Caprese Panini

This is my favorite summer lunch/dinner that really doesn't involve much cooking. Slice, drizzle and grill. You can make this on a Panini Press, on the stove top, grill, or even  simply broiled.
The other morning, I was at Harmons picking up some groceries. Racks of just baked Artisan breads were sitting on cooling racks.  I took a loaf, along withe some fresh mozzarella (do you know Harmons makes their own fresh mozzarella every day?)  to make my favorite summer lunch.  A few snips off of my basil plant, a couple of fresh tomatoes and I was in business.
Even Jake declared this "legit", and wanted one more instead of a grilled ham and cheese.
There's hope.
He may end up having good taste in food, after all.

Caprese Panini
A Bountiful Kitchen

Artisan Bread, sliced, or Ciabatta bread
olive oil
sliced tomatoes
fresh mozzarella
fresh basil
fresh ground pepper
coarse salt


Brush one side of two slices of bread with olive oil.
top with sliced tomatoes, fresh basil leaves and sliced fresh mozzarella. Drizzle with additional olive oil, if desired. Sprinkle with a little fresh ground pepper, and salt.
Place on grill, gently close pan, and grill just until cheese begins to melt.
enjoy immediately or at room temperature.

Tips:
-If you don't have a Panini press, heat up a pan over medium to medium high heat. Grill the sandwich, just as you would a grilled cheese. then turn gently to the other side. You may press down the pan with another heavy pan to make a more compact sandwich. Lots of people like to use a cast iron pan to grill or weigh down the sandwich. You may also toast the bread and broil the sandwich lightly.
-Sometimes, I like to drizzle a little balsamic just before grilling.

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Grilled Flank Steak Sandwich

It's baseball season again. Time for planning ahead, or eating hot dogs from the snack shack a few times a week, which is probably not such a great idea (especially after my friend Shelly informed me about the 31 grams of FAT in each dog).
I'm always looking for ways to serve a quick meal this time of year. Flank steak sandwiches are the perfect quick-fix dinner. I usually pair it with some fresh fruit and a green salad.  I love the recipe for marinade in Asian Grilled Flank Steak Salad. I posted today's sandwich recipe with a simple pantry-friendly marinade to help make this meal quick and easy. I also like flank steak seasoned, without marinade.

If you're using a marinade, make your own, then you'll know exactly what's on your pate. It takes about a minute to make your own marinade and you'll have the peace of mind knowing you can pronounce all of the ingredients in your dinner :)
If you have any leftover meat (or you make extra, like I suggest below), throw it into a tortilla or on a pita the next day, topped with a little cheese, lettuce and salsa and you'll have another meal, ready to eat.
Happy Spring, sports fans.

Grilled Flank Steak Sandwich
A Bountiful Kitchen
print recipe

sandwich:
1- 11/2-2 lb flank steak
1 lb mushrooms, washed and sliced, stems on
1 large onion, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
olive oil and butter for sauteing
salt and pepper
4-6 large hoagie buns or other bread for making sandwich

marinade:
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Early in the day, if possible, or at least two hours before cooking, place all of the marinade ingredients into a Gallon size Ziplock bag. Add the steak to the bag, seal and place in refrigerator. 

About 20-30 minutes before serving:

Prepare grill. If using gas, the temperature should be at medium high. 

On the stove, over medium high heat, and add olive oil and butter to a fry pan ( I use about 1 tablespoon of each). When the pan is hot, add mushrooms and onions and cook for about 5 minutes, adding salt and pepper as cooking also tossing as cooking takes place. Add garlic and sauté for about 1 minute, or until fragrant, be careful to not burn garlic. Reduce heat if necessary.  Turn off heat, cover to keep warm. 

Place meat on grill and cook for about 5 minutes per side. Remove from heat, cover with foil and let rest for 10 minutes before cutting. 

Slice the buns in half and place on grill to toast if desired. 

Assemble sandwiches:

Cut the meat across the grain into thin slices. Place some of the meat on each bun along with the mushroom and onion mixture. If you like cheese,  top the meat and onion mixture with cheese and place under broiler for a few seconds before serving. 

4-6 servings

Tips:

-I like to cook two steaks at once, so I can use the leftovers for another meal. 

-The cook time for the meat will depend on how you well or rare you like your meat. I believe this meat is best served medium rare. Don't overcook the Flank steak or it will be tough. 

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Tessa's Mini-Melts with Poppyseed Drizzle

Almost five months have gone by since this day...

