Roast Beef, Cucumber and Truffle Butter Sandwich

Life has been a little hectic (in a good way) lately. Being a mom, laughing with my hubby, selling jewelry, hanging out with the most wonderful friends and family. I'm happier than ever.

I've been lagging on my posts though and look forward to being able to focus more time on this blog. I love it so!

So this creation dates back a few weeks ago, on the Royal Wedding day to be exact. I know, I'm so behind. My friend Jane had us over to watch Kate and William get married. In Jane-fashion (she's a chef, mother of two, entertainer extraordinaire and can somehow make anything special), she whipped up some scrumptious scones, hot English tea and other goodies. We were all feeling very regal...even with a bunch of toddlers running around.

When lunch time rolled around that day, I was craving an English cucumber tea sandwich. Here's what I ended up making...

I had some nice panini bread rolls and sliced one in half. Then I spread both sides with some white truffle butter (so glad I keep some in the fridge!). I put down a layer of sliced cucumbers, sprinkled them lightly with sea salt and layered on a bunch of gorgeous roast beef. It was, dare I say, "fit for a king"?

Sonoma Chicken Salad

A great way to use up leftover roasted chicken meat is to make a chicken salad for sandwiches or on top of some mixed greens. The toasted pecans and grapes make it out of this world!

Sonoma Chicken Salad 

(About 2 servings)

• 3 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt 
• 1/8 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 2 cups cooked chicken breast; shred or cut into bite size cubes
• 1/2 cup grapes, halved
• 1/4 cups pecans (or walnuts), lightly toasted and chopped into smaller pieces

In a small bowl, whisk together the mayo, vinegar, salt and pepper until smooth and creamy. Set aside.

In a medium bowl add the chicken, grapes, and pecans. Pour in the mayo mixture. Gently fold everything together until well combined.

Spoon chicken salad onto some bread for a sandwich or into some pita pockets. Or on top of some mixed greens.

Sloppy Joes With What?!!!

Last night, I was all set to make turkey sloppy joes for dinner. When I went to the fridge I realized I didn't have any celery or green pepper. I did have a medium-sized bunch of kale that I bought to make kale chips.

Yes, I totally put the entire bunch of kale into the sloppy joe mixture and served it to my family. What happened next was pretty crazy.

The kids ate it up and made no mention that it tasted different (which it really didn't, in my opinion). Not the prettiest looking suckers but they were tasty and loaded up with kale.

My son had two servings and told me, "Mom, I'm going to town on them!". And my daughter made up a song about sloppy joes. I would have to say it was an extremely successful dinner.

Sloppy Joes With Kale

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbs. canola or olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped small 
• 1 medium-size bunch of kale; washed, dried, trimmed of tough stalks; use the leafy parts only
• 2 tsp chopped garlic
• 1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef or turkey
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup ketchup-style chili sauce
• 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 Tbs. cider vinegar
• 2 Tbs. firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 6 buns of your choice (hamburger,kaiser,etc.), split

Directions:

Put your kale into a food processor or mini-chopper. Pulse until chopped fine.

Heat oil in a large non-stick pan over medium heat.

Add the onion and chopped kale. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes.

Add the meat and garlic, increase the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring and breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until it is no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup water, the tomato sauce, chili sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, for about 15-20 minutes or until sauce thickens.

Toast the buns. Place the bottom halves of the buns, cut side up, on warmed individual plates and top with the beef mixture, dividing it equally. Cover with the bun tops and serve immediately. Makes 6 sandwiches. Try some sliced cheese on top!

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Build-A-Burger...

Since we've discovered Niman Ranch Burgers, it's been hard to find a better one out there. It has also been hard to stop making them. The burger is pretty perfect with just some lettuce and tomato but that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement, right?

I'm a HUGE fan of mushrooms, as is my little boy. So tonight we topped the burgers off with sweet carmelized onions, golden brown mushrooms and ooey-gooey American cheese (my hubby's cheese of choice on hamburgers). For the buns we used pan de sal, a Filipino dinner roll that is puffy and soft, yet crisp on the outside. The earthiness of the mushrooms went beautifully with the juicy beef. Phenomenal!

