Keep It Simple Foods » Sandwiches

Game Day Eats

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 01:17:18 +0000

Maybe you’re hosting this year. Or maybe you’re a guest. Either way, you’ll need sustenance to get you through Super Bowl Sunday. It is like six hours long, after all. Allow me to help with your game day menu.

First, start with something light to wake up the palate and tantalize the tummy.

Something like this spicy boiled peanut hummus.

Or this wheat berry and tomato basil salad.

I’m a big fan of this Israeli cous cous salad with oranges, white beans, and mache.

Next, move on to the main course. Hearty, manly, football food.

These spicy black bean burgers are a solid choice.

Apple, apple butter, and brie paninis are sure to please the crowd.

And guests will think these vegan sloppy joes taste just like the real thing.

Wash it all down with some sweet raspberry iced tea.

And move on to the dessert table.

Chocolate éclair cake, anyone?

Or how about a few white chocolate- dipped Oreo truffles?

These ginger and molasses cookies sure look good too!

By now you’ll probably need to undo that top button of your jeans and take a break on the couch. Happy Super Bowl Sunday!

Mushroom, Onion, and Swiss Melt with Glazed Figs

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 01:15:33 +0000

The apple, apple butter and brie panini I had at the farm rekindled my taste for hot sandwiches. They’re so simple, so comforting and you can make them so many ways. You get the idea.

Ingredients: (makes 2 sandwiches)

4 slices thick, whole wheat bread

2 cups chopped mushrooms

1 Tablespoon butter

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 cup chopped onion

4 slices baby Swiss cheese

2 roasted, glazed figs

Directions: In a pan, cook the mushrooms and onions in butter and Worcestershire sauce until tender.

Once cooked, spoon the mushroom and onion mixture onto each slice of bread. Then, top each with slice of cheese.

Broil for 5 to 10 minutes, until cheese melts and bread become toasted.

Next, add the figs. I found these roasted, glazed figs at Whole Foods. They were sweet and spiced with a gorgeous sticky glaze that reminded me of Christmas.

Slice the figs and lay on top of the melted cheese.

Assemble the sandwiches and finish them off in a pan. Toast them on each side until golden brown.

Slice in half and behold the glorious melted cheese.

A beautiful thing.

Serve with a side of kale chips or regular chips. A crisp beer would also pair nicely.

There you go- a gooey, cheesy, mushroom sandwich with sweet figs and warm, toasted bread. I don’t think it gets better than this.

Apple, Apple Butter, and Brie Paninis

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 01:01:13 +0000

I always enjoy trips to my husband’s family farm. Not only for the fresh air, quiet nights, and cuddly farm animals, but mainly for the good eats. It seems like every time we visit, we feast. This time was no exception. However, this time it was my husband’s father who did the cooking.

He grilled up these apple, apple butter, and brie sandwiches for lunch. I was pleased, for once, that my only job was to photograph- rather than to cook and photograph. (Which can often get tricky!) I was especially pleased with how well these turned out. They were heaven. Hands down the best sandwich I’ve had all year and maybe the best yet. The apple butter was an unexpected addition that made this recipe truly special. It added spice, sweetness, and creaminess that contrasted perfectly with the mild brie and crisp pink lady apples. The simplicity of it made it taste even better. Let me tell you, it was an absolute treat to discover this recipe. I do hope you’ll make it soon.

Ingredients: (makes 6 sandwiches)

2 baguettes sliced lengthwise (multigrain, white, or wheat)

1 pink lady apple (or other sweet apple) cored and sliced paper thin

1 hunk of brie sliced

apple butter

Directions: Smear a generous amount of apple butter on the bottom side of each baguette and layer with the apple slices.

Next, add a layer of sliced brie.

Broil open faced for 5 to 10 minutes, until the cheese starts to melt. Next, put the sandwiches together and slice into thirds. Then, finish them off on a griddle or in a pan, toasting on each side.

Serve hot and enjoy! These pair well with a steamy cup of soup or some crispy sweet potato chips.

Lentil, Quinoa, and Mushroom Sliders

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 02:17:50 +0000

I’ve been working hard on a new recipe for veggie burgers. I usually make them with chickpeas, but my husband doesn’t like the texture. They tend to be somewhat dry. But he likes lentils, and lentils have a smoky, almost meaty taste. And the texture is ideal. Makes sense to use them in a veggie burger. In this case, I made sliders and added quinoa for a bit extra texture and protein.

Ingredients: (makes about 10 sliders or 5 burgers)

1 cup dried lentils (cook until tender and drain)

1/2 cup dried quinoa (cook and drain)

1 cup chopped mushrooms

1 cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 egg

1 bunch fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

1/3 cup sunflower seeds

1 Tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon honey

1 Tablespoon dijon mustard

dash salt and pepper

swiss cheese (to melt on top of the sliders)

Directions: After preparing the lentils and quinoa, combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Form the mixture into small patties and place in a heated skillet. The egg helps hold the mixture together, but it won’t be as sticky as ground beef, so you’ll have to be gentle when forming the patties and when flipping them in the pan. (Start with one egg,. If the mixture isn’t sticky enough to bind together, add a second egg.)

