pesto and prosciutto sandwiches

another great way to use prosciutto.  you can leave it as-is, or broil it for a couple minutes for crispy.  from everyday food magazine.

directions:

toast some thick slices of crusty bread (i used sourdough).  spread on the pesto.  top with prosciutto, slices of hard-boiled egg and parmesan cheese shavings.  delicious!

Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Ingredients
chicken (either canned or frozen) cook & dice/shred
celery- dice/chop
mayonnaise
basil- several good shakes
rosemary- 1/2 tsp
pepper- dash
salt- 1/2 tsp
grapes- seedless, cut in half, optional


Ok, so I basically eyeball this recipe. I usually do 1/2-1 chicken breast per adult. And then I usually do 1 stalk of celery for every 3 breasts used. I use a spatula to add the mayo and start small and keep adding until I like the consistency. I add the spices at the beginning so that they get blended well....and I add the grapes last. So if I make this the day before I put the grapes in a sandwich bag and then add them when I'm ready to start putting the mixture on bread or croissants. Also, if you're going to do croissants, only slice them 2/3 of the way through---if you completely slice them in half then the chicken and grapes fall out too easily when you're trying to eat it. I learned that the hard way!

3 for 1 Meal Meat

As distasteful as the title sounds, this is actually awesome for future fast dinners. Make pulled pork sandwiches, enchiladas, and chili burros from 1 roast. (This can be done from a pork or beef roast.)

Start by making pulled pork sandwiches:

1 rump roast or shoulder roast - 5-8 lbs
1 bottle of BBQ or seasoning sauce (I used Lawry's baja chipotle marinade)
1 8-oz can of tomato sauce

Trim the fat from the roast. Put it in the slow cooker for 7 hours, along with most of the bottle of marinade. After 7 hours take the roast out, and cut it off the bone if necessary (my bone just fell out, the meat was so tender) and use 2 forks to shred the meat. You can also trim/remove any fatty bits at this time. Return it all to the slow cooker, add the tomato sauce to thicken the juices a bit. Cook it 30-60 minutes more.

Serve as pulled pork sandwiches by slicing ciabatta or rolls in half, and slathering with the meat.

Then freeze any meat that you don't want to use as pulled pork sandwich leftovers. Before freezing divide it into 2-3 containers for easy thaw out.

For enchiladas:

1 can of enchilada sauce
-or-
2 Tablespoons chili powder
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup flour
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
oregano
cumin
garlic
diced onion or dried onion
salt
pepper
1 container frozen meat left over from pulled pork sandwiches
corn tortillas
grated cheese

Heat a saucepan to medium. Add the olive oil. When the olive oil is warm, add the chili powder. Toast the chili powder in the oil, but don't burn it. You should be able to smell a difference between untoasted and toasted, it will become more savory and rich. When it smells toasted, add the flour (this prevents it from burning). Mix it all together, and then dump in the tomato sauce. Fill the can with water and add, twice. Then add the seasonings. I usually put several shakes of each into the sauce. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil. The sauce will thicken. After stirring during the boil for 2 minutes, turn it down and let it simmer for 20 minutes with the lid partially on.

To compile you can either do 2 things: add 1/2 cup olive oil to a frying pan and soft-fry the tortillas for easy roll up, or make a casserole. To soft fry the tortillas, put them in hot oil for about a minute (not long enough to turn hard like tostadas) and transfer to a dish with 1/4 cup sauce on the bottom. Add a spoonful of meat, a spoonful of sauce, some cheese, and roll. Continue until the pan is full or you are out of meat. Cover the tops with sauce, cheese, and green onion if you like. Bake for 15 minutes uncovered at 325.

For the casserole: Use a pizza cutter to slice the corn tortillas, straight out of the package, into 1.5 inch strips. Put some sauce in the bottom of your dish, and layer the tortilla slices on top of it. Then repeat layers of sauce, meat, cheese, tortilla until the dish is full or you are out of meat. Make sure the top has sauce, cheese, and chopped green onion if desired. Bake, covered, at 325 for 40 minutes.

For chili burros:

1 container frozen meat left over from pulled pork sandwiches
flour tortillas
grated cheese,
can diced tomato
chopped onion
chopped bellpepper
can of green chilies

Heat the meat, tomato, onion, bellpepper, and green chilies up together on the stove. If you think it needs thickening, add some tomato sauce. When it is all hot and mixed together compile the burros:
On an open tortilla put a spoonful of the mixture down the middle. Sprinkle with cheese. Roll up.

Serve with lettuce, tomato, sour cream, guacamole on top.

veggie experiment: day 18

LENTIL SOUP W/ OPEN-FACED TOMATO AND CHEESE SANDWICHES

here is the lentil soup recipe. i made it in about fifteen minutes today because my lentils were pre-cooked.

for the sandwiches i take yummy bread (really whatever you want is fine) and spread butter/margarine on it. then a healthy dash of garlic salt. then a bunch o' fresh basil leaves (or parsley or spinach--whatever you're feeling like, although basil is best). then tomatoes. then mozzarella (or whatever cheese you're feeling like). then, if you're having the basil w/ mozzarella, splash some balsamic vinegar on top of that. then toast until golden and enjoy.