Maven's Leaning Tower of Bahn Mi

 
Duck breast: Marinated and in the Nesco cooker on slow cook, in
a bone dry crock for five hours; 3 hours skin side down; flip, 2 hours more. 
On a whim, I picked up the marinated duck breasts at the
market in Grand Central Station, with the intent of making
Peking duck wraps.
The duck, however, had other designs on its ultimate
nom-i-tude.

First things first is bread selection. Second? Toast that shit up. 
Fuck the Maillard Effect = carcinogenic! Fuck it in its ear!
Toast. That. Shit. Up.

While your baguette toasts up, get your veggies pickled.
I did a quick oi cha type pickle w/cukes and shallots. 

Google that shit, because I'm not giving a recipe by recipe

breakdown of all aspects of this sandwich.

This recipe is about construction.

Prep your spicy mayo.

50% mayo of your choosing, and 50% something else.

While at Whole Paycheck, I couldn't remember if I had canned

liver pate or liverwurst at home, so I spent $7 on this (good) shit.

Behold the golden hue.

And yes, I used a pretzel baguette.

Grrrrr! 
Turns out it was in the pantry all the while!

But yanno what? If I did not spend $7 on the rillettes, 
My luck would be this can would not be in the pantry. 
That's how my life rolls.

Note: Even folks on a budget can make this sandwich
See also: Pricetag on the liverwurst--you probably could get
something similar at a local dollar store.

Dispatch the duck, prepare for sandwich participation.

Assembly pic #1. Spicy mayo and oi cha on top;

Rillettes and duck on bottom.

Assembly pic #2: On top: flurry of cilantro; on bottom

fist full of clover/arugala sprouts (with some chopped 

scallions thrown in).

The final reveal:

Ready to be jammed into the pie hole of my husband.

The. End.

End note: There were leftovers. 
End note to the end note: No, you cannot have any.

Muffuletta Sandwiches, bitches!

This is not just a bunch of cold cuts and cheese. Anyone can make that. That's not to say that the meats and cheeses aren't important -- they are. You can get good quality Italian meats and cheeses in most good supermarkets, but you'd be better off at an Italian market (especially for the mortadella, which isn't always easy to find at a conventional supermarket).

To make this, you need two very important ingredients -- the bread, and the olive salad. In a pinch any good Italian bread will do, but for an authentic muffuletta you need a muffuletta loaf. It's round, usually sesame-seeded and about 10 inches in diameter. If you want a Liuzza's-style "Frenchuletta", use a good light-bodied crispy-crusted French bread. Then ... the olive salad. The Holy Grail of sandwich fillings.

The recipe below makes about a gallon of olive salad. Don't worry, that shit is tasty, and you'll eat it fast!

• For the olive salad:
• 1 gallon large pimento stuffed green olives, slightly crushed and well drained
• 1 quart jar pickled cauliflower, drained and sliced
• 2 small jars capers, drained
• 1 whole stalk celery, sliced diagonally
• 4 large carrots, peeled and thinly sliced diagonally
• 1 small jar celery seeds
• 1 small jar oregano
• 1 large head fresh garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 jar pepperoncini, drained (small salad peppers) left whole
• 1 pound large Greek black olives
• 1 jar cocktail onions, drained

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl or pot and mix well.
Place in a large jar and cover with 1/2 olive oil and 1/2 Crisco oil.
Store tightly covered in refrigerator.
Allow to marinate for at least 24 hours before using.

• For the sandwich:
• 1 round loaf italian bread
• 1/4 pound mortadella, thinly sliced
• 1/4 pound ham, thinly sliced
• 1/4 pound hard Genoa salami, thinly sliced
• 1/4 pound Mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 1/4 pound Provolone cheese,sliced
• 1 cup olive salad with oil

Split a muffuletta loaf or a loaf of Italian bread horizontally.
Spread each half with equal parts of olive salad and oil.
Place meats and cheeses evenly on bottom half and cover with top half of bread.
Cut in quarters. Enjoy!

Some people use a Foreman frill to toast the sandwich a bit. It's a personal preference thing.

Cuban Medianoche Sandwich

First, the bread. Keep in mind that you can take the lazy way, and use a loaf of french bread...but it won't be nearly as yummy.

Although it is made with the same basic ingredients as French bread, the baking procedure for Cuban bread is different. The dough is put in a cold oven, set above a pan of boiling water, and left to rest for a few minutes before the oven is turned on. Because the bread continues to rise as the oven heats, its crust is very thin and crisp. It is made without fat, so it is best if eaten on the day it is baked, as it will go stale quickly.

You will need:

1 scant tablespoon or 1 (1/2-ounce) package active dry yeast
2 cups warm water (105 degrees to 115 degrees)
1 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 to 5 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, soften the yeast in the water.

Add the salt and 3 cups of the flour. Beat vigorously with a dough whisk or a heavy-handled spoon for 2 minutes. (We used the dough hook on our mixer.)

Gradually add more of the remaining flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until the dough forms a mass and begins to pull away from the side of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface.

Knead, adding more flour, a little at a time as necessary, about 8 to 10 minutes, or until you have a smooth, elastic dough and blisters begin to develop on the surface.

Put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl. Turn to coat the entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a tightly woven kitchen towel and let rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled work surface and knead it into a ball. Put the dough on a well-greased baking sheet and flatten it slightly so that is about 3 inches high. Make 3 slits in the top of the loaf, about 1/4 inch deep and 2 inches apart.

Pour 1 cup of boiling water into a shallow pan and put the pan on the lower shelf of an unheated oven. put the dough on the shelf above, wait 10 minutes, turn the oven to 400 degrees. Bake the bead for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 200 degrees. (Ours took an additional 15 minutes to come to temperature.)

Immediately remove from the baking sheet and cool on a rack.

Now, on to the most delicious sandwich to ever grace a plate.

In making a good medianoche, remember this: The roast pork is what will make the sandwich, so you can never leave it out.

3 thin slices (almost shaved) of ham

3 thin slices roast pork hot or cold (I use hot, slow roasted pork)

3 thin slices of salami (genoa is best)

3 thin slices of Swiss cheese

3 or 4 slices of pickles

1/3 cut sweet Cuban bread

You should be using fresh, sweet Cuban bread, but you can always use an 12" loaf of french bread cut in half.

Slice the bread open face so that both halves are still barely connected and spread mustard on both halves.
Add the ham, salami and then the roasted pork. (When in a hurry, you can use one whole piece of roasted pork.)
Add your swiss cheese and then a few pickle slices.

Make sure to spray your sandwich press with a little butter flavored Pam (some people basically smother the outside of the sandwich with butter before pressing).
Place the sandwich in a sandwich press and press down until the cheese is melted and the bread is slightly hard to the touch. ( For those of you without a press, you can also place the sandwich in a hot skillet and press down on it with a heavy kitchen object. (I've been known to do it ghetto-style, with a brick wrapped in tin foil when nothing else is available).
When finished, slice the sandwich diagonally across the middle so that you have two triangle shaped wedges.

Enjoy!

Croque Monsieur aux Pommes

This is a twist I saw today, it's a spin on a standard grilled cheese. Tuck some thin slices of apple into the sandwich before grilling it.

Is a recipe necessary?