Tag Archives: ham

Chicken Cordon Bleu Sandwich

Leave a reply

I’ve been on a sandwich kick lately. I love revamping traditional recipes and transforming them into portable sandwiches. Chicken Cordon Bleu is one of my favorite dishes but it’s so fattening and time consuming to make. For this sandwich version, I simply add white wine to mayonnaise to create a sauce and dress it with paprika and white pepper, which are traditional.

It’s a good sandwich, not my best, but good.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Sandwich

Serves 1

1 tablespoon mayonnaise

1 teaspoon dry white wine

Dash of each paprika and pepper (white pepper is preferred, but black will do)

1 crusty bread roll or large dinner roll from a bakery

4 slices of good quality deli ham or proscuitto

1 thick slice of Gruyere cheese (you can substitute Swiss)

Half a rotisserie chicken breast

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
First, stir together mayonnaise, wine and paprika and pepper. Set aside.

When the oven is preheated, slice your roll in half. Smear mayonnaise mixture, which will be thin, on both insides of the bread. Layer the ham, cheese and chicken and close the sandwich. Bake for 5 minutes and then enjoy.

Mock Muffaletta

Leave a reply

I have never been a huge fan of Muffaletta sandwiches because they are overly salty and taste really fatty. My version of the muffaletta is scrumptious. I omit the ham, add chicken, use the mayo to add a creamy flavor and temper the saltiness of olives.  Instead of chopping olives, I simply open a jar of olive tapenade. I prefer green olive tapenade in this recipe.

The chicken adds lean protein to this sandwich and I use less salami than a traditional Muffaletta, so it has less fat. I enjoy this toasted, which makes the bread crusty, cheese gooey and sweats some of the fat off the salami. But you can eat this cold and if you do, it becomes one my “10 minute” recipes. It’s a great, easy sandwich either way. Enjoy.

Ingredients:

3 hoagies or Italian bread sliced into sandwich portions

1/3 cup mayonnaise

¼ cup green olive tapenade

½ cup shredded Manchego cheese (You can substitute Swiss or a Monterey Jack for mild flavor)

1 ¼ cups chopped rotisserie chicken breast, skin removed

Generous dash of Italian seasoning

6 slices large cut salami

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Stir together mayonnaise and olive tapenade. Divide the mixture in thirds and spread on the bread. Sprinkle cheese and chicken over hoagies and add a dash of Italian seasoning to each. Top each with two slices of salami.

Bake for 5-7 minutes until cheese melts and bread is toasty. Serve immediately.

Serves 3.

photo 1

Grilled Chicken, Ham, Arugula and Cranberry Sandwich

Leave a reply

I adore this quick and easy sandwich which was inspired by a sandwich I ate in Covington, La., while visiting family there. We went to this darling café and my sandwich had the best cranberry sauce, which I came home and duplicated. That sandwich was just turkey and cranberry sauce, but I wanted to use chicken, so I came up with this.  Just chicken was too plain, so I added the ham and it gave this the pop of flavor it needs.

The creamy, sweet and tart cranberry sauce is wonderful with the spicy arugula and mellow chicken and salty, smoky ham. You don’t need any fancy bread for this, just plain grocery store wheat works fine.  You grill it like a grilled cheese. If you have a child who is able to help in the kitchen, they can assemble the sandwich while you heat the skillet and grill the sandwiches.

If you want to make it dairy-free or save calories, simply spray the pan with cooking spray instead of buttering your bread.

This delicious sandwich can be turned into a wrap if you’re in a rush and eaten cold. In that case, simply spread the cranberry mayonnaise mixture on the inside of a whole wheat wrap. Top with ham and sliced chicken and a big handful of arugula. Roll up like you would a burrito.

And if you do want a lovely artisan bread, then use that and press this like a panini. Yes, it’s versatile and the leftovers are good so you can double the recipe and eat some tomorrow.

Ingredients:

8 slices whole wheat bread

2 tablespoon butter, divided

½ cup whole cranberry sauce

½ cup mayonnaise

¾ cup arugula (can substitute spinach)

8 slices of deli ham

Thick cut rotisserie chicken breast, enough to cover a piece of bread

Spread butter or margarine lightly over one side of each slice of bread

Mix together mayonnaise and cranberry sauce and spread over opposite side of bread (not on buttered side)

Heat a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat.

When warm, add two slices of bread, butter side down, in the pan. Add ham, chicken and arugula and then add the other piece of bread so the butter side is up (just like you would in a grilled cheese).

Press down with a spatula and when the bottom side is golden brown, flip it. Cook until the other side is golden brown and serve warm.

Serves 4.