Pages, Pucks and Pantry

Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Like everyone else I get cravings. The other day I was craving a grilled cheese sandwich. Like, really craving, can't think of anything else, must have a grilled cheese sandwich. The thing was I was also craving pizza.  Like, if I don't have pizza now I'm going to go running in the streets screaming for the pizza man. But I thought making a grilled cheese sammie and getting a large pepperoni pizza probably wouldn't make my arteries very happy. And running through the streets screaming for the pizza guy (visions of me chasing after the Round Table delivery guy comes to mind) would probably get me committed. It was then that I remembered seeing this on Pinterest. A Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich.

Still...my arteries kinda cringed in horror at the thought of all the calories and fat in a sandwich like that. And I could hear the disapproving voice of the Wii lady going "ohhhh" when I stepped on the scale (she's such an annoying beeotch isn't she?). So I compromised. Along with a regular package of pepperoni, I picked up a package of turkey pepperoni at the grocery store (I know, there are those of you who swear that this is just wrong on so many levels but sometimes you gotta fake it to make it). I also used some sourdough bread I had on hand to make the sandwich and instead of real butter, I used Land O Lakes Light Butter with Canola Oil (half the calories!).

And you know what? The sandwich didn't turn out half bad. I still got some of the pepperoni flavor in my grilled cheese and I didn't notice the lower caloric butter at all (sorry but I just refuse to use margarine or that fake butter stuff). Mr. L loved his Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich...which I made with regular pepperoni (he didn't seem to notice the low cal canola butter).

So for my friends out there that are trying to watch calories and such, try making this with whole wheat bread, turkey pepperoni and some low cal cheese and butter. The rest of you can use all the fattening foods you want...just be ready to be addicted. This is one tasty sandwich!

PIZZA GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICH

Four slices of bread (whatever kind you prefer)
Butter
4 slices of mozzarella cheese
pepperoni (regular or turkey)
Italian Seasoning
PIzza Sauce for dipping

Make a grilled cheese sandwich (at this point I could give you directions on how to do this but I'm pretty sure you can figure that out for yourself). Add a dash of the italian seasoning to the inside of the sandwich before cooking. Serve with some pizza sauce for dipping.

NOTE: I made two sandwiches, one with regular pepperoni and one with turkey pepperoni.

NOTE: I used Francisco Sourdough Bread, Contadina Canned Tomato Sauce, Hormel Pepperoni (both regular and turkey), Precious Mozzarella, Land O Lakes Light Butter with Canola Oil

NOTE: I didn't have pizza sauce so I just used a can of tomato sauce and doctored it up with some more Italian Seasoning to make my pizza sauce.

Though I've run across this recipe many times over the years, it was the pin of Forkfull of Comfort that brought it back on my radar. You can see her post here.

Obviously this can be changed up in many ways. Adding different cheeses, using different breads, changing the pizza sauce up by adding more garlic etc. If you look up Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich you can find recipes for many variations on the interwebs.

Thankfully my cravings were satisfied, the Wii lady didn't complain to much and the pizza man was saved from the crazy stalker.

 

Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Still continuing my Operation Pantry Project, I came across a bottle of Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Marinade. I checked on the Saucy Mama's website where they have a ton of recipes using their products, but didn't find anything that tickled my taste buds. I then searched online and found this pulled pork recipe from A La Carte Kitchen. The fact that it could be made in the slow cooker made the recipe sound even better.

Super simple to make, you throw everything in the crock pot and let it do it's thing for 8-10 hours (makes this a nice slow cooker dish if you're not sure you'll be home on time). I served it between some wheat sandwich rolls, with some packaged cole slaw.

This turned out okay. The pulled pork did have a nice taste and it made a ton of sauce (maybe too much for the sandwich) which made it great to serve over mashed potatoes later. I think my problem was with the coleslaw and bread. The coleslaw was store bought and had no flavor which made a nice crunch in the sandwich but I think I wanted something a bit tangier to go with the pulled pork. The wheat bread buns I used completely fell apart when you tried to eat the sandwich. I'd use a sturdier roll next time. Bread that's a bit chewier. But I did like the Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Marinade and would use it again.

You can find the recipe for the Pulled Pork on A La Carte Kitchen's blog here:

SAUCY MAMA'S LIME CHIPOTLE PULLED PORK SANDWICHES

Note: I used pork butt. I used whole wheat sandwich buns. I used packaged coleslaw. I used KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce.

Again, though the pulled pork made with the Saucy Mama marinade was fine, the dish as a whole didn't turn out so great. I was trying to be healthy and save calories buy using the whole wheat buns and cheap coleslaw. I did love the Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Pulled Pork over mashed potatoes and think it would work over rice or polenta too.

Note: Though I was sent this sauce from another blogger in a giveaway, I have not been compensated for this post nor was I asked or requested to blog about this marinade.

A Strawberry A Day - June 26 - Strawberry, Banana and Peanut Butter Sandwiches

I've never actually had an Elvis Sandwich...peanut butter, bananas and bacon on toasted bread. It wasn't the bacon that made me think twice...it was actually the combination of the peanut butter and banana that had me putting the idea of eating that kind of sandwich off...until now.

FOOD NETWORK INSTRUCTIONS

Sunday June 26, 2011

Make sandwiches with peanut butter, sliced strawberries and bananas, and head to the beach for a picnic lunch.

I admit to not being sure about this sandwich at all. Such a strange combination. And though I made it and brought it to work last week, I had an alternate lunch should this concoction need to be tossed in the trash.

