1. food and drink
2. desserts and baking

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 20, 2011
HERALD DEMOCRAT
B7
| Food
A big fan of sandwiches? Join the club!
Suddenly, sandwiches are
big.
Big, meaty sandwiches
are the cover boys of April
magazines (Saveur, Food
Network), and the meal
between bread is the star of
two new books. “The Encyclopedia of Sandwiches”
catalogs our most beloved
sandwiches, and “The Big
New York Sandwich Book”
is filled with recipes from
the big city’s biggest chefs.
Think prosciutto, grilled
fennel and pear with Gorgonzola aioli.
If magazines and books
are not enough to vault our
favorite breakfast-lunchand-dinner food to new
heights, keep in mind that
April is National Grilled
Cheese Month. Time to get
your molten goo on. (Mark
your calendars: National
Sandwich Month is August,
and National Sandwich Day
is Nov. 3.)
And one place not known
for sandwiches is learning
more about where its bread
could be buttered: Dunkin’
Donuts recently began testing a chicken-salad sandwich in the Northeast.
Can it be long before they
figure out a way to inject
turkey and Swiss into a jelly
doughnut? The Dunkin’ D
Monte Cristo?
The appeal of sandwiches
is nothing new to Americans, who nosh about 45
billion of them annually.
In tough economic times,
they can be inexpensive to
engineer, and when times
are flush, or we just want
to splurge, there are fancy
cheeses, fresh herbs and
lunch meats that cost as
much per pound as filet
mignon, maybe more.
We tote sandwiches to
the office, pack them in
school lunches, eat them
on road trips and as midnight snacks. Messy ones
are devoured over the sink,
juice from the tomato dripping down our arms. Tidy
numbers are served crustless with hot tea. Sandwiches have the power to kindle
memories of home, but they
are never quite right unless
we eat them at the source.
The Philly cheesesteak is a
good example of that, as are
the Hot Brown from Kentucky and the muffuletta
of New Orleans.
Numbers are difficult to
come by, but the lion’s share
of those billions of sandwiches have to be PB&Js,
all variations of turkey and
homemade tuna salad. We
have strict notions about
what makes them good,
from the type of bread to
the brand of mayo. We all
have our favorites.
Take the peanut-butter
sandwich, a lunch-box staple. There’s chunky and
creamy peanut butter to
pick between, along with
natural or freshly made,
and, of course, the bread
presents more choices. Jelly
offers many alternatives
(grape, strawberry, peach,
raspberry, etc.), but then
there are other amiable
partners. Me? Creamy peanut butter, raspberry jam
and a layer of salty Ruffles
potato chips, all on pillowy
white bread and smashed
just a bit. Elvis? Peanut butter and bananas grilled on
white, the bread buttered.
Who’s to argue with the
King?
But the variations on
peanut butter sandwiches
don’t stop there. Pair the
creamy spread with marshmallow creme, crispy bacon
or apple slices. Drizzle with
chocolate for dessert-ish
panini. If only Elvis had
lived long enough to eat a
Bananas Foster PB Sandwich, in which the bananas
are sauteed in butter with
sugar and cinnamon before
being slapped on the sticky
spread.
In “The Encyclopedia of
Sandwiches” (Quirk, 2011),
author Susan Russo catalogs 100 classic sandwiches,
from the British Chip Butty
(french fries on white with
mayo) to the frosted ‘50s
Sandwich Party Loaf, an
invention that looks more
dessert than entree. Russo’s
book is a fun romp through
the food that fuels us.
“Not only do we love to eat
sandwiches, but we also love
to make them, talk about
them and gaze upon them,”
Russo writes. The San Diego
food blogger (foodblogga.
com) celebrates sandwiches
from around the country
and provides recipes for all
of them. The most basic
creations get their due, too,
including grilled cheese and
fried bologna.
While “Encyclopedia of
Sandwiches” covers the
basics, the April issue of
Saveur covers the world in
its “Sandwich Issue.” (If
you’re flipping through at
the checkout, go to Page 63
to see the $50 triple-decker.)
Sure, we love sandwiches
in America, but protein (or
veggies) between starch is
a global cuisine.
