Sourdough Sandwich Bread

I think 2020 easily wins the title Year of the Sourdough!  Everyone was baking sourdough breads and for good reason.  If you run out of yeast and can't get to the store but have plenty of flour on hand, within a week you can have a nice sourdough starter ready to make a wide variety of sourdough delights!  However, there is another reason to use sourdough.  It is easily digested so for those like myself not tolerating commercial breads, sourdough is very well tolerated.  If you have this problem, another bread line to try if you don't like the tang of sourdough is bread made with sprouted flours.   Of note, sprouted flours should not be used for sourdough but both are very good options.

Most folks think of sourdough artisan breads as rustic boules, often with fancy cut lines and for the most part they are.  The aeroles are large, the crust chewy and there's that unmistakable tang.  Sourdough bread does make a wonderful grilled cheese sandwich!

Keeping a sourdough starter means daily feeding that result in sourdough discard.  It's called discard because it is not active enough for bread baking but that doesn't mean you can't use it.  Some folks toss this discard while others bake other goodies with it.  I have two starters which means I have a lot of sourdough discard!  One of the ways I like to use this discard is sourdough sandwich bread.

This particular recipe uses a sourdough levain.  A levain is made using sourdough discard and other ingredients, then left to ripen for 12 hours prior to making the bread.  Unlike the sourdough artisan breads, this bread has no characteristic tang.  It's soft with small aeroles.  The only difference between the two loaves is one was brushed with butter while still hot and the other not.  I wanted to see which one we liked better.  Definitely brushed with butter was the winner!

I tested the bread by making grilled cheese sandwiches.  Mine was filled with two cheeses, swiss chard, red onions and roast beef.  Hubby's was a Monte Cristo (French toast) filled with two cheeses and roast beef slices.  Both sandwiches were amazing!  Of note, this sandwich bread has a higher longevity of close to a week in comparison to artisan sourdough bread that usually lasts three days maximum.  Any leftover sandwich bread can easily be made into croutons or bread crumbs.
 

Ciabatta Sandwiches

Years ago, I relished running about a block from our house to our local bakery.  I could see the roof of the bakery from my bedroom window!  It was one of my favourite local haunts.  I could always tell when they were baking fresh bread as the aroma filled the air.  At that time, a loaf of fresh baked bread cost 50¢.  The local bakery had the best doughnuts I've ever tasted.  They also made a limited variety of buns, mainly dinner rolls and crusty rolls.

The beloved bakery of my childhood is no more, having ceased the bakery portion of operations several years ago.  I still love fresh baked breads, most of them homemade.  Our local No Frills brings in fresh made breads (preservative free) from a bakery the next town over.  Their breads are very good, made much the same as I do at home with fresh ingredients and no preservatives, artificial colours or flavourings and no HFCS.

Ciabatta bread (slipper bread) is an Italian yeast bread traditionally formed into elongated, broad, flat loaves.  This bakery makes ciabatta bread but shaped into triangular buns, perfect for sandwiches.

The kids were down for a visit so I used ciabatta buns for make-your-own sandwiches for lunch.  Make-your-own sandwiches always go over well.  I borrowed the idea from various luncheons we have attended.  Instead of actually making the sandwiches then serving, the components are set out on serving trays along with condiments for each person to assemble their sandwich as they choose.  This presentation was quite popular with out kids and continues to be popular with our grandkids as well as guests.

I filled one serving tray with ciabatta buns (above).  Another tray held rolled cooked turkey breast slices, Swiss and cheddar cheeses.  Any lunch meat or cheese slices would have worked.  The meat and cheese tray can be made as simple or as elabourate as desired but I usually keep it simple.

The topping tray can vary as well.  I usually add lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Red or green leaf lettuce adds just the perfect crunch and flavour.  Romain lettuce works nicely too as do other salad greens.  I normally don't  use iceberg lettuce as it doesn't have much flavour.  I also like using red onions as they add a bit of colour along with flavour.  There are so many varieties of slicing tomatoes that add not only colour but also flavour.   I prefer the heirloom slicing tomato varieties but there are a few good hybrids as well.

Not pictured are the additional condiments like mayonnaise, mustard, and horseradish.  Fresh alfalfa sprouts, mustard greens and pickles are also a nice addition but really anything goes.  A separate pickle or vegetable tray works nicely to complete the meal. 
 

The ciabatta buns make rather large sandwiches, larger than a good sized burger.  It is a rather filling sandwich but lower in fat and calories.  The assembled ciabatta bun sandwiches were delightfully delicious served with fresh baby cucumber pieces and Best Bread & Butter Pickles. 

Little Miss A, our second grandkid really enjoyed creating her own ciabatta sandwich.  Even cut in half, it was still triangular shape like the adults.  Part of the fun for kids is letting them make their own choices as to what they want to put on their sandwiches.  The make-your-own sandwich presentation is very kid friendly!  Simply put healthy choices on the serving platters then let them make their own creations.  It's a fun way to get your kids to eat healthy with very little effort.

