Lunching with Snowzilla: Making Due with What's on Hand

If you're like me and millions of other East Coast dwellers this weekend, you're snowed in. Restaurants, if you can walk to them, are probably closed. Markets are closed and completely wiped out of food anyway. In short, you gotta make do with what's in the fridge.

In the days leading up to this weekend's big storm, we stocked up as best we could, but I also view this as an opportunity to clean out and use up a few things that might have otherwise gone to waste.

Take today's lunch. Feeling like something other than a peanut butter & jelly sandwich, I looked through the fridge to see what odds and ends might yield a decent lunch. I found half a cucumber from a salad I made earlier in the week, some celery and scallions left over from kung pao chicken, half a block of feta cheese from last week's salad, my husband's mostly empty tub of hummus and a almost-empty jar of sundried tomatoes.

Together with a few new items--a fresh loaf of bread, a tub of arugula and a few other condiments and seasonings--I turned this motley crew of scraps into a delicious vegetarian lunch, a cucumber, hummus and feta sandwich and an arugula, celery and peanut salad, both of which were quite tasty.

Cucumber, Hummus and Feta Sandwich
Makes 2 sandwiches

4 slices whole-grain bread
2-4 tbsp. hummus
2-3 scallions, chopped
1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced
1/4 cup crumbed feta cheese
2 tbsp. sundried tomatoes, cut into small pieces
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Toast the bread, then spread two slices with a generous 1 to 2 tbsp. of hummus. Top with scallions, slices of cucumber, crumbled feta, sundried tomatoes and a sprinkle of freshly ground pepper--plus the other toasted slices of bread.

Arugula, Celery and Peanut Salad
Serves 2

2 cups arugula leaves
2-3 celery stalks, sliced at an angle into 1/8-inch thick slices
1/3 cup unsalted roasted peanuts, chopped
2-3 scallions, chopped
1/2 tsp. Aleppo pepper
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tsp. honey
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine the arugula, celery, peanuts, scallion and Aleppo pepper in a large bowl. Whisk together the other ingredients, pour over the salad and toss to coat with the dressing.

8-2-Eat: Sandwiches

8-2-Eat is my food-focused list series. A perfect Friday distraction. This week: 8 fantastic sandwiches.

1. Classic Tuna Salad. I love a good tuna sandwich, but unfortunately too many tuna salad sandwiches fall flat. My recipe calls for adding a bit of sweet tartness with sweet pickles, a bit of bite with scallions and horseradish and a bit of crunch with celery.

2. Cuban Sandwich. A Cuban sandwich is a simple affair of ham, cheese and pickles, elevated here with homemade sour pickles.

3. Ultimate Club Sandwich (pictured above). The classic club sandwich reaches "ultimate" status here with oven-dried tomatoes, smoky chipotle mayo and avocado.

4. Grilled Cheese. A true classic among grilled sandwiches, a grilled cheese sandwich offers a lot of flexibility in terms of bread and cheese combinations. This is my favorite.

5. Apple, Arugula and Cheddar. A simple sandwich combination that's vegetarian and perfect for this time of year.

6. Winter Chicken Salad. Classic chicken salad gets a smoky winter twist.

7. Buffalo Chicken Sliders. The spicy flavors of Buffalo chicken wings, but in a sandwich. Perfect for parties.

8. Greek Burgers. The American standard goes Greek.

Sandwich Mashup: PB(LT)&J

Around here, we love a good sandwich and enjoy playing around with the classics. PB&J is a childhood classic we indulge every now and then. And BLT is a more grown-up classic we also enjoy.

This, however, is something different: A sandwich mashup!

By combining elements of both these great sandwiches, I've come up with something that will blow your sandwich-craving mind.

The key ingredient in this dish is the tomato-bacon jam. After having the bacon marmalade at Range, I was inspired by try something similar. Adding tomatoes gives the jam some additional depth, although I still added sugar to make it sweet enough.

Otherwise, the sandwich is made from homemade peanut butter, arugula and whole-grain bread.

