Quick Lunch #1.
One thing I recently realized with some degree of surprise is that my idea of quick, easy, and cheap foods has completely changed. Ramen is now only for hangovers, never for dinner; I haven't had boxed mac&cheese in months. The purchase of an old used George Foreman grill at my favorite store Hardwick's has facilitated delicious and inexpensive grilled sammiches, as follows:
fresh tomatoes
shallots sauteed in a tiny bit of olive oil and some balsamic vinegar (does this mean carmelized? I've been calling it carmelized but I might have made that up)
mushrooms sauteed in olive oil and balsamic vinegar
cheeses: yummy flagship cheese from Beecher's at the market; havarti; fontina; chevre; gorgonzola; mozzarella ...
whatever else you have in your fridge that might be delicious on a sammich - grilled eggplant slices, meat (if you are so inclined, but make it good meat - not bologna or similar), hummus, etc.
It also helps to use good bread. It turns out that Safeway's 99-cent italian bread does not toast very well, or rather, it toasts extremely well and turns into a big crunchy thing that hurts to bite into. Keep it in the freezer if you don't make this often enough, but slice it before you freeze it for much easier sammiches.
Brush olive oil on both sides of each slice of bread, unless you are putting pesto or something with olive oil in it on one side. Pile on your ingredients. I always put the cheese right next to the bread so it can get melty. Stick the whole thing in the grill and carefully (so as not to slide the top off) lift the lid up and place it straight down on the top of the sammich. Since this grill is old it helps to check the sammich partway through and turn it - not flip it, but turn it, because the middle of the grill is hotter than the edges and one edge of the bread will be toastier.
Serve with soup if you want - Progresso Lentil is a good option, plus you can garnish it (!) with the rest of your sauteed shallots.
Way more satisfying than ramen.
Tortilla soup last night - recipe soon.
Choose from among the following ingredients:pesto (homemade or otherwise) or green saucefresh basil or
It also helps to use good bread. It turns out that Safeway's 99-cent italian bread does not toast very well, or rather, it toasts extremely well and turns into a big crunchy thing that hurts to bite into. Keep it in the freezer if you don't make this often enough, but slice it before you freeze it for much easier sammiches.
Brush olive oil on both sides of each slice of bread, unless you are putting pesto or something with olive oil in it on one side. Pile on your ingredients. I always put the cheese right next to the bread so it can get melty. Stick the whole thing in the grill and carefully (so as not to slide the top off) lift the lid up and place it straight down on the top of the sammich. Since this grill is old it helps to check the sammich partway through and turn it - not flip it, but turn it, because the middle of the grill is hotter than the edges and one edge of the bread will be toastier.
Serve with soup if you want - Progresso Lentil is a good option, plus you can garnish it (!) with the rest of your sauteed shallots.
Way more satisfying than ramen.
Tortilla soup last night - recipe soon.
posted by lauren at 11:08 AM
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