  • Cook rice according to directions, set aside.
  • Heat water in saucepan to boiling, add snow peas and cook for about 30 seconds. Drain and rinse with cold water until cool. Cut lengthwise into small strips. In a bowl, stir together snow peas, cabbage, carrot, rice vinegar and ginger.
  • Heat sesame oil in pan, add green onions, cook and stir for a minute, then stir green onions and oil into cooked rice. Add rice mixture to the bowl of veggies.
  • Add chicken to veggies and rice. My chicken was cooked, but frozen so I threw it in the pan and thawed it out and made it warm.
**The actual recipe called for the rice, veggie mixture and chicken to be all separate. I preferred to throw it all in the same bowl. We liked this warm but you could eat it cold as well. We put the hoisin sauce on the bottom of a toasted tortilla and then a scoop of the chicken/rice/veggie mixture. This made 8 wraps using 8 inch whole wheat tortillas.

Total calories = 2140 calories8 
servings = 268 calories per wrap

CARROT SANDWICHES and my day of penance…

I originally came here to help with my aunt who has advanced Parkinson’s disease.  She still believes that she can use these things, yet she has lived in an assisted living facility for years now and cannot do anything except exist.  Every little thing requires help and loads of time.  Today was slated for going through the craft closet and determine 3 things: keep, throw out (like dried up paints and glues) and donate.  She also wants to go out to lunch (a 3 hour ordeal under the best of circumstances, not to mention she wants McDonalds which I refuse to do) which would prevent us from accomplishing this all in one day so I decided to have lunch prepared in advance.

CARROT SANDWICHES
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 large carrot, grated
1/2 cup minced pecans or walnuts
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
sliced cucumber
oatnut bread

  • In a food processor process carrot until fine pieces.
  • Add cream cheese and process until well blended.
  • Add mayonnaise, garlic salt and walnuts and process again until well blended.
  • Chill overnight.
  • Spread mixture on oatnut bread and arrange cucumbers on top.
  • Enjoy.

Roasted Veggie & Goat Cheese Sandwich ~ Veggie Tales

Hello all!  I love sandwiches, and this one is the perfect meaty alternative to your typical cold cut monster!  That sounds dirty… anyway!
Roasted Veggie & Goat Cheese Sandwich (serves 3)
Ingredients:
3 ciabatta or sour dough rolls
4 ounces goat cheese
6 thinly sliced piece zucchini (long way)
3 plum tomatoes, halved and roasted
6 slices portabello mushrooms
9 fresh basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Directions:
  • Before assembling the sandwich, preheat oven to 400. 
  • Halve plum tomatoes and brush with half the olive oil, and add some salt and pepper. 
  • Roast in oven for about 40 minutes. 
  • Add mushrooms and zucchini to a new pan and brush with the rest of the salt and pepper and oil. 
  • Let roast for another 20 minutes. 
  • Let vegetables cool out of oven, drizzle balsamic on them and let sit. 
  • Assemble the pieces of bread as follows: Spread 1 ounce goat cheese on each sandwich top. 
  • Add basil, roasted tomatoes, zucchini, and mushrooms to the bottom 
  • Add the breads together carefully and presto!
Meet me, Kris, HERE… for more fun! Happy weekend!