 Sauteed Mushrooms and Onions

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter
  
• 10 oz crimini mushrooms; cleaned and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 1 medium sweet onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat up a medium pan over medium heat. When pan is very hot add the butter, olive oil, mushrooms and onions. Cook for 7-10 minutes or until onions are softened and turn a rich brown color. Stir occasionally. You want it to cook slowly so turn down the heat a bit if it is starting to brown too quickly. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside in a bowl until ready to use.

Lemon Dill Tuna Salad

Sometimes I crave a good tuna salad sandwich. I like mine not too mayo-ey, with a bit of a crunch and tang to it. It's delicious on top of some greens, in a pita or as a regular sandwich. Here's how I usually do it.

Lemon Dill Tuna Salad

• 2 x 5 oz cans of dolphin friendly, solid white albacore tuna in water, drained well
• 1 celery stalk, small dice
• 1 tbsp red onion, small dice
• 1 1/2 tbsp good mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped fine
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
• kosher salt

Put your tuna into a medium mixing bowl and break it up with a fork but keep it chunky. Add your celery and onion.

In a separate small bowl, add the mayo, lemon juice, dill and pepper. Whisk until it is smooth and creamy in texture. Add to the tuna bowl.

Fold everything together until well combined. Season to taste with salt if necessary.

Serve immediately or refrigerate.

*Reminder, this blog will be officially named Foodism Mom at the URL www.foodismmom.com
as of October 7th, 2010.

Caprese Sandwiches at the Hollywood Bowl

I've seen several shows at the Hollywood Bowl. From a reggae festival to Paul McCartney. It really doesn't seem to matter who's playing that night, it's always magical. The vast outdoor seating lets you gaze upon the stars in beautiful evening temperatures. Everyone around you is eating, drinking and dancing. One of the coolest things to do in L.A..

My dear friend Kathryn was kind enough to invite me to join her at the Bowl one evening last week  for a Mexican music festival. I volunteered to be in charge of the food in exchange. She is a foodie herself so the pressure was on. What to make for dining al fresco without a lot of space to eat? I decided to keep it on a finger-food level. Nothing we needed utensils for or that would end up all over our laps! Here's the sandwich I came up with.

Caprese Sandwiches

Simple Pesto Sauce (makes enough for 3-4 sandwiches)

    •    3 cups fresh basil leaves, rinsed and dried as well as possible (salad spinner works great!)
    •    1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
    •    1 clove of garlic
    •    2 tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese
    •    1/2 tsp lemon juice
    •    1/4 tsp kosher salt
    •    1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Add all of the ingredients to a food processor. Start with 2/3 of the olive oil first. Pulse until all of the ingredients are blended smoothly together. If the pesto seems a little dry, add the remainder of the olive oil. Set aside

Sandwich

• fresh, artisan bread or rolls; I like ciabatta rolls or focaccia bread; sliced in half
• fresh mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella is amazing!; dry well with paper towels; 1/4 inch slices
• organic tomatoes, try heirlooms; 1/4 inch slices
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Spread  a thin layer of the pesto sauce onto both sides of the bread. Add a layer of tomatoes, lightly salt and pepper them. Add a layer of mozzarella on top of the tomatoes. Top with the second piece of bread. Cut in half if you like. Serve immediately. Letting the sandwiches sit too long will allow them to get soggy. Yuck!

I will be posting the appetizer I made for the show in a few days.
 

*Reminder! In a few weeks the new address of this blog will be: www.foodismmom.com

Tea time...

One of my favorite things to do is go for traditional English afternoon tea. I love the hot tea, I take mine with tons of cream and sugar. But it's the pastries and those adorable finger sandwiches that really make me weak.

Now that I'm a mom, I don't get out much without the kids. I couldn't imagine afternoon tea going over too well with a two and four-year-old in tow. So for lunch I made some smoked salmon sandwiches with those little English ones in mind. A nice cup of hot tea made it perfect.

Smoked Salmon Tea Sandwiches

• thinly sliced European-style whole grain bread (crusts removed if you prefer)
• herbed cream cheese
• smoked salmon
• capers, drained
• lemon juice

Spread a thin layer of the cream cheese on two slices of the bread. With the cream cheese side facing up, add a couple layers of salmon. Sprinkle as little or many capers as you like on top of the salmon. Then a light spritz of lemon juice.