PB(LT)&J

Makes 2 sandwiches

Four slices of good-quality whole-grain sandwich bread
4 tbsp. peanut butter (I recommend homemade, from this recipe)
1 cup of baby arugula leaves
4-6 tbsp. tomato-bacon jam (recipe below)

Toast bread. Spread first piece of toast with peanut butter, then top with arugula and tomato-bacon jam and the other piece of toast.

Tomato-Bacon Jam

1/4 lb. hickory-smoked bacon, cut into 1/4- to 1/2- inch pieces
1/2 sweet onion, diced
1 lb. ripe tomatoes, diced (I used a mix of diced red tomatoes and golden grape tomatoes)
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Cook bacon until brown and crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on paper towels.

2. Drain off most of the bacon grease, leaving a coating on the bottom of the pan. Add the onion and sauté until soft and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients, increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to just below medium and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce is very thick, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer jam to a bowl.

Ultimate Club Sandwich

Do you ever crave a really good sandwich? I know I do, and so does my husband.

Sandwiches can be a very simple thing if needed: something to whip up fast when you don't feel inspired or have the time for something more substantial. A couple slices of bread, a few slices of meat, some lettuce, mayo or mustard and voila...lunch in about 5 minutes. It hits the spot, although it can feel a bit boring if you repeat this pattern too much. With a little time and attention, a sandwich can be elevated to something spectacular, which is what I strove for with this "ultimate" club sandwich.

Club sandwiches have been around since the late 19th Century. Like a lot of foods that date back that far, there is a certain lack of clarity around its origins, although most sources peg it to a "gentlemen only" Saratoga Springs clubhouse. Linda Stradley has a nice article about the sandwich's history for What's Cooking America.

For my "ultimate" version I wanted something very flavorful that plays up the best of what a club sandwich can be. The classic club is a double-decker sandwich of three slices of toasted bread, turkey and bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise. From there, you might see club sandwiches with chicken instead of turkey or ham instead of (or in addition to) bacon, plus different condiments. One adaptation I'm particularly fond of is the California club, which adds slices of avocado to the traditional sandwich, a welcome addition that goes nicely with the bacon and turkey. Cheese may or may not go into a club.

Being as it is early March, good tomatoes are still months away, so I roasted tomato slices to bring out their deep flavors. For roasting the tomato slices, I set a wire cooling rack inside a sheet pan. This allows air to circulate around the tomatoes and liquid to drip off them as they roast. You may notice that I also put a Silpat down. That's because the acid in tomatoes can damage aluminum sheet pans (this particular pan actually has a lovely pattern on it now from roasting tomatoes on it once without using a Silpat or parchment; don't use aluminum foil, lest the aluminum dissolved by the tomato acid ends up in your food).

I adopted the stylings of the California club and added additional Southwestern influences: Monterey jack cheese and some chipotle chili powder to spice up the mayo. A little smoked paprika gave it some additional smoky flavor without more heat. Rather than a plain white bread, I used sourdough, which is my favorite bread.

The last important step in a club sandwich is the presentation. Because the sandwich is so large, it's generally cut into fourths to make it easier to eat and toothpicks hold the many layers together. A tip on this: put the toothpicks in the sandwich first, then cut it into fourths, reducing the tendency of the ingredients to shift around while cutting.

Ultimate Club Sandwich

Makes 2 sandwiches

4 vine-ripened tomatoes
Olive oil spray
Salt and pepper
4 to 6 strips of bacon, cut into thirds
6 slices crusty sourdough bread
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/8 tsp. (or more, if desired) chipotle chili powder
1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
7 oz. smoked turkey
1 ripe hass avocado, peeled and sliced
4 pieces of romaine lettuce
4 slices Monterey jack cheese

1. Preheat oven to 300 F. Cut the ends off the tomatoes, then slice each tomato into three rounds. Place the tomato slices on a wire cooling rack that fits inside a standard half-sheet pan (13 x 18). Spray tomato slices with olive oil spray and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast tomatoes until they become a bit shriveled and visibly dried out on the surface, about 75 to 80 minutes. Remove from the rack and set aside.