ITALIAN GARLIC SUPREME STROMBOLI aka SANDWICH PIZZA

According to Wikipedia STROMBOLI is: a type of turnover filled with various cheeses, typically mozzarella, Italian meats such as salami, capicola and bresaola or vegetables or a Greek Island or an Ingrid Bergman movie – you choose. The dough is Italian bread dough.
When I was much younger and elderly family friend always told me I looked just like Ingrid Bergman.  I didn’t know then what a compliment that was.
Stromboli is reported to have originated in 1950 in Essington, Tinicum Township just outside of Philadelphia, at Romano’s Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria, by Nazzareno Romano. There, William Schofield supposedly gave it the name, after the movie Stromboli, starring Ingrid Bergman.  Other sources claim the stromboli was the brainchild of Mike Aquino, Sr., and that he created it in Spokane, Washington, in 1954.  The first claim is more credible, with most people remembering the advent of the stromboli at Romano’s Italian Restaurant & Pizzeria in the early 1950s.
No matter what you call it, it is a family favorite around here.
We have a favorite pizza – ITALIAN GARLIC SUPREME from Round Table Pizza.  This pizza is full of pepperoni, Italian sausage, Roma tomatoes, white mushrooms, green onions and lots of chopped garlic and is baked with a blend of 3 cheeses in a creamy garlic sauce.  Unfortunately they are not a national chain.  We have spent horribly disappointing meals  out trying to find a local replacement for this pizza.  I have since decided the best replacement is the one I make myself.  Hubby whole heartily agreed! We decided to push the envelope though and make that same recipe into a sandwich.
ITALIAN GARLIC SUPREME STROMBOLI aka SANDWICH PIZZA
ITALIAN GARLIC SUPREME PIZZA
CRUST
1 cup of warm water (105 degrees)
3 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 teaspoons of honey
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of yeast
  • Put warm water into a bowl. Add salt, sugar and honey and mix well. Add the yeast, mix and let it sit for about 10 minutes.
  • Gradually add the flour and olive oil until well blended.
  • When the mixture gets too heavy to mix, start kneading the dough with your hands.
  • Knead the dough until you have a smooth ball. If the dough cracks it is too dry. Add water bit by bit until if forms a nice smooth ball. If you need to add water or flour, do it by small amounts.
  • Coat the dough with olive oil, place it in a large bowl and cover it with kitchen wrap and a flour sack towel. Let the dough rise for about an hour at room temperature, then push it down again so it deflates. Let it sit for about another hour. Either bake it or refrigerate for later use.
  • Put the dough on a lightly floured surface, put a bit of flour on top and make it into the shape of a pie by stretching it out from the center outwards. Use a rolling pin until the dough is about 1/4″ thick. Punch some holes in the dough with a fork to let the air escape while the pizza is in the oven.
  • Lightly oil a cookie sheet with olive oil and sprinkle with cornmeal.
  • Pre-Bake dough at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.
TOPPINGS 
1 package John Morrell pepperoni
3 Italian sausages, cooked and crumbled 
1 can Contadina tomato paste with basil and oregano or homemade sauce
1/2 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 large bunch green onions, thinly sliced including the majority of the tops
6 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 Roma tomato, diced small
2/3 cup grated mozzarella cheese
2/3 cup grated provolone cheese
2/3 cup grated Romano cheese
Extra light olive oil
  • Whisk together the tomato paste, garlic and 1 teaspoon olive oil to make the sauce.
  • Brush pre-baked dough with a small amount of olive oil and then an even layer of the sauce.
  • Evenly sprinkle the crumbled sausage over the sauce followed by half of the pepperoni.
  • Top with the mushrooms, green onions and tomatoes.
  • Evenly sprinkle the cheese over it all
  • Top with the remaining pepperoni.
  • Roll up and place on the center of the pan.
  • Bake the sandwich pizza at 400-450° F for about 20-25 minutes until the crust is golden.

Stuck in a Time Warp

Back in 1988 I was having a particularly tough time at work- no details, but let’s just say a man was trying to make my life miserable and I needed a mental health day.  I decided to go to a movie that had just been released, Working Girl.  After all, Harrison Ford was in it!  I thought it would be a fun chick flick and bring my spirits up.

I was right.  My spirits saw the underdog, a woman no less, rise above the BS and succeed, or at least get her opportunity to succeed.  So, what is my point?  Do you remember that scene at the very end when Melanie Griffith, er Tess McGill in Working Girl combines Trask and radio to succeed?  It was almost like an Oprah AHA moment!
Well, I had an AHA, or Trask/radio idea! Chili and Grilled Cheese.  You eat cheese on your chili don’t you?  So, why not eat chili on your cheese, grilled cheese that is.

There’s no real recipe here – you get the picture!

Chicken Egg Salad Sandwiches

Chicken salad is one of my favorites.  It’s so versatile and quick to make. This is a fairly simple basic chicken salad. I often add fruit and other flavorings but was in the mood for something simple and this did the trick. I used the Arnold Select Sandwich Thins today but I often put this on a whole wheat tortilla too. It’s also nice just set over a bed of lettuce greens if you’re low carbing it.

Chicken Egg Salad Sandwiches
2 cups chopped cooked chicken, about 10 ounces
1/4 cup mayo, light
1 egg, hard cooked and diced
3 tablespoon celery, chopped
2 tablespoons onion, minced
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Lettuce
5 – 100 calories Arnold Selects Sandwich Thins or 100 calorie whole wheat tortillas.

  • Combine chopped chicken, mayo, egg, celery, salt and pepper. 
  • Mix well. 
  • Spread about 1/3 cup chicken salad on a 100 calorie sandwich thin or a 100 calorie whole wheat tortilla with lettuce.

Total calories = 1543 calories
5 sandwiches = 309 calories per sandwich or wrap

PHILLY STROMBOLI

Here’s what you’ll need: 

Lay out 2 loaves of the frozen bread in the morning.  Spray a baking dish with cooking spray, put the loaves in the dish and then cover it with tin foil.  Let these loaves sit for about 7 hours.

Philly Stromboli
1 frozen Rhodes bread loaf
1 green pepper, cut into strips
1 cup fresh mushrooms
1 onion, cut into strips
6 slices of Provolone cheese
Garlic
Basil (to taste)
Salt and Pepper (to taste)

Directions:  Put out bread loaf in the AM, per directions. After it has risen, push out onto a LIGHTLY sprayed cookie sheet (cover whole sheet). Layer the above ingredients and top with spices to taste. Roll up the sides and ends of the bread to enclose ingredients like an envelope.
Press seams to seal.