Top it all off with the second slice of bread, cream cheese side down. Cut into four.
Serve immediately.

Grilled Beer Brats

One of the foods that screams "summer" to me is grilled bratwurst. Maybe it's because I can't recall ever making them during any other time of the year. Do they even sell brats during the winter months?

There is also only one way I've ever prepared them and that is boiled in beer, then thrown on the grill. Johnsonville brats have never let me down. The sauteed onions and peppers on top are a must!

Grilled Beer Brats

• 12 oz beer (whatever kind you like to drink)
• 1 cup of water
• 1 1/4 lbs. package of bratwurst (about 5 brats)
• hot dogs buns 
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 1 green bell pepper; cleaned of stem and seeds, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• mustard of your choice

Heat up the beer and water in a medium sized pot or 10 inch pan. If the liquid does not almost cover the brats, add some more water.

When it comes to boil, add the brats and turn down the heat to a medium simmer. Cook for about 5 minutes, turn them over and cook for 5 minutes more. Cut into one of the brats to make sure they are cooked through. Drain and set aside. You can do this hours or even a day before. Just keep them wrapped up in the refrigerator until you are ready to grill them.

Heat up olive oil and butter in a medium-sized pan over medium to medium-high heat. Add onions, peppers and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

It should sizzle but turn down the heat if things start browning too fast. You want to carmelize slowly, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper if necessary. Set aside in a bowl.

Heat up the grill on high heat. When it is very hot, turn down the heat to medium-high and throw on the brats. Cook until they have nice brown grill marks on them (and are heated up if they came straight from the fridge), about 6-8 minutes. Turning them every few minutes. Serve them on hot dog buns with mustard and the sauteed onions and peppers.

We had my hubby's parents, aunt, uncle and cousin over for dinner tonight.  I wanted to start the meal off with a salad. It had to be a show-stopper though. The first thing everyone would eat that would leave them wanting more. The Barefoot Contessa made the yummiest looking shrimp salad once that I have always wanted to try. 

Well tonight was the night.

I did my usual tweaking and it turned out fantastic. I served it over some whole butter lettuce leaves on individual plates. The next time I make this (there will definitely be a next time!) I am going to put it between some good bread like a chicken salad. Or into a roll like a lobster roll. Truly delicious if you like this type of creamy salad.

Roasted Shrimp Salad

Revised by Foodism Mom from the Barefoot Contessa recipe

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• 2 lbs (20-25 count) shrimp; peeled, deveined, rinsed in cold water and dried very well with paper towels
• 1 tablespoon good olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise
• zest of 1 orange
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
• 2/3 tablespoon good white wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup minced fresh dill (feathery leaves only)
• 2 tablespoons small-diced red onion
• 1 cup celery, small-diced (about 2 stalks)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place shrimp on a sheet pan with the olive oil and a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Toss together until evenly coated. Spread the shrimp out in an even layer and roast for about 8 minutes, just until pink, firm and cooked through. Allow to cool.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, orange zest, orange juice, vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. If the sauce seems too thick, thin with a little more orange juice.

When the shrimp have cooled down but are still warm, add them to the sauce and toss. Add the dill, celery and red onion and toss well. The flavors will improve if you allow the salad to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Otherwise, chill and serve at room temperature.

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Pest-o, change-o!

I love Caprese salad (Insalata Caprese (salad in the style of Capri) is a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania, made of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil; seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil).

It's a great meal on those hot summer days when you don't feel like eating anything too heavy.

My plan tonight was to make hamburgers but I wanted to do something different with them. I decided to head in an Italian direction and incorporate the Caprese salad into it.

To make these Caprese Burgers, first grill up some Niman Ranch Burger patties (turkey or veggie burger patties would be great too!).

Put a couple pieces of fresh mozzarella (buffalo mozzarella is best) onto your patty during the last minute or two of cooking to melt it a bit. Then spread some store-bought or homemade pesto sauce onto the buns and add a slice or two of tomato. You can lightly salt and pepper your tomatoes if your pesto sauce isn't too salty already.