2. Cook the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat until browned and crisp. Remove cooked bacon and set aside on paper towels.

3. Heat the oven broiler. Place the bread slices on the cooling rack fit into the baking sheet (you might want to wash it first if there's tomato residue on it). Broil until toasted on one side, 2-3 minutes (watch carefully, it will burn fast), then flip the bread over and toast the other side, about another 2 minutes.

4. In a small bowl, stir together mayonnaise, chipotle chili powder and smoked paprika.

5. Assemble the sandwiches: Start with the first piece of toast. Spread with mayonnaise. Top with a couple slices of turkey and a couple strips of bacon. Add a couple roasted tomato slices, a few avocado slices, a piece of romaine lettuce and a slice of cheese. Spread mayonnaise on the second piece of toast and place on top. Repeat layers of turkey, bacon, tomatoes, avocado, lettuce and cheese. Spread mayonnaise on the third piece of toast and place on top. Anchor the sandwich with four toothpicks (plan ahead to place a toothpick in each fourth), then cut into fourths (triangles rather than squares are preferable). Repeat with the other sandwich.

Winter Chicken Salad Sandwich

Chicken salad, typically mixed with onion, celery, herbs and mayo, makes a great summer meal whether topping a mix of fresh greens or sandwiched between two slices of hearty bread. With a different combination of flavors, it can make the transition to colder weather too.

I gave this salad a smoky-woodsy profile with a little smoked paprika and some maple syrup. Greek yogurt, instead of mayo, keeps it lighter. Although I accidentally omitted the celery, I didn't miss it. It would certainly be welcome, as would a teaspoon or so of chopped fresh rosemary or sage.

I served this between two toasted slices of Dave's Killer Bread, an amazing whole-grain loaf made in a Milwaukie, Oregon bakery. Sadly, the bakery's owner had a serious run-in with the law recently (in the neighborhood I grew up in, actually). Hopefully he can get back on his feet and the incident won't tarnish the brand, as this is truly delicious bread.


Winter Chicken Salad Sandwich

Makes 3 servings

1 1/2 cups chopped roasted chicken
3 scallions, white and green parts finely chopped
1/3 cup pecans, chopped
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/2 tbsp. smoked paprika
1/4 tsp. seasoned salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. maple syrup
1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
6 slices toasted whole grain bread (would also be good served over peppery arugula)

Combine all ingredients except bread in a large bowl and stir to combine. Serve between bread slices as a sandwich or over greens as a salad.

Classic Tuna Salad Sandwich

 I don't "crave" a lot of foods, but every once in awhile I really want a good tuna salad sandwich.

Bad tuna salad sandwiches are common. They often taste like something that was mixed up hours beforehand--or longer--without much thought to flavor other than mayonnaise. A good tuna salad should have a nice freshness to it: crunchy celery and scallions, a bright tang from lemon juice and a bit of zip from mustard or horseradish (or both).

This recipe is a nice basic one, but you could mix it up in all sorts of ways. I could see a southwestern version with avocado and a little kick of chipotle. Or a Mediterranean version with olive oil, capers and roasted red pepper. Lots of possibilities here.

Tuna Salad Sandwich
Adapted from multiple sources

Makes 2 sandwiches

1 5 oz. packet of water-packed albacore tuna
2 tbsp. mayonnaise
1/2 tsp. creamy prepared horseradish
1 oz. fresh lemon juice (juice from 1/2 a lemon)
2 tbsp. fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley
6-8 bread and butter sweet pickle chips, minced
1 celery rib, minced
2 scallions, minced
Salt and fresh-ground black pepper, to taste
4 slices good-quality sandwich bread
Tomato slices, lettuce and more pickles (optional)

1. Drain any water from the tuna and add to a bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise, horseradish, lemon juice, parsley, pickles, celery, scallions, salt and pepper and mix with a fork until well combined. Serve on bread with tomato slices, lettuce and additional pickles, if desired.