Two years is a long time! My oldest son, Stephen left home to serve an LDS mission in Puebla, Mexico on February 16, 2011 (if you've been reading ABK for a while, you'll remember this post).  He returned two years, one month and three days later. That afternoon we dashed off to the airport with ballons and signs in hand. Our immediate and extended family gathered there, along with families of other missionaries who were returning that day. So much excitement. So much joy. So glad to have him  home!
In honor of Stephen serving for two years we celebrated his return with (what else?) food. We made  lots of salads, treats and some fun little sandwiches. It was nice to have something hot with the salads that didn't require too much time in the kitchen when we wanted to enjoy spending time with our newly returned missionary. Tessa gave me this recipe after she made dinner for a large group of sorority girls at the U. She said the girls loved them, and I thought, if they're good enough for the Chi-Omega's they're good enough for us! They take just a few minutes to put together, and are perfect for parties of any sort.
Grateful to have Stephen home.
So proud of his willingness to sacrifice and share the good word of God with the sweet people of Mexico.
Two years is a long time.
Yes, it is.

Mini-Melts with Poppy Seed Drizzle

Tessa Reinemer

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3 dozen soft dinner rolls 

2 pounds deli meat (or have the deli slice up the exact amount of slices you need)*

1 pound sliced deli cheese, or approx 18 slices, cut in half

Topping

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

1/2 cup butter

1 tablespooon minced dehydrated onion (optional)

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Slice rolls and put small amount of turkey or ham with one slice of cheese.  Place sandwiches in 2- 9x13 baking dishes or one large jelly roll pan.  

Heat ingredients for topping in a saucepan until butter is melted. Brush or spoon topping onto sandwiches right before cooking.  Cover with foil.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese melts.

Serves about 15-20.

Tips (aka more than you ever wanted or needed to know about making baked sandwiches):

-These sandwiches may be assembled in advance.  A day before is fine, but don't brush with drizzle until right before cooking.  Store in fridge covered tightly with foil.

-*Deli meat- Slice the meat in half with a sharp knife (I cut the meat all at once). If you have 36 rolls, order 18 slices of deli meat, cut in half. 

-We used a combo of ham/swiss and turkey/havarti. Both were delicious.

-For a gathering at the school, and Anibelle's baby blessing, I used Costco large croissants and cut them in half after stuffing with meat and cheese. We used:

3 doz  large croissants

4 lbs ham or turkey

2 lbs sliced cheese

Served approx 75. 

-I use the Walmart Brand rolls, found near their deli when making these for a large (100+) crowd. I pinned the rolls here, so you can see what they look like. The rolls come 16 to a package. I like these for a crowd, because they are inexpensive and they stack well, without smashing if you need to buy a large quantity. I have also used a roll that looks similar to a Granny Sycamore cluster roll from Costco. They only sell these in the fall and winter months. This roll is much thicker than the Walmart brand roll,  and I add more meat to the sandwich when using the Granny roll, so the meat is not lost in the roll!

-Cooking for 100:

plan on about 1 1/2 rolls per person if you are serving other buffet items such as salads, appetizers, sweets.

10 packages of "The Bakery" rolls from Walmart, (Potato or Sweet Hawaiian) 16 per pkg =160 rolls

Deli meat sliced, approx 80 slices, cut in half to yield 160 slices

cheese slices, approx 80 slices, cut in half to yield 160

topping:

1 1/4 lb butter, melted (5 sticks)

8 tablespoons poppy seeds

6 tablespoons mustard

3-4 tablespoons dehydrated onion (optional)

2 tablespoons Worcestershire

Follow directions above for baking.

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Day After Thanksgiving Sandwich

Back when Grant was a student and I was a working girl, I had a job at an office building in downtown Portland. On the ground floor of the building, there was a sandwich shop called Freddie Brown's. Their specialty was a roasted turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce.  As I walked past Freddie's every morning,  the aroma of roasting turkey filled the air and I plotted ways to get together enough money to go down for lunch and grab a sandwich. It was a simple sandwich: fresh white bread, mayo on one side, butter on the other, hot carved turkey, white or dark meat (I usually chose a combo), cranberry sauce, salt and pepper. This sandwich usually put me in a bit of a turkey coma, which would lead to a short nap in my cubicle after lunch.
I love the day after Thanksgiving. I'm not much of a Black Friday shopper. Just like to hang out and eat a great sandwich and plan how Christmas is going to happen. The sandwich is made just like Freddie Brown's- except I pile on a layer of dressing as well.
Cheers to the turkey coma.
And a little nap.