Open Faced Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

My Mom was a ripe old age of 56 when I came to be and let me tell you she could cook!  She had been through the Great Depression and two World Wars.  More importantly she was a child of 11 from poor immigrant farmers.  She was actually born on the ship between England and Canada, but that is a whole other story!  My gosh she could cook, good old fashioned home style cooking.  All those recipes were tucked safely in her head, sure to please and yet long forgotten as the dementia became worse.  My Mom originally cooked on coal and wood but when I was a kid, she cooked on natural gas.  Both the burners and oven needed to be lit using a match.  Her household chore as a child had been to stoke the fire so to her the natural gas was a treat.  She was also quite frugal so her cook stove was narrower than the normal 30 - inches.  Part of this was due to her refusing to buy more than what she needed but part was not wanting to look pretentious to her family and friends.

Melted cheese on bread is a classic.  Even Johanna Spyri (1881) wrote about how much Heidi enjoyed the melted cheese with bread her Grandfather often made her.  When I was growing up, I never knew what a grilled cheese sandwich was, or at least they way grilled cheese sandwiches are usually made.  My Mom made these amazing open faced grilled cheese done under the broiler of her gas stove.  There is just something comforting about these sandwiches.  The cheese is warm and gooey while the bread is crunchy around the edges and soft in the middle.

All you need to make these delicious open faced grilled cheese sandwiches is bread and cheddar cheese.  Don't use American cheese slices as real cheddar really makes these sandwiches delightful.  I either slice or grate the cheddar cheese.  Then I place sliced bread on a Silpat lined baking sheet and place the cheese on top.  I bake at 350°F until the cheese melts then turn on the broiler and broil until the cheese starts to bubble and the bread is golden brown around the edges.  I place the cooked sandwiches on wire cooling rack for serving.  This prevents the bottom from becoming soggy.

While I have been able to get good results using an electric oven, the results are considerably better using a gas oven.  Electric heat is a dry heat which is fine for certain foods and for most of our married life, we have had an electric cook stove and oven.  However, electric heat can dry certain foods especially baked fish and foods like the open faced grilled cheese sandwiches.  When natural gas is burning, it releases water into the air which is quite noticeable on cold days by the condensation on the windows.  When the oven is first lit, there is condensation on the oven door as well.  I think this bit of moisture is what makes the difference, giving better results. for a lot of baked foods.

The Simple Sandwich

The guys spent a week with us during our fall vacation in October.  This has become an annual golfing event for the guys, my husband included who would live on the golf course given his druthers.  The guys played a round of golf (18 holes) each day they were there.  There are two award winning golf courses in our resort but unlike some golf courses there is no cart service for food or drinks.  There is however, beautiful eye candy is a gorgeous setting peppered with gators and other wildlife.  Guaranteed, when golfing there you are going to see at least one gator and in fact we see on average three or more gators daily.  

The guys take their own drinks and sandwiches.  I have yet to make bread at our vacation home as I don't have a KitchenAid stand mixer and can no longer knead dough by hand.  Publix has a lovely in-store bakery so we end up buying fresh baked bread there.  We tend to buy the sourdough bread but the guys like the butter bread.  We picked up a couple of loaves of butter bread, lunch meat, sliced cheese, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions and alfalfa sprouts along with condiments.

Each day they made their sandwiches and drinks just after a home cooked breakfast.  It was rather impressive to see the four guys getting things ready for their round of golf.  It was an assembly line for the sandwiches!  They were simple sandwiches yet healthy and nutritious, perfect for on the golf course.  The sandwiches and drinks were carefully packed in a cooler on our golf cart with the other golf cart carrying any extras.

I'm seriously considering bringing our own sandwiches the next time we visit Disney World.  I already bring a water bottle (Britta with filter) with me when we go there and since we have an annual pass, like most we tend to arrive early and leave late.  I don't mind spending at Disney World but seriously, bottles of water do tend to add up and they are always cold, something I really don't like.  I also don't like that the empty bottles add to waste so bringing my own re-usable water bottle is an eco-friendly solution.  Since we are there all day, a sandwich for lunch is nice because we know we already have reservations for dinner so I really don't mind saving a bit on lunch without having to wait in line or finding somewhere to grab a bit of lunch.

It's hot in Florida or at least it is when we tend to be there so sandwiches are always the perfect lunch meal.  We seldom buy breakfast or lunch when we are at our vacation home because both are always less expensive made at home.  That is always something to keep in mind when on vacation.  If you reduce the cost of breakfast and lunch by making your own, you can splurge on dinner and that's where you really want to do a bit of splurging when on vacation!

Hockeytown Cafe (Detroit Metro Airport) - The Start of Our Fall 2012 Vacation

My husband and I own a vacation home in Florida where we spend anywhere from three to five weeks per vacation in the spring, fall and winter.  In all, it amounts to about 3 months per year.  Logistically this creates a bit of a culinary dilemna at both residences during the time we prepare to travel to one or the other.  When we are preparing to leave for our vacation home, we don't buy any perishable food for a week or so before.  This means if we are out of eggs a week before we leave, we simply don't cook anything requiring eggs.  I clean out the refrigerator, with anything we didn't use (eg. produce, eggs) going to one of our kids then wash the refrigerator from top to bottom.  We we arrive back home the refrigerator is pretty much empty except for condiments and a can of coffee.  On the vacation home side, depending on the time period we arrive to a completely bare refrigerator.  We rent our vacation home out when we aren't there so cannot leave anything in the refrigerator or freezer.  We do store a small amount of non-perishable food in a locked closet.  We are able to leave food in the refrigerator between the fall and winter vacation which helps somewhat.

