Category Archives: Smears

Lazy Smoked Mackerel & Salmon With Avocado Sandwich

This is what we call a ‘lazy’ sandwich. After a long day at work, we were too tired to cut the bread, so two sandwiches became one. On the left some smoked mackerel imported from Denmark. Danes are very good at smoking fish, and have quite a reputation for smoked herring, smoked cod roe and smoked mackerel. On the right, a simple smoked salmon with avocado sandwich. Quick dinner, simple to make, and very good. The bread is a pane siciliano that we made over the weekend, and which turned out unexpectedly flat (although well tasting). Perhaps not our most exciting sandwich, but still… good.

Smoked Mackerel / Salmon With Avocado Sandwich
Smoked Mackerel / Salmon With Avocado Sandwich

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Swiss Chard Roll With Salmon

I fell in love with Swiss chard at first sight.  I first spied this vegetable at the local farmers market while I lived in Illinois. And there is a specificity to my infatuation – they must be of the rainbow variety. Large shiny radiant green leaves  pillared by a red stalk and multiple veins throughout. What’s not to love?  Two years ago, I took my infatuation to the next level and started a garden flirtation with this nutrient-dense veggie. I dedicated a 4 by 1 ft section of our tomato garden to their cultivation. Unfortunately, I waited too long to harvest and by then they had an earthy flavor that was most disappointing. Still, I just loved the way they looked in the garden and so allowed them to grow to near Jurassic proportions.  Last year, in my second attempt, our nutrient depleted soil resulted in a single plant which I was loathe to cut. Enter this year and Anders’ threat that if we are giving up much-prized tomato real estate for this vegetable, then we had better have something to taste for it.  Thus warned, I embarked on a mission of soil amendment research and implementation that an agronomist would approve of.

Swiss Chard Roll
Swiss Chard Roll

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Pizza: Prosciutto, Sauteed Garlic Mushrooms, Mascarpone/Pesto Cheese, Roasted Garlic, Goat Cheese

A great tasting pizza for every occasion. This is fairly simple to make except for the dough, but places like Trader Joe’s now sell pizza dough which should make this super easy. We made this pizza as part of a giant birthday party involving 8 other pizzas which you can find elsewhere on amazing sandwiches.

Pizza: Prosciutto, Sauteed Garlic Mushrooms, Rembrandt Gouda Cheese, Mascarpone/Pesto Cheese, Roasted Garlic, Goat Cheese
Pizza: Prosciutto, Sauteed Garlic Mushrooms, Rembrandt Gouda Cheese, Mascarpone/Pesto Cheese, Roasted Garlic, Goat Cheese

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Sandwich Roll With Jalapeno Chorizo, Corned Beef, Liver Pate and Chervil

Sometimes little things can really show the differences in culture. I was visiting Denmark recently, buying the roll below at the local baker. As I was about to leave the bakery, I saw a woman coming to the door through the glass window. I opened the door to hold it for her, but instead of coming inside, she looked at me and stepped aside to let me out. In Denmark, chivalry is dead if it ever existed, and this woman realized that I got to the door first, and so I should use it first. She did not for one second consider I was holding the door for her. Being Danish, and hungry, I left the baker letting the door fall shut behind me. Perhaps this is the price of equality between the sexes, 50 years of hard struggle in Denmark. No man should hold the door for a woman, because “Don’t they think we can do it ourselves?” Danish women often think that men being chivalrous are a sign from the men that they feel superior. I guess you can argue both ways, but a glimpse into my old culture that could perhaps use an upgrade. My sister loves it when I hold the doors, so there is still hope.

Sandwich Roll With Jalapeno Chorizo, Saltkød, Liver Pate and Chervil
Sandwich Roll With Jalapeno Chorizo, Corned Beef, Liver Pate and Chervil

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Chicken Salad Sandwich With Capers and Parmesan

As our kitchen renovation draws nearer to its conclusion, and after having lived for weeks now with a dusty house, no kitchen, a fridge in the garage, and the top of our washing machine as our kitchen counter, we remember this sandwich from our ‘old kitchen’ days. This is made from a great chicken Wendie made which we turned into ‘chicken salad #2‘ and added to a fresh slice of roasted garlic bread with capers and Parmesan on top. We also torched the Parmesan a little to give it a golden look, and to achieve the oddly comforting feeling of warmth near the top of the sandwich. Saturday we are getting married, so the frequency of posts have significantly eased of as our backyard weddings draws nearer. We will post lots of sandwiches after the wedding 🙂

Chicken Salad Sandwich With Capers and Parmesan
Chicken Salad Sandwich With Capers and Parmesan
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Ham And Prosciutto Sandwich With Goat Cheese, Roasted Garlic And Blueberry Guacamole

“A Winter’s Sandwich”. Granted, in San Diego, winter is when the temperature drops to 50 degrees, and a storm is when we get 2 inches of rain and traffic slows down to 63 mph. We have it easy. This is a sandwich we made mostly from leftovers, some ham, some prosciutto, and half an avocado. We have pretty good leftovers I guess. It was an excellent afternoon in the low winter sun, with a warm sandwich and a glass of red wine in the swing. Life’s good.