Day After Thanksgiving Sandwich
A Bountiful Kitchen 
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fresh sliced bread, any type
Best Foods or Hellmann's mayo
butter
Sausage and Apple stuffing, heated recipe here
fresh cranberry sauce recipe here
Turkey, white or dark meat, heated just a bit
s&p

Spread the bread with butter on one side and mayo on the other. Don't be stingy.
Layer: warm dressing, cranberry sauce and warmed turkey.
Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.
Eat right away.

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Goodbye Summer Fresh Tomato Toast

My mom in law introduced me to tomato toast years ago. Her favorite breakfasts are: a Diet Coke and a brownie, or a Diet Coke an a piece of tomato toast. So I guess you can say this is an old family recipe :)
Whenever I can get my hands on tomatoes out of the garden, I make tomato toast. Jake and I make entire meals out of this. He eats four or five, I eat two. If my baby will eat this, maybe yours will too...
Essentials: Fresh tomatoes, mayo, fresh ground pepper, and preferably, kosher salt. It seems silly to post a recipe, but I decided this qualifies as a meal under our Seriously Simple and New Beginnings college and missionary meal category.
Hey, don't knock it till you've tried it. WAAAAY better than ramen.

Now this is loving your neighbor. Sharing tomatoes. Thanks Susan :)

Fresh Tomato Toast
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1 fresh garden tomato
Best Foods or Hellman's mayo*
fresh ground pepper
dense whole wheat bread (my local fave is Aspen Mills)

Slice the tomato, thick, about 1/4 inch slices.
Toast the bread.
Spread mayo over bread as soon as it comes out of the toaster.
Lay on two to four thick slices of tomato, depending on size of tomato.
Top generously with fresh ground pepper and salt.

Tips:
*-It's Best Foods west of the Mississippi, Hellman's east of the Mississippi. Same product. 

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Chicken Salad with Apples and Dill

One of my favorite things to eat this time of year is chicken salad. For some odd reason,  I never make it in the fall or winter. It makes me think SPRING is on the way!!  Maybe it's tied to baby chicks. Wobbling around on their little spindly legs. Saying, "hey wait for me to grow up, and then you'll be able to make me into chicken salad!!:   Now, you are for sure going Vegan on me.
Chicken salad:  Love it on a slice of bread. Or a piece of lettuce. Or a croissant. Or just by itself, right out of the bowl in the fridge.
This is a dish I've been making forever. Without a recipe.  It changes a little every time.  The basics ingredients are always the same: chicken, mayo, celery,  and the last necessity-fruit.  Love it with pineapple, or grapes, or apples. Anything sweet. If I can't get any of those, craisins will do. Just a little sweet to go with the savory. You know how much I love my fruit and meat/poultry together.  I know there are peeps who hate fruit, nuts, spices, etc. in their chicken salad. I'm not sure we can be friends...

Chicken Salad with Apples and Dill
A Bountiful Kitchen
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1 small Gala or other sweet apple*

1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup cold water
2 cups cooked, chopped white chicken meat
1/2 to 1 cup chopped celery ( I use about 2 stalks)
1/2 to 3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup golden raisins or Craisins, optional
1 teaspoon, dried dill weed*
nuts, if desired (I like cashews or almonds)
Salt, pepper

Core the apple and chop into cubes, leaving the skin on.  Place chopped apple in small bowl with cold water and lemon juice, set aside.
Place chopped chicken and celery in bowl.  Season with salt and pepper. Add the mayo, dill and nuts  if desired.  Drain apples well and add to chicken mixture.
Serve on top of a big beautiful piece of leaf lettuce, or on bread of your choice.
Keeps for about 3 days in fridge.

Tips: (sit down, this is longer than the recipe)

-Best tip for fab chicken salad - Use good mayonnaise. Not store brand, not- low or no fat. Don't go there. I use Best Foods or Hellman's. Or if you are an over-achiever, make your own.
-If you are using an apple for a filling in a salad, make sure the apple is cold, or at least room temperature before slicing.  If the fruit is warm, the fruit will brown much faster.
-* You may sub a handful of seedless grapes (I like red for color) cut the in half if they are really big grapes, a chopped (skinned) mango, a half can of pineapple tidbits, (drained well -for at least 30 minutes), the possibilities are endless. Try to choose fruit without a lot of water content, and fruit that is firm.  Raspberries- not be a good choice. They break up too easily in the salad.  Sliced strawberries are ok, as long as they are not too juicy, if so they will turn the mayo pink.  When using fruit in this salad, after washing,and draining place the fruit on a paper towel on the counter before adding to the salad to make sure the  excess water is drained off. You don't need to do this with apples. Just chop, soak in lemon juice and drain for a couple of minutes.
-*In the summer when dill is plentiful, use fresh dill, and increase the amount  to about 2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill.
-I also really like a bit of curry in my chicken salad. Instead of the dill, use about 1/2 teaspoon of curry, add another 1/2 teaspoon after tasting, if you like a stronger curry flavor.
-Oh, last thing. If you are making this for a quaint little ladies luncheon, and don't want the black pepper flakes to get stuck in your teeth, or you just aren't pleased with the look of pepper on your otherwise Celestial looking salad, buy some white pepper, sold in the spice section of your grocery, and use that instead.

