Friday Night Sandwich Fix

Friday night, just after walking in the door from work, is one of my favorite moments of the week. No matter how strenuous your work week, no matter how many frustrating phone calls were made, packages were lost, or clients were disgruntled, you’re HOME. And the whole weekend stretches out in front of you with a warm smile. For me, Friday night is like a mini birthday every week, in which you can treat yourself to that extra glass of wine, slip into something comfortable and tell the world of commerce you’ll check back in 72 hours.

This past Friday was an especially stressful day in my little world, and when I came home, there was nothing I wanted to do more than relax- and I proceeded to do just that! I had all good intentions on starting preparations for a small dinner party we were having on Saturday, but I passed on that and went directly to making a pitcher of Sangria (recipe to follow soon) and pulling together an easy dinner. The weather has been hot & muggy in Newport, and the last thing I was interested in was standing in front of a hot stove for an extensive period of time, especially when that stove has no hood vent. I had been playing out an idea for a meal-worthy sandwich in my head for a few days, comprised wholly of items already in my kitchen, and knew it would fit the bill to a “T”. Prep involved just enough work so that I felt productive (and what better way to get out some work frustrations then smashing a couple of cloves of garlic?), and assembly and cleanup were a snap.

I’m sure there are those out there that might scoff at a mere sandwich recipe, but for me there is something really wonderful about layering flavors together into a delicious handheld meal. Scoff if you must, but I am beyond satisfied with the end sandwich product (is there really nothing the sandwich can’t do???), and more importantly, so was my husband. ;-)

Tuscan Chicken Sandwich for Two
- ½ Loaf of crusty Italian bread, whole wheat or white
- ½ Medium vine ripened tomato, sliced
- ¼ Sweet Vidalia onion, sliced thin
- 1 Grilled chicken breast, sliced
- ¼- ½ Cup good shredded Parmesan cheese
- 4-6 Pitted Kalamata olives, sliced
- 6 Basil leaves
- Lemon-Garlic mayonnaise (recipe follows)
- Handful of salad greens
- Sea salt & fresh cracked pepper

Lemon-Garlic Mayonnaise
- 3 Tblspns good quality mayonnaise
- 1 Large or 2 small cloves of garlic, peeled
- Zest from ¼ of a lemon
- Juice from ¼ of a lemon
-1 Tbspn fresh Italian parsley, chopped
-Sea salt & fresh cracked pepper

For Mayonnaise: Crack garlic cloves and rough chop. Sprinkle garlic with sea salt, and using the side of the knife, work the garlic into a smooth paste by running over a few times until proper consistency is reached (add more salt accordingly to help break down garlic & soften flavor). Combine all ingredients in a bowl and combine well. Set aside while assembling rest of sandwich.

To Assemble Sandwich: Preheat oven broiler to low. Split bread length-wise and place on a baking sheet, cut side up. Place under broiler, approx four to six inches below broiler plate and toast bread (I would advise keeping an eye on the toasting, as bread can go from brown to black in a flash!). Remove bread from broiler. Coat the “bottom” side of the bread with Lemon-Garlic mayonnaise and top with tomatoes, olives, and sliced chicken. Coat the “top” with mayonnaise, onions and basil leaves. Sprinkle both sides with parmesan cheese and season with salt & pepper to taste. Place sandwich back under broiler for another 4-6 minutes, or until cheese is melted and browned. Remove sandwich from oven, top “bottom” with salad greens & cover with “top”. Slice in half & serve with favorite sandwich sides.