Flip loaf over so seams are down. Bake (preheated) 375 for about 20min. Allow to cool 5min before slicing and serve. Can add different cheeses, salami, etc as your family prefers. Enjoy!

*Makes great leftovers, too.

Modifications:
-I actually had mushrooms but forgot to add them!

Cut up the onion, garlic and green peppers.
Uncover the risen loaves.  
Lightly spray a cookie pan with cooking spray and put one of the loaves on it.  
Spread the dough out all on the cookie pan.
Sliced up a package of deli roast beef and lay it out on top of the dough.
Lay the onions, garlic, and peppers on top.
Place the cheese on top and roll the dough up.
Place in a 375 degree preheated oven for about 30 minutes.  
What you’ll end up with:

Cooking The Italian Way – Focaccia

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Here’s something that’s going to blow your mind.

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I used to be a picky eater.  Very picky. 

In fact, I would say that for most of my childhood I was only marauding as an Italian. 

Any true Italian family would have disowned me, what with my distaste for tomato sauce, fish, and sausage, among many other things.  But my parents dealt pretty well, much to their credit. 

(And now I’m getting it back tenfold, as my palate has expanded so much that I can’t attempt to cook something for them without realizing that it has some spice or vegetable that my father doesn’t like.  I.e. it HAS a vegetable in it and therefore he doesn’t like it.)

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When I was eight, my father was sent on a business trip to Italy for three weeks (he works for an Italian bank). 

To which my mother responded, “Oh no you didn’t.”

And so all four of us – my mom, my dad, my brother, and I (my sister hadn’t been born yet) – ended up on a transatlantic flight headed straight for the old country.  

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We stayed for six weeks, meandering through the city of Torino and then the small beachside town of Chiavari.  And while I actually do remember a fair portion of the trip, especially considering how young I was, the thing that stands out most in my mind was the focaccia. 

Now, this may be because this was all I would eat for the entire trip.  I hated the pizza.  I hated the pasta.  I was obviously young and stupid,  And delusional. 

But the focaccia?  Oh my lord that was good.  Sometimes when I close my eyes and think really hard, I can still taste it.  Salty.  Olive oil-y.  The kind of good that, when you bite into it, you know everything must be right in the world.  At least for that second in space and time.
Though I’ve searched high and low, I’m pretty sure focaccia that good doesn’t exist here in the US.  That stuff they serve you in restaurants doesn’t even come close.

This recipe that I’m sharing with you, however, is one of the best renditions I’ve found so far.  It’s not the exact flavor and texture, but, to be fair, I’m pretty sure that’s because there’s some secret ingredient that the Italians are putting in the bread (crack, cocaine, heroin…who knows.  Who cares?  It’s totally worth it.) to make it taste so good. 

I’ve sent a few private investigators over to Italy to figure it out.  But so far all of them have come back twenty pounds heavier, extremely content, but with little to no insight into “the focaccia problem”, as I call it.  When you want something done, you should do it yourself, I guess. 

So until I have a chance to get myself over to Italy, this is going to have to suffice.  Make it.  And dream with me.
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Before I get to the recipe, I just want to share with all of you a fun, new FREE e-cookbook that has come out (featuring a few recipes by yours truly).  The e-cookbook features smart schooltime recipes for snacks and lunch food that are fast, easy, and healthy.  Guaranteed kid-tested, mother-approved kind of stuff.  You can download it here.

Focaccia
Makes 1 loaf, adapted from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures

1 1/2 cups warm water
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus extra for drizzling)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
3 1/2 cups (14 3/4 oz) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon instant yeast
4 teaspoons Italian seasoning mix

Spray a 13 x 9 pan with cooking spray then drizzle 1 to 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over the bottom of the pan.

Place the water, olive oil, salt, flour and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Beat on high speed for about 1 minute.  The dough will be smooth, elastic and sticky.

Transfer the dough to the prepared baking pan.  With oil or water on the tip of your fingers (don’t use more flour, you want the dough to remain sticky), press the dough into the bottom of the pan, nudging to get it all the way into the corners.  Cover the pan and let the dough rise for about 60 minutes, or until it is puffy.

While the dough rises, preheat oven to 375 F. 

Once risen, uncover the pan and use your fingers to make dimples all over the dough (you may need a bit of oil on your fingers if the dough is too sticky).  Drizzle the dough lightly with olive oil and sprinkle it with the Italian seasoning.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown.  Remove the pan to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes, then turn the focaccia out of the pan (otherwise the bottom crust will get soggy).  Serve warm or at room temperature. 

I made the focaccia into a grilled eggplant, tomato, and fresh mozzarella sandwich.  Amazing!

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