Vietnam has the banh mi
(a hoagielike sandwich with
pork, crunchy vegetables
and a salty-sweet vinaigrette) and India its potato-fritter vada pav, served
from carts as street food.
There’s Lebanese manoushe
(herbed vegetable on flatbread) and the Venezuelan
specialty, patacon maracucho (avocado and chicken
served between discs of
fried plantain).
It’s nice to taste outside
your comfort zone a bit,
but the familiar is often the
more likely choice when it
comes to homemade sandwiches.
I almost always choose
hot or salad sandwiches
(anything parmigian-ed;
grilled cheddar cheese
dunked in ketchup; tuna
salad with black olives; egg
salad with just mayo, salt
and pepper) over cold meat
sandwiches. By conservative estimate, I’ve made at
least 4,500 sandwiches for
my teenage son in his lifetime. I am embarrassed to
say how many have been
turkey or peanut butter,
though the tuna melt is
coming on strong. A homemade breakfast sandwich
— egg, cheese, bacon — on
a French hamburger bun is
also a repeat request.
My new favorite is the
Fried Green Tomato BLT.
Russo’s recipe is simple,
and when you can find
green tomatoes, give it a
try. I guess I am setting
down some Southern roots,
because a little bowl of
creamy grits sure goes nice
with the cornmeal crunch
of the tangy tomatoes. And
JANET KEELER / ST. PETERSBURG TIMES / SHNS
For a Southern twist on a classic, try a BLT with fried green tomatoes.
bacon never hurts anything
it’s paired with.
Fried Green Tomato
BLT
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tablespoon fresh basil,
minced
1 egg
2 to 3 tablespoons whole
milk or buttermilk
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground
black pepper
1 large green tomato, sliced
in 1/2-inch-thick rounds
1/2 cup canola oil
4 slices white or wheat berry
bread, toasted
4 lettuce leaves
6 bacon slices, cooked
In a small bowl, combine
mayonnaise and basil; set
aside. In a medium bowl,
whisk egg and milk; set
aside. Place flour in a shallow bowl; in a separate
shallow bowl combine cornmeal, salt and pepper. One
at a time, dredge tomato
slices in flour, coating both
sides, then dip in milk-egg
mixture, allowing excess to
drip back into the bowl. Coat
evenly with cornmeal.
In a small pan, fry tomatoes on both sides in canola oil until golden brown.
Place on a paper-towel-lined
plate to drain.
Spread basil mayonnaise
on two bread slices. Place
lettuce on top of mayo and
cover each with a tomato
slice. Add cooked bacon to
both sandwiches and close.
Cut sandwiches in half on
the diagonal.
Makes 2.
— “The Encyclopedia
of Sandwiches” by Susan
Russo (Quirk, 2011)
Chicken Salad With
Cranberries And
Pecans
About 4 cups diced cooked
chicken or 1 rotisserie
chicken, dark and white
meat, shredded
1 cup finely diced celery
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1/2 Vidalia onion, finely
diced (about 1/2 cup)
1/2 cup relish
1 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground
black pepper
1 cup pecan pieces, optional
Combine chicken, celery,
cranberries and onion, then
mix in relish and mayonnaise. Season with salt and
pepper. Stir in pecan pieces
if using.
Makes enough for 4 sandwiches.
— “The Encyclopedia
of Sandwiches” by Susan
Russo (Quirk, 2011)
Elena Ruz (Cuban
Turkey Tea
Sandwich)
1 Cuban roll or brioche
bun
1 tablespoon cream cheese,
softened
3 ounces sliced turkey
breast
2 tablespoons strawberry
jam
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Split roll and spread
cream cheese and turkey
on bottom half. Spread jam
on top half of roll and close
sandwich. Heat butter in a
10-inch skillet over medium
heat; grill sandwich, weighing down with a cast-iron
skillet and turning once,
until golden brown and
heated through, 3 to 4 minutes. Cut in half, and serve
hot.
Makes 1.
— Saveur magazine, April
2011
Prosciutto, Grilled
Fennel And Pear
Sandwich
Gorgonzola aioli:
2 garlic cloves
1 large egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh lemon
juice
1 tablespoon Gorgonzola
How to keep dyed eggs safe
FOOD NETWORK KITCHENS
Q: What dyes are foodsafe?