Ham And Prosciutto Sandwich With Goat Cheese, Roasted Garlic And Blueberry Guacamole
Ham And Prosciutto Sandwich With Goat Cheese, Roasted Garlic And Blueberry Guacamole

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Chicken Salad Sandwich On Sourdough Bread With Anis Tomato Sauce, Fried Onions And Pepitas Seeds

Leftover chicken is fantastic. Carefully pick all the little pieces of meat off, and make yourself a nice chicken salad. It’s very easy and simple, and we quite frankly look forward to the day after the roast as much as the roast itself. We have fallen in love with pepitas seeds (aka pumpkin seeds): These seeds are fantastic on sandwiches, as they provide some ‘crunch’ and taste great on top. We find them to be very under-utilized and the next experiment will be to try them on pizzas. We already know they work wonders on Lavash crackers. Posting this recipe makes us long to have a kitchen again, as currently everything we have is torn out and dumped. Over the next four weeks, we hope our fantastic contractor will be done building it back up, with lovely Calacutta marble counter tops and custom cabinets. Ahhh dreams…

Chicken Salad Sandwich On SourDough With Anis Tomato Sauce, Fried Onions And Pepitos Seeds
Chicken Salad Sandwich On SourDough With Anis Tomato Sauce, Fried Onions And Pepitos Seeds

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Recipe: Smoked Salmon Pizza With Sautéed Garlic Mushrooms, Tomato Sauce, Jarlsberg Cheese, Fresh Basil And Avocado

Recently we discovered the joy of smoked salmon on pizzas, and decided to try another one. This is our second pizza from Wendie’s surprise birthday party (of nine total), and also a very popular one amongst our friends. It’s simple in its ingredients, with very subtle tastes. The Sautéed mushroom worked great on the pizza (We used it a few times that night), and on this the avocado brings a coolness to the hot pizza that almost melts with the salmon.

Smoked Salmon Pizza With Sautéed Garlic Mushrooms, Tomato Sauce, Avocado, Jarlsberg Cheese And Fresh Basil
Smoked Salmon Pizza With Sautéed Garlic Mushrooms, Tomato Sauce, Avocado, Jarlsberg Cheese And Fresh Basil

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Burger with Roasted Garlic Mayo and Caramelized Onions

This burger looks quite simple, but the onions make it very moist and delicious while the roasted garlic gives it a great taste. This is definitely one of our favorite burgers so far. In the next few weeks our kitchen is being renovated, and we’re not sure how we can keep up our frantic sandwich making pace. We will have access to an outdoor BBQ with a side stove, and… restaurants. Idea for BBQ sandwiches/burgers that can be easily prepared with no kitchen would be highly appreciated 🙂

Burger with Roasted Garlic Mayo and Caramelized Onions
Burger with Roasted Garlic Mayo and Caramelized Onions

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Tarragon Salad Dressing

Salad dressing, you say, how does that have anything to do with sandwiches? Well, one of our culinary experiments resulted in a delicious ham sandwich using this dressing as a spread.  Anders loves tarragon. I mean, he really loves it. In our love of gardening, we’ve made many attempts at growing this delightful herb but to no avail. As I write this, there is a plant languishing on our patio in complete defiance of all the love, attention and desperate hope that has been directed at.  But I digress. Lucky for us, we live close to a neighborhood grocery that sells fresh tarragon when in season, and when not, they sell huge bags of the dried stuff.   And when life gives you tarragon, why not make a tarragon salad dressing?

So here’s the recipe:

  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tsp whole grain mustard
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tsp dried tarragon
  • 1 tbs honey (or to taste)
  • kosher salt
  • fresh pepper

In a small bowl, combine vinegar, mustard, garlic and tarragon.  Mix well and taste. Depending on how well aged your balsamic vinegar is, you might not need the honey. The one we use is on the lower side of the price point and so does need a little help to soften the flavor.  Add honey, if needed.  Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking continuously. That’s it. We’ve make this dressing quite a lot and find that as good as it is freshly made, it tastes even better the next day after the tarragon has a better chance to infuse the dressing with its flavor. It works great as a dressing, tossed with boiled/baked new spring potatoes, grilled veggies and so many more.

But since this is a sandwich blog after all, the sandwich incarnation can be found here in this “Pepper Ham Sandwich With Tarragon Salad Dressing, Cheese, Roasted Garlic And Smoked Paprika.