The Best of Trader Joe's

maybe I'll make this into a series.

at the moment... feast your eyes on one delicious sandwich recipe:

1 baguette, sliced all the way through and cut into thirds
"Trader Giotto's" pesto Genovese (fresh)
Italian truffle cheese, in slices
Italian-cured turkey breast (the one that's all peppery)
1 large onion, sliced
2 tbsp oil
salt & pepper to taste

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Caramelize the onions by cooking them in the pan over medium-low, stirring constantly to make sure they don't burn. Caramelizing takes a long time. Do other things. or do ahead.

Once onions are ready, assemble all items for pretty much the best sandwich you've ever had in your life. Serves 3 and keeps well.

Baby's First Panini

I suspect this sudden surge in posts will last about as long as the rest of my New Year's Resolutions do, in which case, we must be nearing the end. It's been about a week. But maybe not - maybe I've changed...


No. I don't think so, not for some things anyway. Consistency's just not my strong suit. But I can live with that. Consistently.

In the meanwhile, I'm still intoxicated by the heady elixir of food aesthetics (new discovery of food blogs + new chef-y gadgets to play with + experimentation with my darling D60 >> all food, all the time), so I'm going to make the most of it.

Here is the documentation of my first panini. I love panini(s?). Love. and lo and behold, my sister bought me a panini maker for Christmas with only the slightest bit of hinting. ("You there, I want a panini maker for Christmas. Write it down.") It was warm and delicious and everything that its humdrum cousin the Sandwich wishes it could be.


Ingredients:
Italian herb flatbread
Roasted bell peppers, zucchini, and onions (sliced, drizzled with olive oil, 325 degrees)
Slices of buffalo mozzerella
Baby greens
Sun-dried tomatoes
Peppered salami and pepperoni
Garlic pesto (store-bought, but I'm working my way towards making my own pesto. And by "working my way", I mean that I plan to buy a basil plant soon-ish.)

Directions:
...Assemble.

Chicken Pesto Sandwich

Ingredients:
1 loaf of garlic focaccia bread
2 small chicken breasts, pounded
4 slices of mozzarella cheese
baby greens or spinach
1.5 oz sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil (not the dehydrated kind in a bag), julienne cut
1 large portobello mushroom, sliced
1/2 white onion, sliced
jar of garlic pesto
dried oregano
1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Begin by slicing the focaccia lengthwise (horizontally). Spread the garlic pesto on the top half of the loaf.

Season the chicken on both sides with a little bit of salt, pepper, and oregano.

in a medium skillet, saute the onion over medium heat in the olive oil until onion is translucent. Push onions to one side and cook the chicken, turning over occasionally until inside is fully cooked and both sides are golden brown. Set chicken aside.

Continue to saute the onion, adding in the sun-dried tomatoes. Cook for a couple minutes. Take the skillet off the fire, and layer the onion tomato mixture across the focaccia bottom. Place the chicken breasts as the second layer, and the mozzarella cheese on top of that.

Place the skillet back on the fire and saute the mushrooms for a few minutes, adding just a little bit of water. When the mushrooms are soft enough (and smell delicious), add these on top of the cheese. Finish off the sandwich with a layer of lettuce or spinach and the focaccia top; slice the sandwich into quarters. Serves 2.

Perfect for a picnic.