A: If you plan on eating
eggs you color, be sure to
use food-safe dyes. It’s safe
to use commercial egg dyes,
liquid food coloring and
fruit-drink powders. Other
inks, paints and metallic
dyes are fine for eggs as
long as they are not consumed.
You can also dye eggs
with natural hues. You can
experiment with different
foods, or try the following
combinations with hot
water and a little vinegar:
Orange — yellow onion
skins
Yellow — tur meric,
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Brown — strong brewed
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Herbed Goat Cheese
And Roastedvegetable
Sandwiches
Nonstick vegetable-oil
spray
2 medium zucchini, each cut
lengthwise into 4 slices
1 large red bell pepper, quartered
1 large eggplant, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick
slices
2 tablespoons extra-virgin
olive oil, divided use
3 teaspoons chopped fresh
oregano, divided use (see
note)
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3 teaspoons chopped fresh
thyme, divided use (see
note)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2/3 cup soft fresh goat
cheese, room temperature
(about 5 ounces), or same
amount softened cream
cheese
1 teaspoon grated lemon
peel
8 slices whole-grain bread or
whole-grain rolls
2 cups (packed) baby spinach
leaves
Preheat oven to 400
degrees. Spray 2 large baking sheets with nonstick
spray. Arrange zucchini,
bell pepper and eggplant
on prepared baking sheets.
Drizzle with 1 tablespoon
oil. Sprinkle with salt and
pepper. Roast 15 minutes.
Turn vegetables over. Roast
until tender and brown in
spots, about 10 minutes
longer for zucchini and 25
minutes longer for bell pepper and eggplant.
Whisk 1-1/2 teaspoons
oregano, 1-1/2 teaspoons
thyme, vinegar and remaining tablespoon oil in large
bowl to blend. Add roasted vegetables and toss to
coat.
Mix goat cheese, 1-1/2
teaspoons oregano, 1-1/2
teaspoons thyme and lemon peel in medium bowl.
Place all bread slices on
work surface. Spread each
with cheese mixture. Top
4 bread slices with roasted
vegetables, then spinach
leaves. Cover with remaining bread slices, cheese side
down. Cut each sandwich
in half.
Note: Substitute 1 teaspoon
of dried herbs for 3 teaspoons fresh, using half for
the vegetables and the other
half for the cheese mixture.
Let cheese mixture sit for at
least 30 minutes so that dried
herbs reconstitute.
Makes 4 sandwiches.
— Bon Appetit, 2002
•
St. Petersburg Times food
and travel editor Janet K.
Keeler can be reached at jkeeler@sptimes.com.
Distributed by Scripps
Howard News Service www.
scrippsnews.com.
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Gray — beet or red grape
juice
Salt and pepper
For sandwich:
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black
pepper, to taste
Extra-virgin olive oil
8 slices country bread, focaccia, challah or brioche
About 6 cups arugula
12 thin slices prosciutto
2 Bosc pears, thinly sliced
To make aioli, place the
garlic in a food processor
or blender and pulse a few
times. Add the egg yolk and
the mustard. Turn the processor or blender to high,
and add the oil slowly until
emulsified. Add the lemon
juice and Gorgonzola. Taste
and season sparingly. Add
a few drops of water until
creamy. Set aside. (If you
don’t want to use raw egg
yolk, which is not recommended by food-safety officials, substitute 1 tablespoon of mayonnaise.)
To prepare the sandwich,
season the fennel with salt
and pepper to taste. Drizzle
with the extra-virgin olive
oil. Grill or saute fennel
until charred and softened. Drizzle one side of
each bread slice with olive
oil, and grill until toasted.
Lay down 4 slices of bread,
toasted side up. Line each
slice with the arugula, prosciutto, fennel and pear.
Spread the remaining four
slices with the aioli. Top the
sandwiches and serve.
Makes 4 sandwiches.
— “The Big New York
Sandwich Book” by Sara
Reistad-Long and Jean Tang
(Running Press, 2011)
THE
BY JANET K. KEELER
ST. PETERSBURG TIMES
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