We left for our fall vacation on October 2, 2012 return home on October 23.  We travel light with only backpacks, computer case and purse.  That means we don't take much in the way of food with us either way.  The night before we usually eat out so as to not create any garbage in the house.  Travel day is a light breakfast with coffee or tea, home canned soup or other home canned quick meal and dinner at the airport.

We usually fly out of Detroit Metro Airport when going to our vacation home so enjoy eating at the Hockeytown Cafe.  Airport food in general tends to be a bit more expensive. The food is good and prices reasonable.  My husband ordered the Double Play Burger which consists of two half pound patties of seasoned fresh ground beef served with lettuce, tomato, red onion and choice of cheese.  It came with a side of nacho chips and salsa.  At $11.95 this was a rather good deal.  He declared the burger delicious and filling!


I ordered the Chicken Caesar Wrap ($8.95).  It consisted of a grilled sliced chicken breast wrapped in a flour lavash with romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing, croutons and Parmesan cheese served with a dill pickle, nachos and salsa.  A lavash is an Armenian flatbread similar to a Mexican flour tortilla but rolled into a larger rectangular shape rather than a round.  Traditionally, a lavish is shaped then slapped against the sides of a clay oven to cook.  It is made from flour, salt and water.  This was a large wrap!  It was very tasty.  I ate one half of the wrap then popped the other half into a zipper sandwich bag to enjoy during the flight.

Chicken Caesar wraps are one of my favourite summertime meals.  I keep packets of grilled and pan fried chicken breast strips in the freezer specifically for this purpose.  I usually do up a batch of 15 to 20 chicken breasts at a time.  I like to grill (preferred method) or pan fry the chicken breasts with a light seasoning of lemon pepper that really accents the flavour of the Caesar dressing nicely.  Once the chicken is cooked, I let cool enough to set the juices then slice into strips and place in the refrigerator to finish cooling.  When the chicken is fully cooled, I package into quart vacuum sealer bags, vacuum seal and freeze.  With these on hand it is always easy to whip up a quick yet delicious wrap with little effort!

Shredded Rump Roast Sandwiches

Last Wednesday I removed the last of the beef and venison from the large chest freezer then unplugged it for cleaning in preparation for the arrival of our beef on the hoof purchase.  If you are not familiar with that term, it means buying the cow when it is still a calf.  The calf is raised grass fed and hormone free by one of our friends then we arrange to take it to slaughter at an abattoir we have dealt with for years.   We pay our friend directly for the actual cow, then pay a butcher & disposal fee and a cut & wrap fee to the abattoir.  The abattoir last Friday that our beef was ready so it is a good thing I had the freezer cleaned and ready for filling yesterday when I picked up the beef.
 

The final roast from last year's purchase was a rump roast.  This is a tougher cut of beef suitable for braising.  I used the pressure cooker to tenderize the roast much the same as I did for the round roast except I used more Sweet Baby Rays and no water for a thick, rich sauce.  My intent was to can up the shredded beef but there was only enough to fill about four 500 ml jars, hardly worth running the pressure canner so I made shredded rump roast sandwiches with half of the meat mixture and froze the remainder.  Shredded meat freezes nicely and reheats well.  It is an ideal quick start for a variety of meals.

Shredded beef or pork are long time ribfest favourites as well as being a popular southern US states' restaurants popular menu item usually as a sandwich meat.   However, you can make shredded meat for sandwiches from other meats like venison, moose and chicken.  

The meat is cooked long and slow usually on a wood fired barbecue.  I prefer using the outdoor grill in the warm weather and the pressure cooker in the cooler weather but you can get similar results using the oven or slow cooker.  The meat is ready for shredding when it falls off the bone and is melt in your mouth tender then shredded using two forks.  Once shredded the meat can be used as is, or cooked further slowly in the oven with a braising sauce (eg. bbq sauce or au jus) or either may be served topping the shredded meat or as a dipping sauce.  You can use a commercial or homemade bbq sauce, gravy or simply seasonings to get a tasty au jus.  

I served the shredded rump roast on soft Kaiser buns with homemade Miracle Whip, red leaf lettuce, Provolone cheese and a thin slice on onion.  It was a tasty sandwich, packed full of flavour!  The sandwiches looked lovely as well.

Philly Cheese Steak

Years ago one of our quick meals was philly cheese steak.  M & M Meat Shops sold boxes of the prepared meat, thin cut and ready to cook for this delicious sandwich.  Unfortunately, they no longer sell the philly cheese steak meat so there are three ways to get it: slice it yourself, have the butcher shop slice it for you or buy from a restaurant supply.  The key thing about the meat is it is very thinly sliced.

My husband brought home philly cheese steaks for dinner a couple of nights ago.  A very good fried of ours and experienced restauranteur who's specialty is English style fish and chips has just opened a snack bar.  She is from England and oh my gosh you should taste her steak and kidney pies!

