Pizzas and Sandwiches

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

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Ingredients:

1 3 pound pork roast (if frozen, thaw before prepping)
2 tablespoons olive oil
Montreal Steak Seasoning (or your favorite steak seasoning)
3-4 cups Root Beer, Dr. Pepper or Coke
1 1/2-2 cups Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce
6-8 rolls for serving

1.  Season your pork roast generously with the steak seasoning.  Be sure to massage the spices into your roast really well!
2.  Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet and sear all sides of the roast.
3.  Pierce roast a couple of times with a fork and place in a large crock pot.
4.  Pour soda over your meat, cover and cook on low for about 7 hours; or until meat shreds easily with a fork.
5.  Remove roast from crock pot and shred with two forks.  Put shredded meat back into the soda juices, cover and cook for 1 more hour.
6.  Drain juices from crock pot and pour in BBQ sauce.  Mix well, cover and cook for 30 minutes or until BBQ sauce is heated through.
7.  Serve pulled pork on yummy rolls and enjoy!  You could also add a handful of cole slaw to each sandwich for texture!

Source:  Jamie Cooks It Up!

Turkey Avocado Panini Sandwich

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This time of year always brings out cabin-fever in my house. I get itchy for “summer food.” And since our local grocery store had avocados at reduced prices (nice of them to comply to my mood, don’t you think?), I thought, “What better way to kick winter in the bum?” (That’s right. Bum.)

Ingredients:
2 slices Country White or Sour Dough Bread (or your favorite thick bread)
Turkey Breast, sliced thick*
2 slices Provolone Cheese
1/2 Avocado, mashed
squirt of lime
5 – 8 Cherry Tomatoes, halved

1. Add the squirt of lime to the avocado and stir until thoroughly incorporated.
2. Layer in the following order: 1 slice of bread, 1 slice of cheese, turkey breast, avocado, tomatoes, 1 slice of cheese, and top with the other slice of bread.
3. Smash them onto a Panini Maker until the cheese is melted and gooey. Mmm-MMMM!!

If you don’t have a panini maker, don’t sweat it! Toast your bread for a little added crunch and warmth.

*Left overs are great. We have also used deli slices, and Oscar Meyer Cutting Board turkey breast.

Serves 1

~Kara

Grilled Chicken Sandwich with Alfalfa Sprouts

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Lately my husband and I have been adding sprouts to our diet because of their health benefits.  We love them on our salads and sandwiches.  I’m not sure where the idea for this particular sandwich came from.  I know I’ve had something similar to this in a restaurant.  It may not look pretty but it sure is delicious!

Ingredients (for 2 sandwiches):
2 grilled chicken breasts (I marinated mine in olive oil, fresh garlic, lemon, parsley, salt, and pepper)
4 slices or bread (we used ciabatta)
1 medium tomato
1 ripe avocado
a lemon or bottled lemon juice
sea salt
freshly ground pepper
mayonnaise (optional)
alfalfa sprouts

1.  Lightly toast your bread.  
2.  While bread is toasting cut 4 slices of tomato.  Scoop out flesh of avocado and put into a bowl.  Mash with back of a fork until desired consistency.  Give it a splash of lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.
3.  Take slices of bread and spread a thin layer of mayo on them followed by the avocado spread.
4.  Build your sandwich starting with the chicken breast, tomato slices, then finished with a layer of alfalfa sprouts. 

*This sandwich would taste great with a few bacon slices!

Pepperoni Roll Ups

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These pepperoni roll ups are delicous! We have added this recipe to our list of family favorites. I can see so many possibilities with this roll up! You can add anything to these, and everyone will love them!

Pam
cling wrap
Rhodes White Bread Loaves
Olive Oil
1/2 lb. Pepperoni Slices, thin slices from the DELI

*if too spicy for you, then use salomi slices – not spicy and delicous!
1 bag grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup of less of parmesean cheese, or romano
Italian Seasonings, a light sprinkle is all you’ll need
Garlic powder
4 TBSP melted butter
marinara suace, optional

Spray baking sheet with Pam and place two frozen loaves onto pan. Spray cling wrap with pam and place over top of the loaves. Let loaves rise for about 7 hours.
Roll dough out to 11×11 square. Brush with olive oil. Lay pepperoni slices out cover the entire square. Sprinkle mozzarella and parmesean cheeses over the pepperoni slices. Don’t over do the parmesean cheese. Sprinkle, very lightly, the italian seasoning over the square. Sprinkle garlic powder over the square. Roll up loaves. Brush butter over tops of the pepperoni Rolls.
Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees. for 15-25 min. The tops of the pepperoni rolls should be lightly brown and hollow when you thump them.
Serve immediatly. You may serve this with marinara suace for dipping.