You can't go wrong if you use high-quality, fresh ingredients!

Grilled lamb pita pockets...

The other night I made some succulent grilled lamb leg steaks. There was one small piece left over so today I used it to make the most delicious lunch.

I took the cold piece of lamb steak and sliced it thin on an angle. Slicing it on an angle gave me much wider pieces than cutting straight down. I then warmed up some whole wheat pita halves in the toaster. I spread a generous amount of tahini sauce into each pocket, then put a layer of thinly sliced cucumbers and finally the lamb.

YUM-mee!!!

*Tahini can be found in a lot of supermarkets these days. I bought mine at Trader Joe's. I believe Whole Foods sells it and of course Middle Eastern specialty stores.

Niman Ranch Burgers...

We are spending Memorial Day in our backyard. Grilling up burgers for lunch. Once again, The Barefoot Contessa pulls through with another great recipe. This is my revised version of hers. 

Hope everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day weekend! Let's not forget the men and women that have risked or given their lives for our freedom and liberties.

Niman Ranch Burgers

Revised by Foodism Mom from a recipe by

2008, Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics, All Rights Reserved

Ingredients

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• 2 pounds ground Niman Ranch beef or other grass-fed premium beef (85 percent lean and 15 percent fat, I also use 90/10)
• 1 tablespoon good Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce 
• 2 tbsp good olive oil, plus extra for brushing the grill
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 6 hamburger buns of your choice (brioche buns are delicious!), halved
• Caramelized Onions (optional), recipe follows

Directions

Build a charcoal fire or heat a gas grill.
Place the ground beef in a large bowl and add the mustard, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix gently with a fork to combine, taking care not to compress the ingredients. Shape the meat into 6 (3 1/2-inch) patties of equal size and thickness.
When the grill is medium-hot, brush the grill grate with oil to keep the burgers from sticking. Place the burgers on the grill and cook for 4 minutes. Using a big spatula, turn the burgers and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, until medium-rare or more, or cook longer if you prefer hamburgers more well done.
Meanwhile, break apart the buns and toast halves cut side down on the grill. Top each burger with a heaping tablespoon of caramelized onions. Serve hot with mayo, ketchup and mustard on the side for everyone to add themselves.

Caramelized Onions:

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• 2 tablespoons good olive oil
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 pounds yellow onions, peeled and sliced in half-rounds
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• 2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil and butter in a large shallow pot, add the onions and thyme, and toss with the oil. Place the lid on top and cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes to sweat the onions. Remove the lid and continue to cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 25 to 30 minutes, until the onions are caramelized and golden brown. If the onions are cooking too fast, lower the heat. Add the vinegar, salt, and pepper and cook for 2 more minutes, scraping the brown bits from the pan. Season to taste (they should be very highly seasoned).
Yield: 6 servings

Sloppy seconds...

Those of you who have been following the blog for a while now may remember the post I did about sloppy joes. I used canned Manwich sauce and ground turkey to make quick dinner sandwiches on a night where I was pressed for time. I even entertained the idea of making homemade sloppy joe sauce. Well, that day has arrived. I found a recipe in my Williams-Sonoma Comfort Food: Warm and Homey, Rich and Hearty book.

They were extremely easy to make and the flavors were scrumptious. Definitely worth the extra effort and time. Sorry Manwich!

Real Sloppy Joes

Revised by Foodism Mom from the recipe in Williams-Sonoma Comfort Food: Warm and Homey, Rich and Hearty

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbs. canola or olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped small
• 1 celery stalk, small dice
• 1/2 green bell pepper, small dice
• 2 tsp chopped garlic
• 1 1/2 lb. ground beef or turkey
• 1 cup tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup ketchup-style chili sauce
• 1 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 Tbs. cider vinegar
• 2 Tbs. firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 6 buns of your choice (hamburger,kaiser,etc.), split

Directions:

In a large fry pan over medium heat, warm the oil.

Add the onion, celery and bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the meat and garlic, increase the heat to medium-high and cook, stirring and breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until it is no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup water, the tomato sauce, chili sauce, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.

Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes to blend the flavors.

Toast the buns. Place the bottom halves of the buns, cut side up, on warmed individual plates and top with the beef mixture, dividing it equally. Cover with the bun tops and serve immediately. Makes 6 sandwiches. Try some sliced cheese on top!

And the meat goes on...

So a few nights ago I made crockpot carnitas. It was a 4 1/2 pound bone-in roast. From that I have made four meals so far!

The first night I served carnitas soft tacos to my hubby, the kids, my in-laws and myself for dinner.

Next day I heated up some of the shredded meat in some leftover marinara sauce, boiled some pasta and tossed it all together for a bolognese type sauce.

That was lunch for my son, daughter and me.

Then I heated up more of the shredded meat and put it between two pieces of bread with some Gruyere cheese. I grilled it all up in a pan with some butter until it was toasty brown and the cheese was nice and melty.

A tasty sandwich for my hubby's lunch.

Tonight I took a small onion and sliced it up thin.

Heated a tablespoon of olive oil in a medium-sized pot over medium heat, added the onions and cooked until softened (about 6 minutes).

I then heated up about two cups of the carnitas meat in the microwave and added it to the onions in the pot and 1/3 cup of good store-bought barbecue sauce.

I mixed it all up in the pot over low heat until well combined and spooned it onto some toasted whole wheat hamburger buns.

Basically a pulled pork sandwich. They only took about ten minutes to make. And were they ever scrumptious!

So there you go. A large piece of meat that turned into several different dishes. Now that's some efficient cooking that got me through a hectic week.

Grilled Cheese and Eggplant Sandwich

Today for lunch I made the yummiest sandwich. It was a grilled cheese with grilled eggplant. I'm trying to eat a couple vegetarian meals a week.

The eggplant was from the frozen grilled veggies package I got at Trader Joe's.

All I had to do was nuke them until they were warm and soak up some of the moisture with a paper towel.

Then I gave them a good sprinkling of sea salt and ground pepper. I placed the eggplant and a couple slices of Havarti cheese on my multigrain sourdough bread.

Topped it off with another slice of bread and grilled it in a pan with some butter until golden brown on both sides. You want to cook the sandwich over pretty low heat for a longer period of time or your bread will burn before your cheese melts.

When it's this good you won't even miss the meat.

Hey Joe...

Beloved readers, I'm back! For the past week my parents were here visiting from Vancouver. We spent most of the week out and about in L.A.. They even made the obligatory grandparent trip to Disneyland. Almost every meal during their stay was at or from a restaurant. A week later, my stomach is bloated and I'm craving donuts. Weird how bad eating begets bad eating.

I dropped them off at the airport this afternoon and fought traffic all the way home. Dinner had to be quick and easy tonight. Luckily my hubby already had it under control. He browned some ground turkey in a pan until cooked through, added a can of Manwich sloppy joe sauce, simmered it for a few minutes and then spooned it onto some whole wheat hamburger buns. Grilled zucchini completed the meal. It was genius! The kids loved the sloppy joes, using ground turkey made them very low-fat and you can have dinner on the table in about 15 minutes. I'm keeping a can of Manwich sauce in the pantry at all times now. Maybe I will even try making some homemade sauce in the near future.

Tomorrow I will be back to cooking again. I've actually missed it. In fact, I've missed the blogging too. I know throwing some canned sauce onto ground meat might sound a little trashy but we do the best we can as parents. It's not always going to be super fresh or as healthy as we'd like. The important thing is that you love your kids. Give them your time and attention. At the end of the day that is what is going to make them thrive the most.

Butter me up...

My (almost) four-year-old son goes to preschool now and he absolutely loves it. At his age the focus is on socialization. Part of that is learned through the kids sitting down for lunch together. I've hung out during this meal time on several occasions and it's hysterical. Kids really do say the darndest things!

Lately, he has really been into sandwiches for lunch. His favorites are peanut butter and jelly, turkey, grilled cheese and B.L.T.. Unfortunately, the school does not allow us to pack them anything containing peanuts since some kids have severe peanut allergies. That would make p.b. and j's completely out of the question. Almond butter, on the other hand, is fine.

