Sandwich Making

A point of pride for me is that I have brought my own lunch to work or school virtually every day for my entire life (exceptions: four years of dorm food during undergrad, days when I have social plans at a venue where it would be inappropriate to bring my own food, events when food is provided, extenuating circumstances*). There are a variety of reasons for this. Partly it's to save money. Partly it's because the food I make can be healthful if I want. And partly it's because I've worked in several places where I can make better stuff than what's readily available (downtown Toronto being a notable exception).

Another point of pride is that I try to keep my lunches interesting, even though I'm mostly just eating sandwiches every day. And usually the same sandwich repeated for several days. As I've said here before, this means they've gotta be tasty so I don't get sick of them.

What I've decided to do this week is share some of my sandwich making tips and creations.

First, bread. Bread is critical. That's why I've written 'bread' three times to open this paragraph. I personally find that baguettes are fabulous for just about any sandwich, and they can be easily kept in the freezer (sliced into thirds) to be reheated. The key, though, is to find interesting bread that will not just contain your sandwich, but also enhance it...and not get too soggy in the process. If you don't go with the baguette, find something that's thickly sliced (or that you can slice yourself) and has some flavor to it.

Second, interesting fillings. Boring fillings make boring sandwiches, even in great bread. And boring sandwiches make boring lunches (aside: boring lunches, of course, are what well drillers eat...). The key to interesting sandwich fillings is to always have a few ingredients in your sandwich, and to always keep some interesting condiments around. It's also nice to have some sandwiches where you can prepare a filling in advance for several sandwiches. Here are some of my favorites, ranging from easy to more time consuming:

Easy to shop for and assemble:

• sliced brie, cucumber, tomato and black pepper (best on a hard roll or baguette; assemble with tomatoes in the middle and cucumbers on top to minimize tomato-related bread sogginess)
• sliced avocado, red pepper, sprouts, chili paste (great on thick multi-grain bread and enhanced by a bit of cream cheese
• hommus, tomatoes, cucumbers, sprouts (possibly with some carrots)
• salami, some sort of hard white cheese, arugula, onion jam (or mustard)
• prosciutto, sliced apples or pears, some sort of hard white cheese

Require a little bit of prep:

• sliced turkey (well worth going to Whole Foods to get the freshly roasted stuff, or roast your own), chipotle mayo (make in blender with 6 tbsp mayo, 1 whole chipotle pepper (canned), juice from 1 lime), lettuce, tomato
• smoked salmon, red onion and wasabi cream cheese (mix some wasabi paste with cream cheese and store in the fridge)
• curried chicken salad (cook and dice 1 lb of chicken breasts, toss with sliced green onions and maybe some mango, dress with a mix of yogurt, mayo and curry paste from a jar)
• roasted veggies and apples: slice an onion, a red pepper, an apple, and some mushrooms. Toss with some butter or oil and sprinkle with salt/pepper. Roast at 375 for 20 mins or so. When done, place some of this mixture on bread with some greens and maybe some sort of aged cheese. The veggies are great cold. Endless substitutions are possible.
• roasted eggplant and goat cheese: Slice up an eggplant and roast it at 375-400 after brushing with oil. Put on bread with a good chevre and some greens.
• tofu salads: Moosewood New Classics has a couple of these themed Italian and Thai. They basically involve crumbling some tofu, tossing it with some veggies, and then dressing it with a theme-appropriate dressing.
• Spanish tortilla: Make your favorite Spanish Tortilla recipe (this is a fritata with potatoes and onions) and then slice it up. This one is best on a hard roll or baguette, and is surprisingly delicious cold. My favorite recipe is in Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

I'll add more as I think of them (I'm sure I've made others), but this is a good start. 

Third is assembly, which is more important than you think. I've added some assembly tips for a few of these where it matters even more. I find that assembling my sandwich in the morning works best, and always try to do so in a manner that minimizes the likelihood of soggy bread or otherwise befouled ingredients. I then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap to hold it all together.

Finally, my main point here is that if you've got a bunch of ideas that are easy to shop for, it's easy to eat tasty stuff all the time. I'd also love to hear about others' favorite sandwiches. That could be a whole separate blog. You can also take some pleasure in recalling that Arthur Dent (from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) took pride in his career as a sandwich maker when he gets uprooted and finds himself on Lamuella.

* Those who have known me a very long time may note that an extended extenuating circumstance was the entirety of first grade (translation for Canadians: grade one), during which I did not eat lunch in school at all, ever. My mom did, however, make lunch for me every day...so technically I did bring it. I don't actually remember why I didn't eat my lunch at school, but finally deciding to do so resulted in my getting a Hot Wheels race track, so I consider the whole episode a win. (I have a history of being a bit stubborn about doing mundane things; this is a topic for another entry...or therapy.)