Philly cheese steak is a type of sandwich using very thinly sliced beef with a cheese sauce.  She makes the cheddar cheese sauce from scratch which is basically a thick white sauce with cheddar cheese added.  Sautéed green peppers and onion add a lovely flavour.  The filling is piled into a toasted hot dog bun.  She makes her philly cheese steaks very similar to the way I make mine. 

One of my kitchen splurge this spring is an electric meat slicer.  I have been convinced I need one of these for quite some time for custom cutting thin, uniform sandwich meat slices.   As kitchen appliances go, a meat slicer is not expensive.  Canadian Tire put them on sale for $69 a couple of times a year.  It is an extremely useful appliance if you are like us, using whole cuts of meat we cure and cook or simply cook rather than buying store bought.  The slicer will compliment my big kitchen splurge this year, a smoker!  I am so excited...

Ham Melts (Breakfast Sandwich)

I volunteer at a local school in the Catholic School Board each Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning for the Breakfast Club (Lend a Hand).  I am also volunteering at a local school in the Public School Board on Tuesday and Thursday morning for the month of February to cover for a couple of volunteers who are vacationing in the sunny south.  Both school breakfast programs are part of the Ontario Student Nutrition Program (OSNP).  While this program is funded through the Ontario government, it is managed by volunteers.  Donations are gladly accepted providing the food meets the nutritional standards of the program.

Both schools have very limited cooking equipment which restricts what you can cook.  The Catholic school has a microwave oven, two toasters, an electric tea kettle and a blender.  We are not allowed to cook anything in the school other than in the toaster or microwave because there was a complaint  regarding cooking odours EVEN though there is a day care attached where cooking is allowed with cooking odours wafting their way through the school halls.  There is a fridge and freezer but no dishwasher so all the plates, bowls and cups are disposable.  The public school has two electric griddles, two toasters, and microwave oven.  There dishwasher, fridge and stove so we use regular plates and bowls but disposable cups and cutlery there.

The typical breakfast offerings at both schools depending on the day are: dry cereal, oatmeal (packet style), ham melts, English muffin with margarine (both schools) or cream cheese (public school), a variety of fruits and vegetables, yogurt tubes, fruit cups, orange juice, chocolate and white milk, pancakes, waffles and French toast.  Left over pancakes and French toast from the secondary school breakfast program are brought over for the Catholic school when they are available.  One of the local doughnut shops donates muffins occasionally as well.

Ham melts are a huge hit with kids at both schools!  They are quick and easy to make.  We use a toaster at both schools to toast the English muffin then slather with margarine, top with two slices of cooked ham and either a processed cheese slice (Catholic school) or freshly sliced cheese (public school).  We also add scrambled egg on the sandwich at the public school if a child asks for it.   Once assembled the ham melt is warmed through in the microwave.

I made two ham melts for my husband's breakfast a couple of days ago.  My version differs from what we make at the schools because we do not use margarine (ever!) and very rarely use any kind of processed cheese.  I didn't use butter on the English muffins after toasting, just simply topped with ham and a blend of mozzarella and Asiago cheese.  Then I warmed the sandwiches in the microwave.  He liked them.

Breakfast sandwiches are very quick and easy to make even at home.  You can make them healthier by using whole wheat or multigrain English muffins, sliced or grated cheese and eliminate butter or margarine.  Add scrambled eggs for an extra protein boost.  Homemade breakfast sandwiches are a fraction of the cost than those from the fast food restaurants and doughnut shops.  Make it easy by keeping all the ingredients in storage containers stacked in your fridge to just grab and assemble.  Surprisingly you can even keep scrambled eggs in a container as well.  They reheat nicely on breakfast sandwiches.

The Perfect Grilled Cheese Sandwich

My Mom (not biological) was 59 years old when I came to live with her.  She was a fabulous, home style Canadian cook with wonderful dishes all stored in her head.  Then she was diagnosed with diabetes so the cooking slowed to a crawl and Alzheimer's took away all her amazing recipes.  She never had kids of her own and never learned to drive.  Three times a year we took a bus to the nearest city where we always had lunch at the lunch counter at the Metropolitan.  I always ordered the grilled cheese sandwich with a chocolate milkshake with the very few exceptions I ordered my other favourite sandwich, the BLT. 

As a newlywed I was determined to make the perfect grilled cheese sandwich at home.  The thing is grilled cheese sandwiches aren't actually grilled, they are pan fried or cooked on a griddle.  Some use a panini press or electric sandwich maker but the very best, home style grilled cheese sandwiches are made in the fry pan.  It is the only way to get that delicious golden crust! 

Don't even think of using processed cheese slices to make grilled cheese sandwiches!  Always use good quality cheddar or cheese of your choice.  We prefer cheddar for plain grilled cheese sandwiches.  The sandwiches are assembled on a cutting board.  We light butter one side of the bread then put the butter side down, add slices of cheese from the block of cheese, then place another slice of bread on top and lightly butter the exposed side.  That's it.  We use a medium heat then cook until golden brown on both sides.  The Paderno EcoPan outperformed my restaurant grade Teflon non-stick fry pans.  I was extremely pleased!