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Pressed Mozzarella, Tomato and Fresh Basil Sandwich

Yesterday, my sis in law brought me a sandwich from Tulie Bakery in SLC. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Oh so yummy. We shared two sandwiches. One turkey and one mozzarella, tomato and fresh basil. The turkey was good, but you know how it is when you eat something, then think about it for DAYS? (okay, so it's only been one day) Goodness. Last night I lay in bed thinking about what I should cook for Sunday dinner, but all I could think about was that sandwich. Started to make a mental checklist - I coincidentally had all of the ingredients! If you know me, you know I don't believe in coincidence. In my world, THERE ARE NO MISTAKES. It was a sign. Kind of like the planets colliding. I wanted that sandwich, and I had all of the ingredients! POW. Sunday dinner. I know you are thinking - sure - you just happened to have fresh basil, and fresh mozzarella, Italian bread, and fresh tomatoes? Well, yes, all of those things made their way into my grocery cart on Friday or were already in my fridge - before I ate the sandwich, AND I have fresh basil growing out in my very tiny and pathetic garden, which consists of a large pot on my large deck. Remember, we sacrificed our garden space for a batting cage years ago. Only 6 more years of baseball. Then, I can have a real garden again.
This is the perfect summer dinner. At least in my mind. So, not only was the Tulie Bakery sandwich out of this world, but the desserts.

Oh.

My.

Three desserts.

We'll just have to save obsessing about those for another post.

Pressed Mozzarella, Tomato and Fresh Basil Sandwiches

Crusty Italian Bread or Ciabatta buns

fresh mozzarella, sliced

fresh tomatoes, sliced

fresh basil leaves

avocado, sliced (optional)

balsamic vinegar

olive oil

kosher salt

fresh ground pepper

Heat up Panini grill. Brush the outer sides of the bread with olive oil. Layer the cheese, tomato, basil leaves and avocado. Douse with a good amount of balsamic. Sprinkle with kosher salt and ground pepper. Grill for about 5 minutes, or just until cheese begins to melt. Serve immediately.

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Smoked Boston Butt with homemade BBQ Sauce

Whenever we go to the South, our (my) first order of business is to find a good place to eat a pulled pork sandwich. When we landed in New Orleans last month, we found a little hole in the wall place where the locals eat. Our plates were heaping with ribs, pulled pork and brisket. Yum. The next day we went to a family favorite, Corky's. They're famous for their barbecue.

Making delish pulled pork at home is really simple. I love Paula Dean's recipe for Boston Butt. It has smoky flavor, without barbecuing or actually smoking the meat. Now, It's not quite as good as authentic Southern barbecue, but it's a close second. In my opinion, pulled pork needs sauce. Don't make this unless you can commit to the sauce too. Making your own sauce takes one pan and less than 5 minutes. Please tell me you would not compromise the integrity of your pulled pork with a store bought bottled sauce!

A little warning- First, get at least two roasts. Everyone, and I mean everyone loves this, and it will go fast. Dick's (useless info unless you live in B-town) puts this on sale a few times a year for $1.29-$1.69 a pound. I buy several and throw them in the freezer. And pick up some food handlers gloves either in a restaurant supply store or your grocery. Sometimes you can even get the deli people (in your local grocery) to sell you a package. They have 100 uses, especially if you are a germaphobe, no names, please- and will keep your hands from smelling like smoke flavoring. Uh, wait, maybe you WANT to smell like smoke flavoring. I heard a news story the other day about men loving food smells as opposed to flowery perfume scents. Interesting. Maybe just put a little behind your ears while you are preparing the meat. Oh, one more thing. My kids, especially the boys LOVE it when I make this. Not only because they love the dish, but they also love saying "I am So excited to have BUTT tonight" or "I love it when you make BUTT" or "Pass the BUTT".

Mature.

I know.