Cuban Sandwich

To showcase the homemade sour pickles, I wanted a really good sandwich in which pickles are star players. Lots of sandwiches have pickles but they play a supporting role, like in burgers. In the Cuban sandwich, which has relatively few ingredients, pickles are a more essential ingredient.

Traditionally, Cuban sandwiches have both ham and roasted pork. However, I used herbed ham from Whole Foods that was a sort of hybrid between the two--definitely meatier and more flavorful than your run-of-the-mill sliced sandwich ham. It was perfect for this sandwich.

Cuban Sandwich

Makes 2 sandwiches

4 slices crusty sliced sandwich bread
About 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
Dijon mustard (most recipes call for yellow, but I used Dijon because that's what I had)
3/4 lb. ham (rather than salty sandwich ham, I used Whole Foods herbed ham, which is almost like a cross between ham and roasted pork)
2 oz. gruyere cheese
Sour pickles, about 1 whole cucumber's worth, sliced about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick (see recipe)

Heat flat skillet pan over medium heat. Butter one side of each slice of bread. Build the sandwiches with the buttered sides on the outside: spread mustard on the inside of each slice and layer the ham, cheese and pickles. Grill until the cheese starts to melt and the buttered slices are browned, turning after the bottom slices are browned. Serve with additional sour pickles.

Celebrate National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day

April is Grilled Cheese Sandwich Month, and in fact April 12 is Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day, so it is most appropriate today to celeberate this cheesiest of national food holidays.

Grilled cheese is something people can get pretty particular about. I have a friend who swears they are best made with cheap white bread and processed American cheese. On the opposite end of the spectrum, there are quite a few gourmet incarnations with added meats, vegetables and an assortment of cheese and bread combinations.

Personally, I fall somewhere in the middle. I like to keep it simple but use really good ingredients. My favorite grilled cheese sandwich uses buttered good sourdough bread and a mix of gruyere and sharp white cheddar cheeses. I like to mix it up though; the sandwich picture above uses 12-grain bread, for example.

See that little bit of cheese on the right that fell off the bread? You know when that gets crispy that it's going to be awesomely good.

Assembling the sandwich carefully is very important. Although shredded cheese will melt easier, I find that makes a real mess when it's time to flip the sandwich. Instead, I prefer layering small, thin slices of cheese, alternating between the gruyere and the cheddar.

The cooking technique is also important. If you cook the sandwich too fast, the bread will toast before the cheese has a chance to melt. I like to start with a cold frying pan set over medium-low heat. So the first side spends a lot more time cooking than the other side, but this allows the sandwich to slowly come up to temperature, giving the cheese a chance to melt.

For added flavor, I like to borrow a few moves from another cheese favorite: traditional Swiss cheese fondue. I swipe a raw cut garlic clove across the surface of the pan before I heat it. Then, as I layer the cheese, I add sprinkle of ground nutmeg and fresh ground white or black pepper. A sprinkle of truffle salt would be good too, but that might be getting too fancy.

The Cook In / Dine Out Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Makes 1 sandwich

1 garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
2 slices good quality bread, such as sourdough or 12-grain
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 oz. aged gruyere cheese, thinly sliced
1 1/2 oz. sharp white cheddar cheese, thinly sliced
Pinch of ground nutmeg
Pinch of fresh-ground white or black pepper

1. Rub the cut side of the garlic clove on the bottom of a frying pan. Set over medium-high heat. While the pan is still cold, spread 1 tsp. butter on one side of one piece of bread and lay in the pan buttered side down. Layer the cheese on top of the bread, alternating between types and adding a sprinkle of nutmeg and pepper about halfway through. Place the other piece of bread on top and spread the other tsp. of butter on top of that piece.

2. Cook the sandwich until the cheese starts to melt and the bottom piece is nicely toasted, about 10 minutes. Carefully flip the sandwich over and continue cooking until the other piece of bread is toasted, another 3-5 minutes. Remove from pan and slice in half. Be sure to eat any bits of cheese that escaped the sandwich and browned in the pan.