Cook patties for about 4 minutes (on high heat) on each side. The sides should start to brown and crisp up.

Melt a slice of swiss cheese on top.

You could serve these on a bun with all the fixins, but I served mine on a leaf of bibb lettuce with a side of pickled okra and some spicy mustard. You could also serve these on top of a leafy green salad.

Spicy Black Bean Burgers

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Sun, 12 Jun 2011 22:33:01 +0000

Here’s a little something you may not know about me- I’m in a book club. That’s right. And I read like it’s my job. Not only for book club but I’ll pretty much read anything I can get my hands on- averaging about a book a week (we don’t have cable, boooo). I had zero time to read for pleasure during law school so I guess you could say I’m making up for lost time. I recently finished The Paris Wife (worth every tear) and now I’m reading Run (for book club).

The reason I mentioned book club is because at last month’s meeting, the host made the tastiest black bean burgers I’ve ever eaten. I’m always on the prowl for good vegetarian burger recipes so I had to have this one. Turns out it was just a little something she found on All Recipes and whipped up in no time. Impressive! Needless to say, I got to work right away recreating this dish with my own twist.

Ingredients: (Makes about 4 burgers) Adapted from All Recipes

1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 red pepper, chopped

1/2 onion, cut into wedges

3 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

1 egg

a small handful of cilantro, finely chopped

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 Tablespoon Sriracha (or your favorite hot sauce)

1 cup panko bread crumbs (divided)

2 Tablespoons olive or canola oil

Burger buns and all your favorite condiments

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, mash the black beans with a fork or a potato masher.

Use a food processor to chop the onion, garlic, and red pepper until very fine. Stir the mixture in with the beans.

In a separate mixing bowl, combine the egg, cumin, onion powder, chili powder, Sriracha and cilantro.

Add to the bean mixture and combine well.

If the mixture has a lot of liquid, strain with a cheesecloth or let strain through a colander with very fine holes. Once the excess liquid has drained off, return the bean mixture to the bowl and stir in half the bread crumbs.

Use your hands to form the patties. Coat the outside of the burger patties in the remaining bread crumbs. Heat the oil in a skillet on medium high heat. Cook burgers in the pan until heated through and slightly browned on both sides.

To dress these burgers, you could stick with a southwest theme by topping them with salsa, avocado, hot sauce, and sour cream.

I went with a more classic approach. Lots of ketchup, spicy mustard, pickles and jalapenos. I think I have a jalapeno problem.

A mighty fine burger.

This is without a doubt one of the best veggie burgers I’ve ever eaten. Thank you book club!

Sloppy Joes

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Sun, 29 May 2011 14:31:20 +0000

Part of the fun of being vegetarian is making meatless versions of classic recipes like burgers, lasagna, enchiladas, etc. The trick is to make the dish equally tasty without meat. Of course, it won’t taste exactly the same, but if you can make a version that is delicious and satisfying, mission accomplished! Meat eaters may partake without scorn.

My fiancé is a huge fan of sloppy joes. I’ve actually never had a sloppy joe (crazy, right?) and I’m not going to start handling ground beef anytime soon, so I whipped him up a vegetarian version. I guess you could look at this situation in one of two ways. One, that I’m really sweet and loving to make his favorite sammy veggie style. Or, two, I suck because I’m not willing to make the classic version he loves. I’ll go with the former and hope he does too.

Ingredients: (makes 4 sandwiches)

4 Kaiser Rolls or Hamburger Buns

1/2 block firm or extra firm tofu (drained well)

2 cups finely chopped mushrooms

1/2 onion finely chopped

2 cloves minced garlic

1 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans (or a 14 oz can, drained)

1 can tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

2 Tablespoons soy sauce

1 Tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce (or whatever hot sauce you like)

2 Tablespoons molasses (or honey)

1 teaspoon black pepper

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Directions: Use a food processor to crumble the tofu. Pulse a few times until it is broken into small, pebble sized, pieces.

On the stove top in a large pot, heat olive oil onions and garlic. Stir a few minutes until onions are translucent.

Next, add in the mushrooms, tofu, pinto beans, oregano, and tomato paste. Stir for about three minutes.

Stir in the soy sauce, vinegar, Sriracha, molasses and black pepper. Allow to cook for a few minutes. Give it a taste and see what you think. Add more spices to suite your taste.

Spoon the sloppy joe mix onto a Kaiser roll and top with your favorite toppings. Serve with a side of veggies or chips.