Just look at that golden, mouthwatering grilled cheese sandwich.  Isn't it gorgeous?  Served with home canned tomato soup, cuddled up on the couch watching Coronation Street together - well that is just the perfect end of a day on a cold autumn evening. 

Home cooking need not be expensive, time consuming or fancy.  It needs to be good, period.  It's those meals that feed the soul embellishing our memories forever.  I'm very blessed to have such wonderful memories of the great food I've shared with my Mom, my family and my extended family and friends.  That's what home cooking is all about!  I dearly hope I have passed that legacy on to our children and now grandchildren.  'Tis a true treasure, that it is!

Peameal Bacon Buns Tray

There are times in the kitchen where saving both time and energy is much appreciated.  So it was during our recent move.  The thing is you have to eat and I like food presented nicely but with the kitchen and dining areas in semi-chaos mode I decided to take a couple of short cuts.  Peameal bacon is one of my favourite quick cook meats.  Not only is it tasty, it is lower in fat and calories than regular bacon.

I had left-over peameal bacon roast from my first day cooking with natural gas.  Well, I really shouldn't say my first day cooking with natural gas as I grew up cooking with natural gas and one house we rented eons ago had a natural gas range, but it has been a very long time since I have cooked with natural gas.

I cut part of the left-over roast in half then sliced it so it would fit on the store bought dinner rolls.  Then I cut pre-sliced Swiss cheese in half and added thinly sliced iceberg lettuce to the tray.  Not pictured is the honey mustard and Miracle Whip that was served on the side.  This was a quick to prepare snack tray that used minimal kitchen resources at lunchtime during the move.  It was a very quick clean-up as well, something I really appreciated!  I repeated the peameal bacon tray the following day but on a larger scale for entertaining.  The guys really enjoyed it!

Bread and Pizza Sub Baked on Outdoor Grill

We are in the midst of a heat wave here with temperatures soaring into the 90's (ºF) but with the humidex it feels over the 100's (ºF).  The air is so heavy that breathing outdoors is difficult.  Environment Canada has issued ozone alerts, smog alerts and humidex warnings.  Cooling centres have been opened in larger communities while anyone who can is staying indoors in the air conditioning.  This is the type of weather that I don't like to do much cooking that will put an additional strain on the air conditioning.

I was browsing through the easy recipes on the Life Made Delicious website.   A recipe for cooking a sub sandwich on the grill caught my interest so I decided to put my own spin on it.  I made a batch of French bread dough then divided into two pieces.  After shaping and proofing one loaf was placed in the oven while the other went onto the grill.  I know I should not have used the oven but it was the only way to compare oven baked to grill baked bread.  I've often mentioned here how I use the grill as an oven in the summer months but haven't shown much as to how I actually use it. 

I turned both burners on to heat the grill then turned one burner off so the bread would bake on indirect heat to prevent excess browning on the bottom of the loaf.  I placed the prepared loaf on a heavy, parchment paper lined oven pan.  Our grill is quite old as grills go, now onto it's eighth year of heavy year round use so a couple of things like the auto ignite and thermometer no longer work.  From experience though, I'm able to get the grill to the proper temperature for baking bread.  We've already bought a new dual fuel grill (more on that later) for when we move.  It's sitting safely in the crate in the garage.

Part way through the baking process I noticed the bottom getting a bit darker than I wanted.   So I carefully place a cake rack under the baking pan, raising it just enough from the grates to slow the browning.  The loaf of bread was looking good while filling the air with the wonderful aroma of baking bread.  Meanwhile the kitchen was smelling yummy as well.  I just love the smell of baking bread!

I've always wanted a wood fired outdoor oven for baking breads and pizza.  That just might be a goal for our new house if we ever get this house sold.

I don't bake breads according to time but rather to doneness using the tap test.  Pictured are the two loaves of bread.  The oven baked loaf (top) was a bit smaller than the grill baked bread (bottom).  The oven baked loaf was destined for that night's dinner and sandwiches the next day.  The grill baked bread was just a little over a foot long, ideal for my grilled sub experiment.  The crust was nicely browned on both loaves of bread.  There was no difference in texture. 

Breads baked on the grill have a very subtle smokiness.   It is quite possible with breads baked on the grill to add a touch of additional smokiness if desired.  This is easily done using a small foil smoking packet of soaked wood chips of your choice.  The packet should be small enough to give just a hint of the smokiness, not overpower the flavour of the bread.  The hint of hickory in grill baked bread pairs nicely sliced ham for sandwiches. 

Years ago when my husband and I were dating we used to get pizza subs at a little family run pizzeria, Bella Pizza.  The subs were wrapped in foil and warmed through in their pizza oven. They were delicious!  Unfortunately, the place closed down over twenty years ago so those pizza subs are only fond memories now.  I decided to make the grill baked loaf of bread into a pizza sub with my husband's help.  We sliced the loaf of bread in half the topped each piece with homemade pizza sauce.   We covered the bottom slice with sliced mozzarella cheese and cooked ham.  We wrapped the sub in foil then placed it on the grill to warm through (about 10 minutes).