D.C. Food Truck Pork Sandwiches

From top to bottom, sandwiches from The Rolling Ficelle, SUNdeVICH and Pepe

If Subway and Au Bon Pain aren't doing it for you anymore in the sandwich department, maybe it's time to check out food trucks. There are some pretty amazing offerings on hand, from barbecue to banh mi. Expertly cooked pork is not something many fast casual sandwich restaurants offer, so it's a treat to find that quite a few food trucks do. Here are some top offerings from city food trucks:

The Rolling Ficelle, Pollack Ficelle ($8.50). The Pollack is a nicely rounded sandwich consisting of slow-roasted pork with Swiss cheese, caramelized onions, grilled jalapeño, cilantro and lemon-garlic aioli. I loved how the tangy aioli complimented the cilantro and savory pork. The bread was really good too, with a crispy (but not hard) exterior and soft, flavorful interior. If there was any gripe it was that the meat was a little dry. But otherwise very good.

SUNdeVICH, Havana ($10). This sandwich was amazingly good, the best of the bunch. All the elements worked well together but the star, as it should be, was the roasted pork, which was among the best roasted pork I've ever had. Perfectly seasoned and in harmony with the gruyere, pickles and dijon. SUNdeVICH has a nice variety of sandwiches, and I look forward to trying some of the others.

Pepe, Pepito de Ibérico ($20). Famous chef Jose Andres made headlines when he started his D.C. food truck Pepe last summer, which offers a menu of sandwiches not dissimilar to what you can get at his Jaleo. Particular interest was generated by his audacity to offer a $20 sandwich from a food truck. The imported meats--seared ibérico pork and serrano ham--are what drives the cost. Is it worth it? It's tasty, but not $20 tasty. Served along with roasted green peppers, caramelized onion and aioli, I thought my sandwich was too greasy (take lots of napkins if you eat this on the street). Definitely not bad, but probably my least favorite of these three.

Italian B.L.T.

It's national sandwich month and fresh tomatoes are hitting their peak. Celebrate both with a B.L.T.!

In theory, all you need to make a B.L.T. is bread, lettuce, bacon, tomato and mayonnaise, but variations on this simple theme can be interesting.

For this sandwich, I pushed the flavor in an Italian direction, using a tomato-basil mayonnaise in place of simple mayo, substituting arugula for the lettuce and adding fresh mozzarella. You could make it even more Italian by using Italian bread and pancetta, but I prefer the smoky flavor of American-style bacon.

Italian B.L.T.

Bacon (2 strips per sandwich)
1/3 cup mayonnaise
5-6 grape tomatoes
Small bunch of basil leaves
Sandwich bread (2 slices per sandwich)
Beefsteak tomatoes, 3-4 slices per sandwich
Fresh mozzarella, sliced (2 slices per sandwich)
Arugula

1. Cook bacon in a large frying pan over medium heat until crisp. Drain and cut in half.

2. Add mayonnaise, grape tomatoes and basil in a food processor and pulse until smooth.

3. Toast bread slices. Spread with tomato-basil mayo. Build sandwich with 2 slices of bacon, 3-4 tomato slices, 2 slices fresh mozzarella and a handful of arugula.

Apple, Arugula & Cheddar Sandwich

Sunday evenings at our house is often a very simple meal of cheese, crackers, apple slices and wine.

Because I had some leftover baguette recently, I decided to turn up the volume a bit and make a sandwich--a vegetarian sandwich no less (a nice contrast to all these burgers).

This is pretty simple: slice the baguette open in half, leaving one edge of the crust connected to hold it together. Spread honey on one side and dijon mustard on the other. Place a few arugula leaves in the middle.

Place two thin slices of apple in a medium frying pan over medium-low heat. Top each apple slice with a slice of cheddar cheese. Heat about 10 minutes until the apple softens and the cheese melts. Use a spatula to transfer the apples and cheese to the middle of the sandwich. Pass the pepper grinder over the top, if desired.