Hot Ham & Cheese Sandwiches

We had these for Grandma Gentle's birthday party, last night.

Makes 16 Sandwiches

16 Rustic Rolls, halfed

Side 1
1 c mayo & 1/4 c Dijon, combined
48 thin slices ham
8 sandwich slices swiss cheese, halved

For Side 2

Mushroom Topping
In a large skillet, saute 20 oz. of thinly sliced baby bella mushrooms and 4 diced shallots with 1 tablespoon thyme.  Cool.

Morney Sauce
Melt 1 T butter in a small saucepan.  Whisk 2 T flour with 1 cup milk.  Add milk mix with 1 tablespoon thyme and a dash of nutmeg to saucepan.  Cook until thick.  Stir in 1/2 c Parmesan cheese and hot sauce, salt, and pepper as desired.

Split Rustic Rolls in half.  Place on a baking sheet with cut sides up.  Top one side of each roll with mayo/mustard mix.  Place three slices of cheese on top, followed by one slice of Swiss cheese.  On the other side, spread Morney Sauce.  Top Morney  with drained mushroom mix.  Sprinkle additional Paremsan on top of mushrooms.

Place in a 400F oven for 8 minutes.  Broil an additional 2 minutes to melt cheese. Reassemble sandwich halves and eat.

Rye Beer Buns

From Cooking Books
Makes 24 Rolls or 18 Sandwiches

Dough
12 oz beer
1/3 c packed brown sugar
1/4 c molasses
2 T unsalted butter
4 1/2 tsp yeast
2 tsp salt
3 c a.p. flour
2 1/2 c rye flour
1 T fennel seeds (anise or caraway would work too)
1 T tangerine zest (I used orange)

Egg Wash
1 egg mixed with 1 T water

Filling
1.5 lb thinly sliced and chopped corned beef
2 c swiss cheese, shredded
1 c sauerkraut
1/2 c mayo
2 T vinegar
1 T sugar
salt

Heat beer with sugar, molasses and butter to 110F.  Mix with yeast.  Wait until foamy.  Knead in remaining dough ingredients.  Cover and let rise 2 hours.

Divide into 18 pieces for sandwiches or 24 for rolls.  For sandwiches, combine filling ingredients.  Roll dough into think circles.  Place filling on top.  Pull sides together, pinching to seal.  Place on a baking sheet dusted with cornmeal.  Let rise 1 hour.  For rolls, form into balls on baking sheet and let rise 1 hour.  Brush with egg wash.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes at 375F.

Artichoke, Pepper, and Tomato Strata

Makes a 9"x13" Pan

Charlie said, "Can I have this for my birthday?"

3.5 oz sun dried tomatoes
8 c rustic bread, cut in large chunks
1 T olive oil
1 medium red onion, sliced thin
3 cloves garlic, minced
12 oz jar artichoke quarters
12 oz jar roasted red peppers
6 oz can black olives
8 oz fresh mozzarella
1/2 c Parmesan cheese
1 c milk
6 lg eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp Sriracha chili sauce
1 T lemon juice
6 c fresh spinach

Cover tomatoes in a microwave safe dish with water.  Microwave to boiling.  Let soak.
Saute onions in olive oil a few minutes on medium heat.  Add garlic and artichokes.  Saute a few more minutes.  Mix in bread, olives, and cheeses. Drain tomatoes.  Combine with milk, eggs, salt, chili sauce, and lemon juice.  Puree to cut up tomatoes.  Mix with bread mixture.  Stir in spinach.  Spray a 9" x 13" pan with cooking spray.  Spread into pan.  Bake covered for 30 minutes at 375F.  Uncover and bake 15 minutes longer.

Stuffed Greek Sandwich

I made this sandwich for the teachers' parent conference night.
I sent them in a medium sized pizza box.

Makes One 12" by 16" Sandwich

Bread Dough
1 3/4 c warm water
1 T yeast
1 T sugar
2 lg eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c olive oil
1 c whole wheat flour
2 c white whole wheat flour
2 c bread flour

Filling
2 28 oz cans whole tomatoes
3 tsp garlic
olive oil
1/2 lb chopped salami
3 tsp garlic, minced
8 oz feta cheese, crumbled
12 oz jar artichoke hearts, drained
6 oz container olives, drained chopped
coarse sea salt
cracked pepper

Dissolve yeast in warm water with sugar.  Let rest 5 minutes.  Add remaining bread dough ingredients.  Knead 8 to 10 minutes to form a soft dough.  The dough should pull away from the bowl's side.  If not, add more flour.  Let rise 2 hours.

Meanwhile, empty 2 cans of tomatoes in a roasting pan.  Break tomatoes in half.  Sprinkle with 3 teaspoons garlic and olive oil.  Roast at 400F for 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Saute salami over medium heat.  Drain on a paper towel.  Chop artichokes and olives.  Mix salami with artichokes, olives, and cheese.  Season mixture with salt and pepper.

Role dough out to form a 15" by 20" rectangle.  Lay tomatoes in a single layer on dough.  You will have lots of extra tomatoes to use for something else.  Spread half the salami mix on top of the tomatoes.  Roll dough up like a jelly roll.  Flatten and roll out to another 15" by 20" rectangle.  Spread remaining salami mix on top.  Roll again.  And roll out to a 12" by 16" rectangle, or to your preferred thickness.  Sprinkle a baking sheet with corn meal or semolina flour.  Place sandwich on top of baking sheet.  Brush top and sides with olive oil.  Season top with sea salt and pepper.  Cover and let rise 30 minutes.  Bake at 350F for 35 minutes.  Cool and cut into squares.

Pierogies

Polish in their roots, these pierogies seem close enough to a Chinese dumpling that Jack will gobble them up.


Charlie's menu request last week was, "Babies."
Even after a really cruel and disturbing story by Rob on what pierogies
really are, Charlie still keeps these on his favorites list.

Makes 30 Large Pierogies
Adapted from Tasty Kitchen

Dough
2 c white whole wheat flour
2 c a.p. flour
2 eggs
16 oz. sour cream
1 tsp salt

Filling
4 russet medium to large potatoes
2 T sugar
half and half
4.5 oz pepper jack cheese (I used Kraft Pepper Jack singles.)
3 green onions, sliced thin
salt

Final Step
2 T butter
sea salt & cracked pepper

Using a mixer with a dough hook, combine dough ingredients and knead on low until soft dough forms. If the dough sticks to the sides of the bowl, add a little more flour until the dough pulls away from the sides.  Remove from mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap until ready to use.

While dough is kneading, peel and boil potatoes in salted water.  Drain.  Empty potatoes into mixer bowl used for dough.  Beat on medium with sugar and enough half and half to create a soft potato.  Add cheese and onions.  Season with salt.

To conserve on dirty dishes, boil clean water in the pan used to boil potatoes.  Divide dough into 30 portions.  Roll each piece into a circle and top with a scoop of potatoes.  I used a 1 1/2" cookie scoop.  Fold circle in half, press edges, and pleat to hold potatoes inside.

Heat a skillet on medium high heat with butter.  Boil pierogies a minute or two until they rise to the surface.  Drain and saute in skillet.  I boiled and sauteed four at a time so as to not crowd the skillet.  Season with sea salt and pepper.