Smoked Boston Butt

printable recipe

1 4-5 pound Pork Butt Roast

1 Tablespoon seasoned salt

1 tablespoon garlic salt

1 tablespoon pepper

4 tablespoons liquid smoke

1 large sweet onion, sliced into rings

1 cup water

foil

homemade barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 325 degrees

Place gloves on hands, if using. Sprinkle all of the seasoning on the roast evenly, both sides. Rub into the meat. Repeat the process with the liquid smoke. Place the meat in a large roasting pan, or if you don't have one use a 9 x 13 pan. Remove the gloves and discard. Chop the onions, and throw over the meat. Pour the water into the pan. Make sure not to pour over the meat, or you will wash away the flavorings. Cover the meat with foil. Seal to edges of pan, so steam won't escape. Place in oven and cook for 3 hours at 325 degrees . You can remove at this time, but I like to turn the oven off, and just let it sit in the oven for another couple of hours. Do not open the oven until ready to remove. When ready to serve, pull away excess fat, and either chop or pull pork apart with forks. Place on a serving platter and drizzle with sauce. Serve extra sauce on the side.

Tips:

-Serve with hamburger buns, or white bread slices.

-great side dishes are : (click here) coleslaw, baked beans and potato salad.

-After cooking the meat - Don't cut the meat and "mix" with bbq sauce. It will get mushy and have that yucky consistency of frozen bbq meat. Just carefully lay the meat in a pan or serving platter and pour a little sauce over the top.

BBQ Sauce:

2 cups Ketchup

1-cup brown sugar

5-8 drops hot sauce

1 tsp dry mustard

1 clove garlic (optional)

3 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

ground pepper

Heat all ingredients in pan on stove. Add more sugar, hot sauce or garlic according to your taste.

Tips:

-You can substitute honey for the sugar. If you like onions in your sauce, saute half of a chopped onion and add to the mixture.

-Without onions, this will keep in the refrigerator for at least a month.

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Grilled Shrimp Louie Sakoda Sandwiches

Louie for Pres!

If you want to make an appetizer out of the filling, slice a baguette, add an avocado slice, the filling and top with a little cocktail or chili sauce.

So there we were, our beloved UTES down by 8 with a little over 2 minutes to go in the game last night against Oregon State. A few fans started leaving the stadium, but we just stood there in disbelief. Wondering if our 5 game winning streak would come to an end.(Read this next part really fast, with no pauses in between, because that's how I typed it up) Then, out of no where, our offense decides to show up for the last 2 minutes of the game. In 40 seconds, we had a touchdown, then a 2 point conversion. It was 3 and out for OSU, and we had the ball back again. A couple of plays later- it was LOUIE TIME. As if. You now who I am talking about, right??? Only the best kicker in college football. (Ok, we loved Dave Carrol, who played for the UTES before his LDS mission, and played a big part in their 2004-2005 BCS run with Urban Meyer and the Fiesta Bowl win,and who also happens to come from our neck of the woods.) Louie is our man. We love him. He has saved our fannies SO many times. And so, after kicking a game winning field goal with 1 second on the game clock, I made this sandwich in honor of him. Now, it's not really an official "Shrimp Louie", so work with me. You know what I am going to say next...Yes, you are going to love it! Whew. I need a Valium.

Grilled Shrimp Louie Sakoda Sandwiches

1/4 cup mayo

1/4 cup plain yogurt

a little chopped onion, I like red

1 tablespoon tarragon or 2-3 tablespoons fresh

few dashes of Tabasco

1/2 cup celery, chopped

1 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled

olive oil

1/2 fresh lemon

1/2 clove garlic

salt and ground pepper

6 bakery hot dog buns, unsliced

Sliced tomato

Sliced avocado

Marinate the shrimp in 2 Tablespoons olive oil, juice from 1/2 lemon, 1/2 clove chopped garlic, salt and fresh ground pepper. 30 minutes to 1 hour is good. Or bag this whole step, and just grill.

Grill shrimp on barbecue- medium heat, for about 3 minutes each side or until done. Don't over cook! Or you can place in oven for about 7 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove and let cool. Pull the tails off and discard. Chop shrimp into big chunks. Set aside. In small bowl, whisk together Mayo and yogurt, onion, tarragon, hot sauce, chopped celery, and shrimp.

Split the hot dog buns down the middle of the top of the bun.If you can only find pre-sliced buns, don't stress about it. Lightly Butter the buns, to prevent a soggy bun.Fill the bun with tomato slices and avocado. Top with shrimp mixture. Eat while humming "Utah Man."

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