Easy-Peezy Chicken Salad

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This recipe is here for you if you ever need to make an appetizer in a flash!

Ingredients (all to taste):

canned chicken breast, drained
dill salad cubes
mayonnaise
kosher salt (or regular)
pepper
1. Mix all ingredients together! You can serve with crackers but it’s also good as a sandwich.
Note–careful not to add too much salt as there is already salt in the pickles.
Source: my old boss, Lynn Burleson, had her husband make this at our request for several work events. It’s so good that I was disappointed when it didn’t show at one!

Meatball Subs

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Mr. Blue Eyes and I love these sandwiches! The meatballs are pretty run of the mill, but I love something that can be used in many recipes and stores or freezes easily. Sometimes I make the meatballs and freeze them for later use. SO great!
Ingredients for the Meatballs:
1 lb Ground Beef
1/4 C Bread Crumbs (we use Italian Seasoned)
1 egg
2 Tbsp finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground pepper
Additions for the Sandwiches:
1 (32 oz) Jar of your favorite Spaghetti Sauce (We use Classico, Tomato and Basil)
3-6 Hoagie Rolls (We slice three, and eat them open)
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (Mozzarella is great, too!)
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a Medium sized mixing bowl, mix all the Meatball ingredients together by hand.
3. Roll into balls. I make mine with a cookie scoop–heaping.
4. Place about 1″ apart on a cookie sheet. (We use lean meat. If you use higher fat content, you may want to put these in a cake pan.)
5. Bake for 10 – 13 minutes.
6. After removing the meatballs from the oven, turn it to Broil–500 degrees–and move your rack up to the highest setting.
7. After letting them cool a bit (or not–depending how rushed you are. Just be aware that they may break a little if you handle them too much when they’re hot.), add them with your spaghetti sauce in a sauce pan. Warm them up over Medium heat, about 3 – 5 minutes, stirring gently.
8. Halve your hoagie rolls lengthwise, place them on a cookie sheet, and spoon some meatballs over the bread BOTTOMS (if you’re going to Sandwich it. We do tops and bottoms because we eat them open)–enough to get a bite of meat when you chomp into it.
9. Sprinkle some cheese over each sandwich half and place on the top rack under the broiler until the cheese is nice and melted, about 3 minutes. (Don’t over bake!!) Serve hot.

Source: A family recipe

~Kara

Cheesy Bread Sticks

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These are just plain good! This is the same dough as used in my taco pizza that I posted a few weeks back. They are perfect!

1 tsp. active dry yeast
1-1/2 cup warm water
4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/3 cups of olive oil
1 cup monterey jack cheese, grated
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
a good marinara sauce, optional

Mix yeast with warm water and set aside for 8-10 minutes. mix flour, salt, and olive oil in a mixing bowl. With speed on low, drizzle in yeast/water mixture. Allow to mix until totally combined. Cover bowl with a towel and set bowl in a warm, draft free place. Allow to rise for 1-2 hours.
Place overn rack in the bottom position of oven. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Remove half of the pizza dough from teh bowl. (save remaining dough or make more bread sticks!) With hands, spread pizza dough on an oiled baking sheet, making sure its relatively thin.
Sprinkle grated cheeses over the dough and bake for 9-12 minutes. Serve with or without marinara sauce.

Taco Pizza

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This is easy and yummy! The kids will love this crust, and ask you to make cheesy breadsticks with the leftovers for an after school snack!

