Bacon Apple Bleu Sandwich

Sorry...no TWD this week. I just didn't get around to it this time. Hopefully I'll be back with the Chocolate Souffle next week!
Remember about a month or so ago, when I asked you for your favorite sandwiches? Well...I haven't been very diligent about making them and posting them. It's been a little busy around here this summer, what with a new job, a longer commute, and building a house and all. But I'm back with the Bacon Apple Bleu sandwich, which was recommended to me by a college friend, Amanda C. She's had this sandwich at the North End Cafe in Louisville, and she says it's divine!
I've never had the sandwich, but the menu says it's made of Granny Smith apples, bacon, and bleu cheese walnut spread. Here we go...let's see what we can come up with!

I looked around on Recipezaar and found this recipe for a Bleu Cheese Walnut Spread and decided to give it a try on the sandwich. I have no idea if this is even similar to what the North End Cafe uses in their sandwiches, but it was tasty! I slathered some of the spread onto two sides of buttered bread, then layered on slices of Granny Smith apples and bacon. Then, I pressed the sandwiches on my "Poor Man's Panini," as you'll see below. I laid the sandwiches on my greased grill pan, then laid a cookie sheet on top, which I weighted with four cans of veggies (two placed over each sandwich). It worked like a dream!
See the grill marks? If I hadn't shown you the picture, you would have thought I had a fancy-schmancy panini press, huh? Anyway, this sandwich was great! David and I both agree that we needed more bacon. They were unlike any sandwich I'd ever made before, but I'd definitely make them again. I served them with a side of roasted home-grown new potatotes from Shirley's garden. Thanks, Amanda, for a great idea! We loved it! Here's the recipe for the walnut spread so you can have a Bacon Apple Bleu sandwich anytime!

Bleu Cheese Walnut Spread

From Recipezaar, courtesy of Parsley

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

4 oz. crumbled bleu cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

2/3 cup chopped walnuts

2 Tbs. fresh chives

In a mixing bowl, blend together the cream cheese, bleu cheese, sour cream, and Worcestershire sauce until well-blended.

Stir in walnuts and chives. Spoon into serving bowl. Garnish with extra chives, if desired.

Chill at least 1 hour to blend flavors.

Benedictine

Do you know about Benedictine spread? It's a delicious cucumber and cream cheese spread. It was invented in Louisville by a prominent caterer named Jennie Benedict. She was Louisville's foremost caterer at the turn of the 20th century, and Benedictine spread is her most well-known recipe. She also published a cookbook of her recipes in 1904, which she called The Blue Ribbon Cookbook. It was out of print for many years, but was recently reprinted, and I received a copy of it for Christmas last year. Many of the recipes are, well...strange. There's a whole chapter on "Sick Room Cookery," foods meant to help speed the recovery from illness. I haven't made many things from this cookbook, but I did decide to try one of the many Benedictine recipes that have been included. "Miss Jennie" didn't include her own recipe for Benedictine in any of her cookbooks, but many local restarauteurs included theirs in the newest reprint of The Blue Ribbon Cookbook. The one I tried comes from Lilly's restaraunt in Louisville.

My sister Allison loves Benedictine just as much as I do, so I decided to make her a batch of Benedictine to have for her lunch this week. Why? No reason, really. I just love her! I hope she enjoys it. I tasted it, and it's pretty darn good. I'll have to try some of the other recipes as well. Cucumbers have been on sale lately...grab a couple and make a batch of Benedictine!

Lilly's Benedictine
Kathy Cary, owner of Lilly's Restaurant in Louisville

8 oz. cream cheese

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped

2 Tbs. red onion, finely chopped

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1 Tbs. fresh dill, finely chopped

Bring cream cheese to room temperature. Add other ingredients and mix well.

Summer on a Plate

Tonight's installment in the "My Favorite Sandwich" challenge is courtesy of Lindsey B., one of my cousins. Before I get down to the sandwich details, let's talk about me and Lindsey and how we're connected. Her grandfather is my uncle (my dad's brother). Her great-grandmother is my grandmother. She and her sisters grew up in Ohio, and we usually saw each other at Christmas. We're only about three months apart in age, so we were always automatic playmates. As years went by, we didn't see as much of each other anymore...really I'm not sure when was the last time I actually saw Lindsey! But through the magic of Facebook, we've reconnected and found that we both have food blogs (Lindsey's is called Yummy Things)! Lindsey sent me her favorite summertime sandwich: an openfaced tomato sandwich smeared with homemade red pepper spread. Sounds good to me!
David and I haven't had BLT's yet this summer, so I decided to add the red pepper spread as a delicious condiment, instead of our regular mayo. It was GREAT! The roasted red pepper spread came together really quickly last night, and I got two nice little jars out of one recipe. There's a nice bite from the red peppers, but you can also really taste the cucumber in the spread.
David commented that the red pepper spread looks a little like pimento cheese, and I agree. But it's so much better. The BLTs with the red pepper spread tasted like summer on a plate. Absolutely delicious. David had three! The spread would be great by itself on a sandwich, but I think it would also be great on crackers. Or on veggies. Or on a bagel!

