I am a sucker for new food products. Fortunately, I do most of my supermarket shopping at Trader Joe's — where I recently picked up these Mahi Mahi Burgers — and not Safeway, where I'd be tempted by new varieties of potato chips and Pop Tarts.
Truth be told, the fish patties were just OK, but the sandwiches we made with them were uniquely refreshing. Paired with Trader Joe's corn salsa and avocado and served on Acme green onion slab, the mahi made for a vaguely tropical, wholly novel treat.
Last weekend, our friend Matt hosted his 2nd Annual Grilled Cheese Off, which began last year as an impromptu tournament and which this year I was lucky enough to attend. With three categories — Purist (bread and cheese), Anything Goes (meat, veggies, whatever), and Dessert — the competition was fierce. See what we tasted and who triumphed by clicking on the slideshow.
Breaded chicken between more bread? Why not? Last Sunday Andrew made chicken cutlets, flattened and coated in a breadcrumb, lemon zest, and parsley mixture. He topped the chicken with arugula, lightly dressed in lemon-shallot vinaigrette.
The flavor pairing of bitter greens and tangy fruit was too delicious not to revive in a sandwich Monday night. We served the golden slabs of chicken on Acme's green onion slab bread (highly recommend) with tomato and leftover arugula. It was delicious, if enormous.
Usually, "pork tenderloin sandwich" calls to mind the decadent fried tenderloins that overflow from buns across Indiana and southern Illinois. But almost as delicious and not nearly as deadly is roasted pork tenderloin. I've often turned to it for easy suppers, but I never thought of slicing it up for sammies. Thankfully, my future bro-in-law Adam did.
Before roasting the pork tenderloin in the oven, Adam laid sliced apples across the top, so those roasted, too, until they were warm and velvety. We cut up some French bread, added sauteed onions and mustard, and topped the pork with apples or Swiss cheese or both.
Forgive the low-light iPhone photos. Had I known we were having sandwiches for dinner, I would have planned better.
I love a salty-sweet sandwich, and the Monte Cristo is the ultimate. My first memory of the storied American sandwich was eating the batter-fried version at Bennigan's, but now I prefer the more classic version made with simple French toast.
Andrew, who shares my love of this sandwich, made French toast for Mother's Day and treated us to Monte Cristos the Monday after. The French toast had a delightful orange flavor (I think he soaked it in Grand Marnier), and we filled it with turkey, ham, and Swiss cheese. For more photos and details, read more
No samosas were used in the making of these sandwiches, but the essence of the Indian appetizer came through in the yumminess. We started with Vegetable Masala Burgers and country-white rolls from Trader Joe's, then added tomatoes, sauteed onions, and avocado.
Made with potatoes and Indian spices, the patties tasted just like samosa filling, while the bread provided the crusty vehicle. Some sprouts and Dijon turned it into a handy package. If only we'd had some chutney.
To my delight, this weekend was unexpectedly warm in San Francisco, and lucky for us, our friends Bob and Lexie invited us over for a sunny backyard barbecue. For dessert, my girl Libby took it to the next level with homemade ice cream sandwiches. A fan of It's It treats, Libby made oatmeal raisin cookies from scratch, chewy but just firm enough to serve as the perfect vehicle for the Three Twins organic ice cream in between: chocolate and vanilla, of course. Flip through the photos to drool.
New baby equals sandwich smorgasbord! On Saturday, I joined a delegation of visitors to meet my friends Matt and Kate's new baby, Willa. We offered to bring lunch, so naturally, sandwiches were on the menu. At Say Cheese in Cole Valley, we bought four sammies: jambon and gruyere, black forest ham, Cajun turkey, and a veggie option with avocado, roasted red pepper, and havarti. We cut them up into quarters and voila! Instant sandwich-eating, baby-meeting party. The baby did not eat any sandwiches, but the cat did.
We didn't have sandwiches for Easter supper, but that doesn't mean I can't sandwich it up with the leftovers. Since we've made it an unofficial tradition to buy a Honey Baked Ham, I consider Easter the best leftover sandwich holiday after Thanksgiving.
Here, I put a few slices of leftover ham on a delicious roll homemade by my future baker-in-law brother-in-law Adam. His wife Libby made mashed potatoes, which I smeared on the bottom of my sammie. Andrew's cider-thyme cabbage and some whole-grain mustard added the kick. As cute as it is here, the sandwich sort of fell apart when I tried to eat it. Still, it was delicious! Praise Jesus!
San Francisco is a city of foodies, which can get annoyingly bourgey at times but also tastes pretty damn good. A local magazine called 7x7 even publishes a list of 100 things to eat before you die, and on a recent trip to Zuni, I ordered #1: the roast chicken and bread salad.
The chicken was definitely some of the best and moistest I've every eaten — though in my opinion, not quite as good as Nopa. Still, I was ecstatic about my leftover sandwich, and even with two people picking at the chicken, there was plenty of meat to spare. Since Zuni serves its chicken with a currant bread salad, I opted for a sweet complement: fig and pistachio bread from La Boulange.
To take it over the top California-style, I added avocado to the predictable stack of Swiss, tomato, lettuce, and Dijon. I'll tell you what should be on 7x7's list next year: this sandwich, that's what.
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