The pizza sub was quite good!  It was a very quick meal to put together at about 15 minutes from start to serving.  There was minimal clean-up and no heat from cooking in the kitchen, perfect for a blistering hot summer day.  Subs done this way would make for a great camping meal as well.  I will definitely be experimenting with more subs on the grill!

Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Our cooking style at our vacation home is a simpler version of that at our main residence.  There are a few reasons for this.  First we do not have some of the kitchen equipment there that we are used to using at home.  We are slowly getting there but still haven't bought a KitchenAid stand mixer, percolator, panini press, higher quality knives so basically the higher end equipment we are used to using.  Part of this is due to needing certain equipment for our short term tenants while needing storage for items we don't want them to use.  A second problem is cooking there (central Florida) has to be adjusted somewhat to keep heat out of the house, reducing the strain on the air conditioning.  The final problem is the duration of our stays so we want to minimize leftovers that can't be brought back or stored.

We eat a lot of homemade breads.  I don't have either a stand mixer or breadmachine at the vacation home so have not made bread there yet.  We have discovered that both Wal-mart and Publix have nice, fresh bread selections from their in store bakeries.  The breads are more expensive than homemade but for now it means I don't have to worry about how to store the raw ingredients when the house is rented out.

We bought a loaf of Asiago bread.  Note the beautiful air pockets in the bread.  They are formed from the gluten in the bread dough.   The air pockets can be increased in homemade breads by using a high gluten flour or adding a dough enhancer such as gluten flour or lecithin granules.

Grilled cheese sandwiches fall into the category of comfort food but that doesn't mean they have to be boring.  It is surprising how much a different bread can accent the flavour!  The bread had a lovely Asiago flavour that melded nicely with the Swiss and Cheddar cheeses.  Again this is taking advantages of layering the flavours.  The rule of thumb when layering flavours is to use three.  In this case three cheese flavours were layered resulting in a delightful grilled cheese sandwich.  The bread really made this sandwich though with the deep air pockets capturing the wonderful flavours.  Doesn't it look scrumptious?

Italian Seasoned Bread

Quite some time ago I went from buying store bought breads to making my own as much as possible.  This helps me to avoid the preservatives and additives that I don't like as well as allows me a bit of creative freedom to make a loaf of bread you could not buy in the stores.  I make a lot of homemade breads and I am quite the tweaker.  Once you understand the principles behind bread making tweaking is not so mysterious.  One of my most tweaked bread recipes is my basic white bread that really was a fluke in the first place.

Years ago I had a bread-machine.  I now make all of my breads using a KitchenAid® stand mixer.  All of my tried and true bread-machine recipes have be converted to using the stand mixer.  It is amazing how much you can tweak a standard bread recipe and still come up with a great loaf of bread. 

The Italian Seasoned Bread was very much a tweak as I went loaf of bead.  The end result was anything but a plain loaf of bread.  I added lecithin which is a dough enhancer.  The results were quite favourable so I will try it with my next loaf of 100% Whole Wheat Bread.

Italian Seasoned Bread
by  Garden Gnome

1⅔ c water
1 egg
2 tbsp skim milk powder
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp honey
2 tsp sea salt
4 tbsp lecithin
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tbsp tomato powder
4½ c unbleached flour
1½ instant dry yeast
olive oil
butter

Mix dry ingredients in bowl of stand mixer.  Stir wet ingredients together then with mixer on setting 1 slowly pour wet ingredients into dry.  Add extra flour as needed to get the dough to clear the bowl.  Increase the speed for kneading.  Knead until dough is smooth and elastic.  Rub dough lightly with olive oil.  Place in bowl and cover with damp towel.  Allow dough to proof until doubled.  Punch down and form into a loaf shape then place in loaf pan.  Cover with damp towel and allow to double.  Bake at 400ºF until golden brown and loaf sounds hollow when tapped with the back of a spoon.  Remove from oven.  Tip loaf onto cooling rack.  Brush crust with butter.

A few years ago I coined the term Mom's Power Sandwich.  A power sandwich is usually served on whole grain or multi-grain homemade bread.  The filling is meant to be nutritious and healthy so the focus is on home grown preferably fresh picked and vegetables. 

I made a power sandwich using the Italian seasoned bread.  The filling consisted of leaf lettuce, sliced ham, tomatoes, onions and condiments.  The outcome was a delectable sandwich sure to please! 

Now, you just can't go wrong with a sandwich made with home made bread!  Turning the sandwich into a power sandwich is just a win win.  I can't wait for the fresh vegetables from our garden to start producing again so I can enjoy power sandwiches on a regular basis made with homemade bread.

A Simple Tuna Sandwich Using Fill'ems

A good portion of the breads we eat at home are homemade but that doesn't stop me from checking out what is new in the bread aisle.  Sometimes I even buy a new item just to see how it is supposed to taste and create a recipe clone if we like it.  About six months ago I noticed a new flat bread that was available in burger bun size except much thinner.  When I was shopping for our Christmas celebration I bought a package of 100% whole wheat Fill'ems that are elongated.

This bread choice is thicker than Greek pita but thinner than regular bread slices or buns.  It is available now in round and oblong shapes meant to replace hamburg and hot dog buns.  They come in a variety of flavours as well.  Each piece will make one sandwich but at about half the calories of 2 slices of bread.