Ready for the recipe? It originally came from Cooking Light. If you check out the website, you can see the nutrition information, and I was pretty pleasantly surprised. The suggested serving (a sandwich made only with the red pepper spread), is really pretty large. When the spread is used as a condiment (and has plenty of flavor to do so), the calorie and fat count is quite low. This is definitely a recipe we'll use around here often! Thanks, Lindsey!

Roasted Red Pepper Spread

Cooking Light/Yummy Things

1/2 cup finely chopped seeded cucumber

1 (7 oz.) bottle roasted red peppers, drained and finely chopped

6 oz. Neufchatel cheese (reduced fat cream cheese), softened

3 oz. fat-free cream cheese, softened

3 Tbs. red onion, finely chopped

1/4 tsp. salt
1 clove garlic, minced

Spread cucumber and bell peppers onto several layers of heavy-duty paper towels; let stand 5 minutes to drain excess moisture. Scrape into a medium bowl using a rubber spatula. Add the cheeses, onion, salt, and garlic; stir with a fork until well blended. (Or you can dump it all in the food processor and pulse until combined. The texture won't be as chunky, but it's quick!) Will keep in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

Shellie's Sandwich

You might remember my post from last week about favorite sandwiches. It started from a radio broadcast I heard on KLOVE, during which time callers from all over the US described their favorite sandwiches. Some were classic (bologna and cheese), others were strange (PB and pickles, which I tried). I decided that if you, dear readers, would tell me about your favorite sandwich, I'd blog about it and eat it! Tonight, David and I tried our first sandwich, courtesy of Shellie K., a friend from high school who submitted her entry via my Facebook page.
Here's Shellie's sandwich: peanut butter, strawberry jam, and nacho cheese Doritos. Her sandwich definitely falls into the weird category...right there with the PB and pickles. But I have to say that I liked this one better.

David wasn't so sure about the PB, strawberry jelly, and Dorito sandwich, but he's a trooper and gave it a try! I think the key to this sandwich is having lots of Doritos. I actually went back and added a few more to my sandwich. I liked the crunch and the cheesy saltiness they added. I don't know if it's a sandwich that I'd eat on a regular basis, but it was definitely worth a try! Thanks, Shellie! Hopefully we'll see you in October for our TEN YEAR REUNION!

UPCOMING SANDWICHES FROM THE "MY FAVORITE SANDWICH" CHALLENGE:

Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato Sandwich with Homemade Red Pepper and Cucumber Spread - Lindsey B.

Hot Ham n' Cheese Hoagies - Smith family

Peanut Butter, Banana, and Mascarpone Panini - Amanda C.

Bacon Apple Bleu Sandwich from the North End Cafe - Amanda C.

Weird.

Today at work and on the drive home, I was listening to KLOVE, and all day long, the radio personalities were talking about their favorite sandwiches. They invited callers from all over the country to call in with their favorite sandwiches. It was really interesting, especially because I love food more than anything. By the time I was on the drive home, it seemed like everyone who called in was professing their love for peanut butter and pickle sandwiches. I mean, for about 30 minutes, it was caller after caller talking about how wonderful peanut butter and pickle sandwiches are! Good grief! I was right there, nodding in agreement with the callers who said they liked peanut butter, banana, and chocolate syrup sandwiches. Or the peanut butter, banana, and honey sandwiches. But peanut butter and pickle? Please! For the better part of 14 years, Chet has been trying to get me to eat a toasted peanut butter, pickle, and mayonnaise sandwich, which he loves. I haven't taken him up on it. I love peanut butter. I love pickles. I love mayonnaise. But together? I'm not so sure. But on my drive home, I decided that today would be the day I would have my first peanut butter and pickle sandwich. I'm not quite ready to add the mayo. Baby steps, you know.

Here it is. The PB and Pickle sandwich. I used regular ol' creamy PB and these pickles. I wonder if I used enough PB? I like a thick coat of peanut butter on my sandwiches, and I kind of held back. Look at that bold pickle slice! Wow.

There you go. I did it. I took a bite. I actually at the whole thing. It was okay. It wasn't as good as I anticipated it, based on the rave reviews I heard on the radio. Maybe I didn't put enough peanut butter on it. Maybe it was because I used the cheap stuff instead of JIF. I don't know...it was edible. Maybe even pretty good. It just tasted like peanut butter and pickles. I actually found myself thinking..."maybe the mayo would be really good..."

Now I'm going to issue you a challenge, a fun one for you, and for me. Tell me your favorite sandwich, and I'll make it, blog it, and eat it. It doesn't have to be weird, like the PB and pickle sandwich, but it can be. It could be the most delicious sandwich you've ever had, and you'd like to see me try to recreate it. Please don't be mean to me and ask me to make fried worm and dirt sandwiches or something like that, because I don't want to eat that stuff. Either leave me a comment on this post, or shoot me an email at thesweetlife@insightbb.com. I can't wait to hear what you have for me!