Italian Sausage Sandwiches

Not every think we make is delicious. Sometimes it just doesn't turn out. Sometimes we have a pretty good idea, but it needs to go through a number of attempts before we get a good product. Sometimes you also have to try something crazy to make a break through towards something great.

This week we tried Spicy Italian Sausage Sandwiches - right at the beginning of our Company's "100 days of wellness" campaign. We used some "healthy" sausages from Harmon's (our local grocer). They are very lean, which was probably part of the problem. They were probably too lean. We grilled them on the George Forman grill - it was very easy. We "grilled" onions and peppers in the microwave and they actually turned out better than we thought. You can easily cook a pepper in about 2 minutes in the microwave. We had some whole wheat brat rolls We also had some left over giardiniera that we put on top. The first day we tried with some dijon mustard. Big Mistake!

Overall I liked it OK, but I didn't love it. It needs some refinement. I think it brats would have been better. For the Spicy Italian, we needed some different toppings. I typically just do brats & sauerkraut.

True Love is a PLAT

According to Miracle Max, true love is the greatest thing in the world; except a nice MLT:  a mutton, lettuce and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomato is ripe.


We tend to agree, but wanted to substitute some ingredients to work within our confinements. We used Pancetta instead of mutton or bacon. Pancetta is an Italian cured meat similar to bacon, but is cured differently. It's not smoked and has a sweet flavor. It's very fatty, but the George Forman makes it easy to grill it and remove some of the grease.

We also wanted to add avocado. It's a healthy fat and delicious. I could add avocado to a lot of sandwiches.

Recipe

• Ciabatta Loaf, Italian Loaf or Sourdough - sliced
• Pancetta - sliced thin
• Ripe Tomatoes
• Lettuce
• Avocado
• Garlic Mayonnaise (Try adding minced garlic to your mayonnaise)

Tools

• George Forman Grill
• Toast your Bread (optional)

Primanti Bros-style Sandwiches

Ham & Egg with an a-typical triple layer.

In the history of American sandwiches, there are a handful of legendary sandwich makers; makers who come up with an idea that is truly revolutionary. They create a sandwich that spawns imitators and creates devotees. These iconic establishments become a Mecca of the over-weight middle class. There are probably less than a dozen of these type sandwich makers in America.

I originally heard of Primanti Bros on the Food Network's Man v. Food, Pittsburg episode. Then I had the fortune of meeting Luke. Luke went to college in Pittsburg and was minutes away from Primanti Bros. Luke suggested that we attempt to replicate a Primanti Bros sandwich. To this date, the Primanti Bros is the most difficult sandwich to make, primarily due to the coordination of the materials. In fact, it took several attempts before we had a reasonable reproduction (according to Luke).

The main concept for Primanti Bros seems to be meat and cheese on an Italian loaf. The gimmick is they top their sandwiches with a handful of hot french fries and a scoop of vinaigrette coleslaw. They also have an option for an over-easy egg or two.

Over the holidays we had a little extra time, so we made our third attempt at the Primanti Bros style sandwich. Luke and his wife (both Pennsylvania natives) both think have created passable and delicious replications.

Ingredients

• Italian Loaf - cut in *thick* slices
• Pastrami
• Capicolo
• Boiled Ham
• Provolone Cheese
• Coleslaw (below)
• Sliced Tomatoes
• French Fries
• Egg - over easy (Bonus! but optional)
• Butter (for frying the egg & meat) - Why not?!?
• Frank's Red Hot Pepper Sauce
• Wax Paper

Coleslaw Recipe

We used the recipe provided by the Washington Post.

Assembly

Make the coleslaw ahead of time. At least 4 hours before you want to eat. We just do it first thing in the morning.

You could make your own fries, but it's a lot of work and we don't have the resources we need at our office. We outsource the fries by going to pick them up directly before building the sandwiches. We have a Five Guys close to our office and they work pretty well. We've used fries from other places and the over processed or frozen fries don't work out as well. If you close the bag on the fries then they stay hotter, but then the steam collects and makes them soggy. Try closing the top of the bag, but leave a vent at the top for the steam to escape - it's a pretty good balance between hot/soggy.

In the past, we just made these sandwiches with pastrami, capicola, and provolone so the George Foreman Grill worked perfectly. This time we wanted to try the ham and egg, so we actually brought in a electric grill and cooked everything on that. Grill all the meat until it's hot, but don't cook it to death - you'll dry the pastrami out. Cook the egg over easy. When the meat is ready, stack it up and put on a slice of cheese to start melting. Don't be afraid to experiment a little with the meats. The Pastrami, Capicola and Provolone is awesome, but The Ham and Egg w/ Capicola is excellent as well.

Meanwhile, put a piece of wax paper down on your plate. Right now you're probably thinking you don't need the wax paper. Trust us here - the wax paper is the missing ingredient. You won't be able to keep the sandwich together in the end without it. It took us several failures before we standardized on the wax paper.

Build the sandwich with the meat and cheese on the bottom, then egg if you have it, coleslaw, tomato, and fries on top. Douse it in as much hot sauce as you like. Typically there are just two thick slices of bread, but you can see above that the loaf was cut too think and I ended up doing a triple layer. Same amount of bread, but a little unconventional. Wrap the whole thin in wax paper then slice it in half.