The nice thing about this bread is the versatility.  I wasn't impressed with the price tag though at $3.50 for a 16 count package (22¢ per sandwich) verses $1.69 for a loaf of 24 slice bread (14¢ per sandwich).  I used the bread to make basic tuna sandwiches.  What I really did not like was the flavour.  This bread was sweet beyond belief!  I'm sure other flavours are not as sweet but whole wheat bread should only have a hint of sweetness that accents but not distracts from other ingredients in the sandwich.  That was a definite con for this bread.

While this may be the newest range in commercial bread offerings, I'm quickly formulating a way to make this bread at home.  I will start with a Greek pita recipe then work with that to get the shapes I want.  In perspective any yeast bread dough can be used as really this is only a shaping issue.  In fact you can even cut yeast bread dough with cookie cutters for a unique shape and I have two Pampered Chef shaped bread loaf pans.  So the possibilities really are endless when it comes to homemade breads!

Last of the 2010 Brandywine Tomatoes

We eat tomatoes on almost a daily basis in one form or another.  Not only do I grow a lot of tomatoes I also have access to free tomatoes.  The end of the tomato growing season is always bittersweet.  I pick as many tomatoes daily once the threat of frost is near.  As the ADFF approaches I strip the garden of any green tomatoes as well.  These are left to ripen indoors.  With any luck we have garden tomatoes to eat into December. 

There were only a couple semi-green Brandywine tomatoes left.  We were on vacation the last couple of weeks of September and first week of October so I told family and friends to help themselves to any ripe tomatoes.  These are a lovely producing, slicing heirloom tomato perfect for tomato sandwiches.  They have a pinkish tone to them when ripe.  The flavour is quite delicious so I certainly was happy to see them. 

Just look at those gorgeous tomato slices!  Aren't they wonderful looking?  I think they are quite lovely but then I'm a bit partial.  My mouth was watering in anticipation just cutting the slices.

One of the things we missed the most when we lived in Edmonton was decent BLTs.  BLTs are one of our favourite sandwiches!  The only tomatoes available were anemic, hard balls that resembled tomatoes with all the flavour of cardboard.  I also noticed the tomatoes where our vacation home is in the sunny south are about a tasty as those in Edmonton!  Once we run out of home grown tomatoes we can get hot house tomatoes in the grocery stores here in Ontario but they lack the flavour of a good homegrown tomato.  Sadly we will not eat another great BLT (pictured) like we had mid-October this year until the next growing season starts producing.  We can however dream of this wonderful sandwich over the cold winter months.

Two Quick and Easy Summer Sandwiches

When the summer temperature soar and the air is heavy with humidity we don't feel like eating heavy meals.  Sandwiches are perfect for this type of weather because they are quite portable and they don't heat up the kitchen.  They are also quite versatile using any bread and filling you want ranging from cold to hot, plain to fancy and everything in between.

Pita aka pocket bread are ideal for making quick sandwiches.  Pitas are are a bit lighter in calories coming in at 160 calories per pita compared to 2 slices of bread averaging 185 calories.  However, a half pita is sufficient for one large sandwich so that reduces the bread component of the sandwich to 80 calories.  Pitas are also a bit lower in carbohydrates coming in at 10% compared to 12% of sliced bread.  In short pitas are a bit healthier for you.

I stuffed a half of whole wheat pita with red leaf lettuce, sliced ham, red onions, and tomatoes.  I used  new beau monde vegetable dip in place of mayonnaise for a bit more flavour.  Dips aren't just for dipping.  I often use them in sandwiches.  Dips make a good mayonnaise replacement because they are thick and creamy but many have refreshing, light flavours to brighten up any sandwich.

A sandwich press is ideal for making hot sandwiches during the heat of the summer without heating up the kitchen.  The nice thing is there is very little clean-up using a sandwich press either.  Not only do you reduce the heat from cooking but also from the clean-up so it is a summer time win/win.  It's quick and easy as well so this is one small appliance that comes in quite handy during the summer months.

I made this delightful ham and provolone panini for lunch.  I spred the bread slices with new beau monde vegetable dip to add a bit more pizzaz then layered the cheese and meat.  I served the panini with dill pickle spears.  Just look at those lovely grill marks!

Egg Salad Wraps

Sometimes a new spin on an old family favourite is just what's needed to add a bit of spark to the dish.  When it comes to sandwiches it is quite easy to turn them into wraps.  Wraps use flour tortilla shells to form the pocket style wrap.  Flour tortilla shells now come in a variety of flavours ranging from plain to pesto to sun dried tomatoes which really adds to the kinds of wraps you can make.

One of my husband's favourite sandwich fillings is egg salad so I did a little twist on this sandwich. Pictured are the egg salad wraps I made for my husband's Father's Day lunch.  He loves egg salad!  That is a sprig of fresh parsley from the garden as well.  

I use the method for making perfect hard boiled eggs as the base for the egg salad.  Once the eggs are cooked, cooled and peeled I mash them then add finely chopped onions, fresh ground pepper and fresh ground sea salt followed by stirring in Miracle Whip® dressing to get a nice spooning consistency.  The egg salad is then ready for using in sandwiches or wraps.

