Most people say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Barnaby apparently thought it was the other way around as he’s been feeding me delicious meal after meal for nearly nine years. Not that I would have packed it up and headed out if he didn’t feed me so well, for he had me at “paella” (the first dish he cooked for me).

One of the first I’ll-throw-something-together dinners he made me on a rainy Friday evening was this beef filled pita with lemony tahini, tomatoes, avocado and sprouts. An oh so tasty sandwich that combines the flavors of the Middle East with a bit of Berkeley (I always associate sprouts with the famous hippie city!), all wrapped up in a whole wheat pita. Great with an ice cold beer and a good movie.

Click below for the full recipe:

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Categories:	Meat & Poultry • Middle Eastern • condiments	2 Comments
Tags:	avocado • beef • easy • easy dinner • sandwich • sesame tahini • sprouts • tahini • tomato

This chicken sandwich combines so many ingredients that I adore. It tastes like a bite of Italy with its fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil and pesto – all crammed in a buttery rosemary focaccia just lightly toasted. With a creamy pesto mayonnaise and tender grilled chicken breast this sandwich makes the perfect weekend lunch or easy dinner.

Chicken Pesto Focaccia Sandwich

One chicken breast
Small tomato, sliced
Red onion, sliced
Fresh basil, or organic salad greens
Fresh mozzarella, sliced
Low-fat mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Pesto
Focaccia bread, sliced half

Grill chicken breast, then set aside to cool. Mix about 1/4 cup of low fat mayonnaise with 1 tablespoon pesto (homemade or store bought), or to desired taste. Slice focaccia lengthwise and toast lightly. Spread pesto mayonnaise on both sides of bread. Place chicken breast on bottom slice and add sliced onion, tomato, mozzarella, and fresh basil or salad greens. Top with the last piece of bread.

Makes one large sandwich.

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Categories:	Cheese • Italian • Meat & Poultry • Veggies	2 Comments
Tags:	chicken • chicken pesto • chicken sandwich • focaccia • lunch • pesto • sandwich

Photo: pink_fish13

I return home from work (hungry), check the mailbox and find my newest issue of Gourmet magazine. There on the cover is a delicious grilled sandwich bulging with juicy ham, its bread toasted to crisp perfection. When I flip through the pages (which, by the way, reading a food mag is never a good idea to do when you are hungry) I am reminded of the sandwiches we used to get in Siena, Italy. After school my girlfriends and I would head to Bar Centrali for panini and cokes (okay, sometimes wine). When I first arrived in Italy I could barely speak a lick of Italian, but I quickly mastered the art of ordering my “panino.”

“Prosciutto crudo, fontini é fungi con salsa rosa é salsa verde, per favore!”

Raw cured ham, fontina cheese, mushrooms with red and green sauce grilled to perfection on a big fancy panini grill. I’m still not really sure what the red and green sauces were (tomato- and pesto-esque), but they were divine in their mystery. Best of all, I felt oh so Italian when I placed the order! I ate that same sandwich almost daily for six months straight. Whether I ate the same version because I was so in love with it (completely) or just scared to learn a new string of ingredients (probably) I’ll never quite know (or admit).

Oh, so young, so naive! If I were there again I’d be ordering a different panino each day. Choosing from amongst the cured meats and cheeses that hung over the bar.

I’ve never been able to reproduce that same panino, and I don’t think I actually want to, as the memory of that one great panino would somehow be sullied. I will always miss that sandwich, though not nearly as much as I miss the time spent with my wonderful girlfriends. Nothing comes close to either.

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Categories:	Cheese • Italian • condiments	2 Comments
Tags:	Bar Centrale • fontina • grilled sandwich • Italy • panini • panino • prosciutto • prosciutto crudo • sandwich • siena

What better way to wrap up Tomato Week than with a B.L.T.? Since all the tomato recipes this week have been vegetarian or vegan, I thought I’d end with a carnivorous bang! Bacon.

Nothing goes better with tomato than bacon. Well, actually many things go well with tomato, it’s just a really good excuse to eat bacon! The way I like to figure it is this: a serving each of fruit and veggie is sure to cancel out the badness of the bacon, so really, it’s kinda of a healthy meal. Right? Ok, I know that’s a crock, at least I tried.