1 tsp Active Dry Yeast
1-1/2 c warm water
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 can (14 ounce) Black Beans
1 tsp. Taco seasoning
4 whole corn tortillas, sliced into thin strips
1/2 cup canola oil, for frying
1 cup grated sharp cheddar
1 cup grated monterey jack cheese
1 head green leaf lettuce, sliced/shredded thin
2 whole rip tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
1/4 cup sour cream
3 Tbsp. hot sauce (more to taste)

Make the pizza dough: Mix yeast with warm water and set aside for 8-10 minutes. Mix flour, salt, and olive oil in a mixing bowl. With speed on low, drizzle in yeast/ water mixture. Allow to mix until totally combined. Cover bowl with a towel and set bowl in a warm, draft-free place. Allow to rise for 1-2 hours.

Pour black beans into a saucepan. Add seasonings to taste and heat up beans over med-low heat. Use a potato masher to mash the beans to desired texture. Continue cooking /heating beans over md-low heat, stirring occasionally, until no longer runny (should be the texture of refried beans). Set aside.

In a small skillet, heat canola oil over med heat. When hot enough to fry, drop in the tortilla strips in batches, frying quickly and removing from oil with a fork when crisp – about 30-40 seconds per batch. Transfer to paper towel-lined plate. Set aside.

Place oven rack in the bottom position in the oven. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Remove half the pizza dough from the bowl. Place remaining half in a large plastic bag and refrigerate, saving for another use. With hands, spread pizza dough on an oiled baking sheet, making sure its relatively thin. Spread layer of beans all over pizza crust. Sprinkle mixed grated cheeses over the top. Place pan on bottom rack in oven and bake for 9 to 12 min. Watch it to make sure crust doesn’t burn.

Remove pizza from oven. Sprinkle on shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and cilantro leaves.

Mix together sour cream and hot sauce, adding enough hot sauce to make the mixture pourable. With a spoon ( or you can put it in a pastry bag) drizzle mixture over finished pizza.
Sprinkle with tortilla strips. Cut into squares and serve immediately with good quality salsa.

recipe from The Pioneer Woman

Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

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My daughter, Madi, is a huge fan of Chicken Caesar Salad so we gave this recipe a try and it is our new family favorite. It’s so easy and deliciouso!

2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken thighs
1/2 to 1 cup of your favorite Caesar dressing
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley (if you don’t have fresh use 2 t. dried parsley)
1/2 t. ground pepper
2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
12 slider buns or 4-6 regular sized hamburger buns

1. Place chicken in a 3-4 qt. slow cooker with 1-2 cups of water, cover and cook on low 4-6
hours.

2. Remove chicken from cooker using a slotted spoon and drain the water from the slow cooker.
Place chicken on a cutting board and pull chicken into shreds, discarding any fat.

3. Place chicken back in the cooker and pour dressing, Parmesan cheese, parsley and pepper
over the top. I really make sure that I discard any fat pieces so by the time I am done I only
use about 1/2 cup of dressing but you may need more if you have more chicken. Stir until
mixed evenly. Cover and cook on high heat for 30 minutes or until mixture is hot.

4. Spoon 1/4 cup mixture onto each slider bun if you are making sliders or more for regular
sized buns. Top with extra shredded Parmesan cheese and lettuce to serve.

Notes: I have also used a 4 lb. bag of bone-in, skin-on thighs and just doubled the other ingred-
ients (except for the dressing which you have to play around with according to taste). I
used Ken’s Light Caesar dressing.

Source: Pinterest

Hawaiian Tuna Melt

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A delicious twist on the old grilled tuna! This makes for a great lunch at home. I recommend using a thicker bread for this sandwich, so you can pile on the ingredients. A wheat ciabatta bread is pictured here, but you could use a hoagie roll, english muffin or thick sliced french bread.
Servings: 3-4
Ingredients:
2 (5 ounce) cans Tuna, drained and flaked
2 T. mayonaise
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 C. crushed pineapple
1/2 t. salt
1/4 tsp. lemon pepper seasoning
1/2 C. shredded cheddar cheese
Your favorite bread
1 T. butter
Directions:
1. Combine tuna, mayonaise, celery, green onion, pineapple, salt, and lemon pepper in a bowl.
2. Spread tuna mix over bread slice and sprinkle with cheese. Spread a small amount of butter on the top slice of bread.
3. Broil 6 in. from heat for 2 minutes or until cheese is melted and top slice of bread is toasted. Serve immediately.
Source: my variation of an allrecipes.com recipe