With an iced cold beer. Anchor Steam is a favorite in our house.

My fiancé and I were both big fans of this recipe, although he said it didn’t taste exactly the same as the traditional sloppy joe sauce. The texture was pretty close and it had a nice sweet and tangy tomato flavor.

Super sloppy!

Jarlsberg Grilled Cheese with Arugula and Truffle Oil

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 11:31:06 +0000

I’m so excited about this post! This post is my creation for Kitchen PLAY’s Side Car Series Event sponsored by Jarlsberg USA. Seeing as grilled cheese is one of my all-time favorite meals, you can imagine my enthusiasm when Kitchen PLAY asked me to help “Celebrate Grilled Cheese Month- Jarlsberg Style.” No need to twist my arm.

The assignment was to create my own, unique version of a grilled cheese sandwich featuring Jarlsberg cheese. For this very special event, I wanted to create the ultimate grilled cheese sandwich, something you won’t soon forget. I thought long and hard and decided that such a simple sandwich had to be comprised of the best of the best ingredients.

I started with gorgeous, fresh baked whole wheat sourdough.

It was a great start. But what about the filling? It had to be a show stopper.

Mushrooms, arugula, and my secret weapon…black truffle oil. The perfect way to dress up a Jarlsberg grilled cheese.

But no grilled cheese sandwich is complete without butter, so into a pan went the mushrooms and a pat of butter.

Next, I added a bit of arugula, black truffle oil, and salt and pepper.

Then, it was time for the bread. Buttered and toasted on both sides, of course.

Smeared with tangy mustard. It’s the perfect compliment to the rich, melted Jarlsberg and earthy truffle oil.

And now, the star of the show, sweet and nutty Jarlsberg cheese!

It’s a beautiful thing.

Being the taste tester has its perks.

This sandwich lasted about two seconds…just long enough to get these shots.

Creating this recipe was such a fun experience! Thank you Kitchen PLAY and Jarlsberg for inviting me to help celebrate Grilled Cheese Month! To make this sandwich at home, follow the recipe below. But, before you do that, read on about Jarlsberg’s exciting giveaway!

In celebration of Grilled Cheese Month, Jarlsberg is giving away free samples of their new “Toast-a-bags” (which allow you to make grilled cheese in your toaster! oh yeah!). For more information visit JarlsbergUSA to find out about receiving one of these plus a coupon.

Ingredients: (1 sandwich)

1/3 cup shredded Jarlsberg cheese

1 (generous) teaspoon dijon mustard

1 teaspoon truffle oil

1/2 cup mushrooms (chopped/sliced)

1 cup arugula

2 slices of whole wheat sourdough bread

2 tablespoons butter (divided)

a pinch of salt and pepper

Directions: In a sauce pan on medium heat, sauté the mushrooms in 1 tablespoon of butter for about 2 minutes. Add in the arugula, salt, pepper and truffle oil and stir until arugula becomes slightly wilted. Turn off heat and set aside.

Butter both sides of each slice of bread and, in a separate pan on medium heat, toast the bread. Once toasted, spread the dijon on one slice of the bread (the inside of the sandwich) and top with the arugula/mushroom mix. Top the other slice of bread with the shredded cheese. Cover the pan with a lid until the cheese melts. Press the other slice of bread on top and press sandwich together. Slice diagonally and eat. Serve with a side of arugula and more dijon for dipping.

*This original recipe was created for the Kitchen Play Sidecar Series, sponsored by Jarlsberg. I was compensated for my work creating an original recipe using Jarlsberg cheese.

Homemade Falafel

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 02:59:04 +0000

Falafel is one of those foods people often eat out at restaurants, but rarely at home. That’s the case with me, at least. It’s silly though, because falafel is so easy and cheap to make and when you do it at home, you can make it precisely to your liking. This is probably why I eat out less and less these days- if I can make it better at home, why bother? Below, I’ve indicated the amount of each ingredient I used, but feel free to adjust it to your taste. Falafel is pretty forgiving so you can experiment without too much risk.

Ingredients: (Makes about a dozen falafel balls)

Adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe

1 1/2 cups dried chick peas (soaked overnight in cold water)

1/2 small yellow onion

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp dried parsley flakes (or you could use fresh if you’ve got it, or cilantro too)

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp ground chili powder

juice and zest of 1/2 large lemon (save the other 1/2 for later)

1/2 tsp baking soda

salt and pepper (to taste)

canola oil (for frying)

You can eat the falafel plain, on top of a salad or stuffed in a pita. If you’re planning to eat them in a pita, you’ll need whole wheat pita, sour cream, hummus, lettuce, sliced onion, and bit amore lemon juice, cumin, and garlic (in addition to the ingredients listed above). Oh, and I like to add a bit of chili oil too! What can I say? I like my food spicy.

Start with the dried chick peas.