Enjoy! You're eating a famous and delicious sandwich without having to travel all the way to Pittsburg.

Utensils

• George Foreman Grill or Electric Grill
• Large Bowl for Coleslaw
• Wax Paper

Pagliacci Giardiniera

A couple of people have expresses interest in (or concern about) the Pagliacci Giardiniera that we've been piling onto our Italian Beef sandwiches. This is a must have condiment for Italian Beefs, but could really be used on any cold cut sandwich that you want to add flavor and spice to.

Giardiniera means "from the garden" and is a garden blend of peppers and vegetables pickled in oil and vinegar. It comes in mild and hot varieties.

Pagliacci also makes other sandwich friendly condiments, including a Muffuletta Spread - a mild Giardiniera with lots of olives in it - and a several relish varieties. Granato's in Salt Lake City carries the entire Pagliacci line, but it's hard to get other places.

Chicago-style Italian Beef - "Hot and Wet"

Italian Beef with Giardiniera

Pizza or Sandwich? It's a perplexing question to a man.

I've been to Chicago once. I had limited time and was with a Chicago Native. We went to Giordano's Pizza for a deep dish pie. She bet the 5 males at the table we couldn't finish 2 slices of the 2" thick stuffed pizza; I ate 3.

The downside of Giordano's is that I didn't get to go to Al's #1 Beef or Portillo's for an authentic Italian Beef.

An Italian Beef is a slow cooked roast beef flavored with Italian herbs and seasonings. When the beef is medium rare, it's thinly sliced, then returned to the meat drippings which are made into an Au Jus. The sliced meat is put onto a hearty white Italian roll, topped with spicy giardiniera (hot) or sweet peppers (sweet), and dipped in the au jus (wet).

As a lucky coincidence, there is Chicaco-style hot dog restaurant called Johnnie Beef's here in Salt Lake run by a Chicago Native John Carrasquilla. They serve up a delicious Italian Beef!

We were interested in making an authentic reproduction of an Italian Beef for an Office Sandwich. It turned out delicious and easy. Here's how we did it:

Ingredients

• White Italian Rolls or Hoagie Rolls
• Thin Sliced Italian Roast Beef (in most Deli Sections - This is regular roast beef, but seasoned with Italian seasoning.)
• Pagliacci Hot Giardiniera - Imported from Chicago (look in a Italian importer or buy online)
• Au Jus (Below)

Au Jus

• Three Cups Water
• 2-3 Tablespoons "Better than Bullion" Beef Stock (To Taste)
• 1 Teaspoon Dry Italian Seasoning (used for making Italian Dressing)

We're not just making a light beef-flavored broth - we want the au jus dark and strong.

Assembly
Make the au jus first in a bowl big enough to dip half the final sandwich. Heat up the au jus until it's boiling then put the bowl on the table. Put enough meat for one sandwich into the au jus - we like a lot. Swish the meat around with the tongs for about a minute. Then pull the meat out and layer it onto the sandwich. Top the beef with as much giardiniera as you like - we like a lot. Cut the sandwich in half. Using the tongs, dip the entire sandwich in the Au Jus for a few seconds.

Eat it while it's hot and before the bread gets too soggy.

Utensils

• Kitchen knives for cutting the bread
• Large Bowl for Au Jus
• Microwave to heat the au jus
• Tongs for dipping the meat and sandwich

After we're done, we save the Au Jus for the next day. We've noticed that the Au Jus gets better through out the week as it starts to get the flavor from soaking the beef in it.

Sliced Bread typically doesn't make the cut

I'm going to make a controversial statement that I'm going to regret someday... I can always delete this post later.

When a lot of people think about sandwiches, they think about meat and cheese on sliced bread. I would propose that you can typically make a better sandwich by using a roll, a loaf, or a baguette. When I say "Sliced Bread", I'm referring to what is available at the wall of bread at the grocery store. Sliced bread was introduced as a convenience, not necessarily as an improvement.

There are a number of sandwiches where you need sliced bread. Notably sandwiches where you toast the bread like a BLT Deluxe, a Classic Club, or a Tunafish salad. Also sandwiches which you grill the bread like a Grilled Cheese or some variation of The Elvis. I typically use a country style loaf for these.

I'm also going to add a huge exception for Rye bread - especially a nice Jewish Rye. Rye bread is a perfect match for hot pastrami.

Prosciutto and Mozzarella

Prosciutto & Mozzarella

I have fond memories of walking around Florence, Italy with my wife. We walked over the Ponte Vecchio to the Boboli Gardens, strolled around, and then back to the Duomo before lunch. On one of the cobble-stoned streets we found a small food stand that sold fresh Prosciutto and Mozzarella sandwiches and gelato.

Eating this Prosciutto and Mozzarella helped me forget about work for a little while and relive some happy memories. Here's our version:

• White or Whole Wheat Ciabatta rolls
• Prosciutto - thinly sliced
• Fresh Mozzarella - roughly sliced
• Roma Tomatoes - sliced
• Fresh Basil - chopped
• Olive Oil - as always, generously drizzled
• Salt & Pepper