A Little Cuban Culinary Experience

When we travel and I don't care where it is I want to experience the local cuisine which is directly opposite from my husband who prefers to stay with the tried and true.  Honestly he went to Cuba and seriously never at Cuban food?  In fairness he did bring back a Cuban coconut made by one of the Cuban women and he brought me back Cuban vanilla but he never ate an actual Cuban dish!  There is a  good sized Latino where our vacation home is so finding a Latino restaurant is not difficult.  We had to do laundry since we were waiting on our washer and dryer and right beside the laudromat there was a Latino restaurant.  There is no point in sitting in a laudromat if you can multitask enjoying a nice meal as well!

Tropico Latino Restaurant is located at 5100 US HWY 98 in Lakeland, Florida.  It is small but packs a lot of atmosphere and they are ever so friendly!  The prices are definitely something to talk about as they are well under a lot of the local restaurants. Our meal cost $13.36 plus $2 tip.

We started our meal off with Cafe Cubano (left) for my husband and Cafe Con Leche (right) for myself.  The Cafe Cubano was rich and robust while the Cafe Con Leche was smooth, creamy and sweet.  Heaven I would go back there just for the coffee!  It was a true delight :)

A couple of months ago I blogged about my new panini press (panini grill, sandwich press).  A panini press is a fancier version of a sandwich maker that allows you a greater variety as to what type of sandwich you can make.  I've been on the look-out for more sandwiches that I can make in th panini press.  Both of the sandwiches we ordered were made using a sandwich press.

My husband ordered the Cubano (Cuban sandwich).  The sandwich consisted of ham, roasted pork, tomatoes, lettuce, mustard and Swiss cheese on Cuban bread.  The sandwich was then grilled using a sandwich press.  The Cubano was originally created in cafes serving Cuban workers in Cuba or Cuban communities in Florida.  It remains a very popular sandwich in Miami, Florida.  The Cubano tradition has pickles on it buy my husband ordered his without.  He declared the Cubano quite tasty!

I ordered the Chimichurri (Dominican burger).  The sandwich had a burger pattie, cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions with a tangy tomato, mayonnaise and mustard blend sauce.  It had been grilled using a sandwich press.  This sandwich was a little messy to eat but quite tasty.

Both sandwiches would be very easy to make at home.  Neither have fancy ingredients which makes them easy sandwiches to put together.  The Cubano in particular would be a great way to use left-over roast pork.  If you don't have a sandwich press you can get the same results by placing the sandwich in a hot fry pan then place a heavy weight (eg. heavy skillet) on it.  When the first side is golden brown flip the sandwich replacing the weight until the bread is flattened by about half. 

Turkey Club House Sandwich

We have spent the last several days at our vacation home.  We left here in the wee hours of the morning after a night of entertaining so we were both exhausted when we arrived.  The discouraging thing was we arrived to basically an empty home needing cleaning and with no kitcheware, not so much as a glass.  Somehow after being up for well over 24 hours neither of us were impressed but that really is when it hit home this place was ours.  We headed down to the club house for a quick bite before going shopping for the necessities.

The club house menu has been reduced to mainly sandwich.  Quite frankly eating much more than a sandwich would not have sat well on tired tummies.  We each ordered the turkey club house sandwich on honey whole wheat. This is a very easy summer sandwich to duplicate at home. 

You will need homemade 100% whole wheat bread with honey substituted for the sugar.  Spread each slice with a little mayonnaise then top with turkey (lunchmeat or thin sliced cooked turkey breast) slices, tomatoes, fresh spinach, and a little salt and pepper.  Serve with a side of potato chips for an easy, low cost, 15 minute summer meal.

Monte Cristo Sandwich

Sandwiches have to be one of the most popular meal and snack choices! There are several of our favourite sandwich recipes in the archives. For that reason alone there seems to be no end to the various ways to prepare two pieces of bread with meat in between aka the sandwich. While there are many great ways to make sandwiches that aren't warmed up, there are also endless ways make cooked sandwiches including but not limited to toasting, grilling and using a sandwich press.

Monte Cristo

Last Saturday we went out with friends of ours with stopping for dinner as part of the outing. One of our friends ordered a Monte Cristo sandwich (pictured). This sandwich contains turkey, ham and cheese then dipped in an egg mixture similar to French toast mixture then pan fried. A Monte Cristo is an easy to make sandwich at home.

You will need per sandwich:
note: Use store bought lunch meat or very thin sliced home cooked meat.

2 slices of bread
2 slices Black Forest ham
2 slices turkey breast
2 slices Swiss or Gruyere cheese
butter
egg mixture

egg mixture
3 eggs
⅓ c milk
dash of sea salt

For each sandwich butter one side of the bread. Cover one bread slice with 2 slices of cheese, 2 slices each of ham and turkey slices. Top with the other slice butter side facing the filling. Beat the eggs with milk and salt. Place 2 toothpicks diagonally to across width of sandwich to hold together. Dip the sandwich into the egg mixture. Fry in a pre-heated fry pan or griddle with a little butter until golden brown. Remove from fry pan or griddle. Cut in half. Remove toothpicks prior to serving.