And you know what? It wasn't that bad! I had no problem polishing off the entire sandwich. But, I have to admit, my least favorite part were the strawberries. But the bananas and peanut butter? Worked. So yeah, I think an Elvis Sandwich will be on the lunch menu sometime soon. Or maybe I could just deep fry the dang thing like Paula Deen does? Why it took me so long to try this combination I'll never know, but now I may need to make up for lost time and have this regularly!

What Food Goes With Freezing Weather?

The Phantom e-mailed that temperatures where he is range from 1 to 7 degrees Fahrenheit. Insanity. We're headed to Disneyland soon and the weather is supposed to be sunny and in the high 60's. Which everyone thinks is "awesome weather" for this time of year in Southern California. These people are insane. I just don't do cold weather. Yes, I will bundle up and go skiing and deal with the cold, but when it comes to every day life? I dislike the cold. I'd rather it rain. I hate being nice and warm in my house, then have to bundle up to go outside to get in the car, wait for the ice on my windshield to defrost, freeze going from car to the office, and then have to peel off layers because the office is like an oven. Repeat as necessary throughout the day. I realize that my complaining about it being cold and 70 degrees probably makes those of you in 1 degree weather want to smack me (or at least drop me head first into the four foot of ice and snow on your front lawn), but I'm just telling you how I feel. And besides. We pay extra for the weather to not be that cold on a regular basis. I think there should be some sort of law. If it gets below freezing here, the cost of everything should go down 5 percent.

I'm drinking lots of coffee and tea (I'd be drinking hot cocoa if there were less calories...dang that holiday weight gain) and craving chilis and hot soups and stews. Sandwiches and pasta dishes must be hot, and when I crave a salad, it's usually spinach with a warm bacon dressing. I don't want chicken as much as I want pot roasts and legs of lamb. I don't crave cheeseburgers as much as I crave burritos. Casseroles over Chinese food. Veal parmigiana over sushi. Macaroni and cheese over macaroni salad. Forget pudding and jello based desserts, give me molten lava cakes and warm apple pie. I realize that in about three months these cravings will be reversed...but in the meantime, just give me food that's hot and sticks to my ribs.

I took an extended break from my blog but now find I'm eager to get back in the groove. I recieved six cookbooks for Christmas (ahem, not counting the few that I bought for myself) so I have a little goal to try to cook something from them first before I head back to my cookbook stash. I'm thinking soups and stews might be what I look for first.

The above is my quick and easy Mortadella Sandwich. I usually put much more mortadella in the sandwich and melt everything together a bit more, but I was short on time and short on mortadella. Didn't matter, still hit the spot!

Tuna Melt

When trying to decide what recipe to make from The Sandwich Maker Cookbook I knew one thing...it was going to have cheese. I just figured something cheesy would be the best dish to start with. While reading off dishes I wished to try to Mr. L, I was surprised when he told me he'd never had a tuna melt. Now mind you, I've probably only had a handful of them in my life, but since Mr. L isn't adverse to some good canned tuna, I was surprised he'd never had this simple classic sandwich.

If you don't like canned tuna, you probably won't like this sandwich. We used some good albacore tuna which made this much less fishy than one would think. I also just kind of eyeballed the ingredients instead of measuring.

The first batch had an almost burnt crust. Didn't taste burnt, sort of carmelizy (that's what I thought so even if it's not a word, it works for me).Though subsequent batches looked a bit overcooked, they didn't taste that way, they had a nice crunchy exterior.

I think the size of bread slices have grown since this machine was made. A slice of bread pretty much fit 2/3rds of the maker. So i cut off the crusts of the bread...which worked perfectly for the sandwich maker. The sandwiches themselves made a nice presentation with their sealed edges. The ingredients stayed nicely inside. The actual sandwich maker was a bit messy, not that easy to use since it's also a bit heavy.  But it made some great sandwiches and it cleaned up easy.

We really liked this. The tuna with the cheese was all melty and reminded me of old time comfort food (and yes, melty is also a new word). Looking forward to trying other combinations in the sandwich maker. Mr. L, after finishing off his second sandwich (and being disappointed that I wasn't making any more) turned to me with light in his eyes and said "cheese and bacon". Yeah, this little sandwich maker might be worth it's weight in gold for the rest of this summer....

TUNA MELT

Bread: rye, pumpernickel, whole wheat, cracked wheat, multi-grain, sourdough or white

Filling:
1 (9 1/4 oz) can tuna, drained
1/4 cup mayonnaise or to taste
3 tbs - 1/4 cup diced celery or 4-5 pickles, diced
parsley to taste, optional
salt and pepper or salt-free seasoning blend to taste
1-2 slices American, Swiss, Muenster or provolone cheese

Mix tuna, mayonnaise, celery (or pickle), parsley if desired and seasoning.

Spread 3-4 tablespoons over bread and cover with cheese.

Close the sandwich and coat the outside of the bread with butter, margarine or olive oil.

Follow sandwich maker instructions or grill in a pan.

You can substitute canned chicken, turkey or deviled ham for the tuna and Italian dressing for mayonnaise.

Note: We used albacore tuna in oil (Trader Joes brand). We used whole wheat bread. We did not use parsley. We used Swiss cheese. We coated the outside of the bread with butter.

Note: I actually used a combination of celery and dill pickle relish which we usually put in regular tuna sandwiches.

A simple classic sandwich. Made even more fun with the sandwich maker.