While shopping at Trader Joe's one day, I came across their Almond Butter With Roasted Flaxseeds. I bought a jar of it to have with some whole wheat English muffins for breakfast. Almonds are an excellent source of protein along with a ton of other vitamins and minerals. The almond butter keeps me full for a long time and I have much more energy from it than the buttered toast I used to have. Flaxseed contains high levels of Omega-3 fatty acids which can improve your cholesterol and help fight off heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Oh, and it happens to be delicious too. The chunks of almonds and flaxseed give the butter an incredible texture and nuttiness. It also tastes less sweet and more natural than a lot of the name brand peanut butters. Probably because there are only three ingredients: almonds, flaxseed and sea salt.

One morning, my son had a bite of my English muffin with the almond butter and loved it. That day I started putting almond butter and jelly sandwiches in his lunchbox. Problem solved!

You like tomato and I like tomahto...

What to do with too many tomatoes? My mind immediately went to cheese. "Excuse me?" you say. I am speaking of grilled cheese sandwiches. The ooey-gooey delights that we've loved since we were kids. And grilled cheeses go perfectly with tomato soup. See how my mind works? So I set off on a tomato soup making adventure.

I decided to roast tomatoes in the oven first to give it more depth in flavor. I also threw onions and garlic onto the baking sheet with the tomatoes. If the soup ended up tasting as good as the roasting vegetables smelled, then it was going to be phenomenal.

The soup did turn out even better than I had anticipated. So fresh and much better than the canned variety.

The grilled cheese sandwiches were made with Havarti and Gruyere. I chose these cheeses for their milder tastes and excellent melting ability. Oh, and I named the sandwich in honor of my childhood friend, Tammy, whom I haven't seen in decades. She is a cheese enthusiast and jokingly said that I should do a recipe involving cheese and name it after her. Those of you that read my post Crustacean Sensation may recall Tammy's mom as the first person to introduce me to mac and cheese. Well, I found out that Tammy is a Foodism For the Busy Mom reader and this was AFTER I wrote about her in my blog. We have since reconnected through Facebook. Pretty cool huh? So there you go Tam, your very own "Tam-wich"!

Roasted Tomato Soup

6 large Roma tomatoes; halved, stem area trimmed off
1 medium onion; outer skin and layer removed, cut into medium sized chunks
1 head of garlic, wrapped in foil
Olive oil
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
4 large fresh basil leaves, torn into smaller pieces
1/2 tsp sugar
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place your tomatoes, onions and garlic on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Lightly drizzle olive oil over everything (except the garlic) and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. Onions should just start to brown.

Start heating up the chicken broth in a medium pot. Add your roasted veggies.

Slice the top off of the garlic head and squeeze the bottom of the bulb, the softened cloves should just come out. You only want to put the cloves into the pot, discard the rest of the skin.

Let it all come to a boil and turn down the heat to a simmer. Cook uncovered for 15 minutes.

Add the basil and sugar to the pot. Use a hand blender to puree the soup until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste (start with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper and build from there if necessary).

If the tip of the blender is not submerged fully in liquid, tilt the pot to the side until it is. If you blend it when the liquid is too shallow, you will have splatter everywhere. Also don't hand blend in a non-stick pot. You may ruin it's surface. Just transfer it to a metal bowl first.

If you don't have a hand blender, let the soup cool for a bit and then puree it in a food processor or blender in batches.

You can make this in advance and just reheat when you are ready to serve.

Grilled Cheese Tam-wich

Good bread, sliced
Havarti cheese, sliced thin
Gruyere cheese, sliced thin
Salted butter

Heat up a pan on medium to medium-low heat.

Place one layer of Havarti and one layer of Gruyere onto a piece of the bread. Place another piece of bread on top and butter the outside of that piece. (I'm sure you all know how to make grilled cheese sandwiches, just covering my bases.)

When your pan is heated up, add a pat of butter and let it melt. Place your sandwich/es in the pan and cook slowly so the cheese has time to melt. Keep peeking at the bottom for a nice golden brown color. When you've achieved it, flip it over carefully. Cook the other side until golden brown as well. Serve with a bowl of the hot tomato soup!

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