Soak them overnight submerged in cold water. They will puff up to nearly 3 times the size. They’ll go from this…

To this.

Be sure to make room in your fridge.

Next, combine the chickpeas, onion, spices, baking soda, lemon juice/zest, garlic, and parsley in a food processor. My food processor is a mini, so I had to blend it in batches (kind of a pain). Add salt and pepper at this point as well.

Now, get your oil ready. On the stove top, heat a pan with about 1/4 to a 1/2 inch of oil in the bottom. Be generous with the oil- you don’t want your frying pan to burn up!

Nice and easy. You can do it! Now, crank up the heat while you make the falafel balls.

Transfer the mix from the food processor into a mixing bowl. Add in additional spices if needed. The mixture will be wet, so make a patty in your palm and squeeze the heck out of it. This will drain out the moisture and make the ball stick together in the hot oil. If the mix is too wet, it will disintegrate in the pan. Add a bit of flour or breadcrumbs if you need a drier mix.

Drop the balls in hot oil (that’s what she said!). Cook until brown at the edges and then flip.

That’s a good lookin’ fry!

Put the falafel on a plate with paper towels to sop off some of the excess oil.

Now, set up your fixins. Make a sour cream sauce by mixing 2 tblsps sour cream with one clove of minced garlic, a dash of cumin, and a squeeze of lemon juice. Stir like crazy until creamy dreamy.

Make a little buffet with all your toppings- sour cream, sliced onion, crisp lettuce, hot chili oil, hummus, etc.

Stuff all your favorites inside a whole wheat pita and go to town.

Who need to go out for falafel when you can make this at home?

Fried Cornbread

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 02:05:30 +0000

The first time I ate fried cornbread was two years ago at the John Blue Cotton Festival in North Carolina. I stood in a line on the baking hot fair grounds waiting for one of Shirley’s famous collard sandwiches for what seemed like ages. And I’d do it again in a heartbeat. The sandwich is genius. It’s a heap of seasoned collards piled high on a piece of crispy, deep fried southern cornbread with a side of pork fat. Needless to say, I flicked the pork to the side and dug in. The collards were great, but the cornbread stole the show. It was so crispy and salty and really, really good.

Awhile back I met with Shirley to get the scoop on her famous collard sandwich and she told me she made the cornbread using only a handful of ingredients- cornmeal, water, oil, and salt. She didn’t give me the exact measurements but after a bit of tinkering in the kitchen, I think I worked it out.

Depending on how much you want to make, you’ll need to keep the ratio equal parts cornmeal to liquid. You can either add the oil to the batter, or save it all for the frying pan. I used oil for both.

I took about 1 cup of yellow cornmeal with 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup oil. I added a bit of salt.

Then, put about a quarter inch of canola oil in a frying pan and crank up the heat.

The batter should be the consistency of pancake batter, not too thin. If it’s too runny, add a bit more cornmeal to thicken it right up.

Pour about a silver dollar pancake’s worth of batter into the hot oil and let it sizzle. Drop as many into the pan as you can fit. Allow the cornmeal to fry for a few minutes.

When the edges get slightly brown, flip and cook for another minute or two. Remember, oil heats up quickly and gets hotter the longer you cook with it. So keep a close eye on the skillet!

Remove the crispy fried cornmeal from the pan and place on a paper towel (or five) to allow the oil to drain off.

The edges should be crispy and the middle slightly soft. It’s a beautiful thing.

Serve hot with a bowl of chili, soup, or a bowl of spicy vinegar collards.

Bread and Butter Radishes

Jen @ Keepitsimplefoods — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 02:51:12 +0000

Awhile back, I professed my newly discovered love of radishes. Lucky for me, this discovery preceded the purchase of my newest cookbook, I Know How To Cook, or else I might have skipped right over the tiny blurb about the simplest, yet most delicious way to eat radishes- with a bit of bread and butter. More specifically, you butter a slice of bread, smear on a generous helping of butter, and layer thinly sliced radishes on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and you’ve got yourself one tasty snack. It’s a simple, versatile treat that can be eaten whenever you fancy and whipped up at a moments notice. It’s inexpensive, fool-proof, and absolutely divine- a testament to the truth that simple food is often the best.

To make this dish, you’ll need a grand total of three ingredient: radishes, bread, and butter.

First, separate the radishes from the stems and cut off the squiggly roots.

Rinse well and slice thinly. Use a mandoline if you’ve got one. I don’t, so I just used my best knife skills (which, admittedly, could use some improvement).

Butter a slice of bread. I chose a warm, crusty baguette, but I’m sure any bread would do the trick.

Wipe the drool off your chin and add a layer of radishes.

Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper and dig in.

The radishes are crisp, refreshing, and slightly peppery. I could not get enough. I literally ate these until my stomach hurt. Next time, I’ll buy a smaller baguette.