The best B.L.T., in my opinion, consists of thick-sliced bacon, tender lettuce, and plump and juicy fresh-from-your-garden tomatoes – not the poor anemic ones found in big supermarkets. If you’re going to do it right, you gotta do it right. I also like mine on a good artisan bread, such as ciabatta (shown), then lightly toasted just enough to shred the top of your mouth.

Thank you, tomato, for being perfect in about everything! And thank you, bacon, for…well, for being bacon.

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Categories:	Fruit • Meat & Poultry • Veggies	8 Comments
Tags:	bacon • BLT • Food • foodista • lettuce • sandwich • tomato

If you are like me, you may have assumed that the French Dip sandwich has it’s origins in, well, France. Non! Eeet ees actually from…Los Angeles. Despite my images of Gallic housewives stewing bones in ancient stone farmhouses to render the dipping broth, or Au Jus, that makes this dish unique, it’s generally accepted that the French Dip was created 100 years ago in the City of Angels. That’s not to say there isn’t some controversy about it’s origins. The restaurant Phillipe The Original claims to have invented it, they even have a colorful history about the happy accident. However, it turns out that there is another place, Cole’s PE Buffet, which also claims to have invented the sandwich. Here’s an article in the LA Times with a full review of Phillipe’s and history of the controversy.

If you aren’t familier with this delicacy, check out my video report from a recent visit to Phillipe’s.

Finally, there is a nice recipe to make the French Dip at home at the blog Baking Bites.

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Categories:	French • Restaurants • Sauces • Travel	4 Comments
Tags:	Au Jus • Cole's • Food • foodista • French Dip • Historic Restaurant • Los Angeles • Phillipe The Original • Restaurant Video • sandwich

Every now and then Barnaby and I pop up to Victoria, British Columbia. One summer we sailed our boat, Miss Eulie, across the Straight of Juan de Fuca (hello, Dramamine) and moored in front of the Fairmont Empress Hotel (formerly The Empress Hotel). The Parliament building, which is located catty-corner from the hotel, is beautifully lit up at night with tiny white lights.

One of our favorite things to do while we’re in Victoria is to enjoy a leisurely Afternoon Tea at the Hotel. I must digress for a moment and give praise to our waiter who gave us unparalleled service. Barnaby is left-handed, and we hadn’t been sitting for more than two minutes before our exceptionally observant waiter silently switched all his glassware and teacup to the left side. Never have we experienced that. Brilliant.

You feel like English royalty as you sip the Hotel’s secret blend of tea while sitting in their elegant Tea Lobby. Although the foods are diminutive, they are served in glorious abundance, so make sure you are plenty hungry before you go.

Unfortunately, it’s not every day that we get to enjoy such pleasures as the Empress’s Afternoon Tea, so I like to create my own mini-version at home and serve with a hot pot of Earl Grey Tea. There are a plethora of tea sandwich recipes, but I like the traditional, egg, cucumber and salmon ones.

I use either white or a soft whole bread with the crusts cut off. I cut the sandwiches in squares, triangles or rounds. I never follow a particular recipe, but instead just whip up simple sammies of whatever I happen to have in my fridge. I also like to keep it fairly light so I don’t use butter for all sandwiches. I do, however, butter the bread for the cucumber ones to prevent the sandwiches from becoming soggy.

Smoked Salmon & Dill Mascarpone

Chop fresh dill and mix a healthy amount with the mascarpone. If you don’t have mascarpone, sour cream will work. It just won’t be as creamy.
Spread the mixture onto one side of two pieces of crust-less bread, add a layer of smoked salmon, place the other piece of bread on top and cut either at an angle or in quarters.

Cucumber Mint Tea Sandwiches. Instead of mint basil or watercress is also delicious.

Traditional Egg Salad really is a no-brainer, which is why I love to make it. This recipe calls for dill, but I often use red or green onion instead for color.

Enjoy your tea!

Here’s a wonderful recipe from 101 Cookbooks for Egg Salad.

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Categories:	Uncategorized	3 Comments
Tags:	afternoon tea • British Columbia • Canada • cucumber • egg • egg salad • Empress Hotel • Food • foodista • recipe • recipes • salmon • sammies • sandwich • sandwiches • sannies • smoked salmon • Tea • tea sandwich • Victoria