Steak Sandwich Lament

Loaded steak sandwich

Sandwiches may be my real passion. An artful stack of textures and flavors in a portable package. Filling and satisfying bites of everything youre craving all at once. Plus they are terrific for sharing. Do I need to sell you on the form and function of a sandwich? Nope, but its always nice to dream about the perfect sandwich. Choosing high quality ingredients, and dressing them up a bit make for a superior experience. Also taking some time to consider how to cut and layer your sandwich will allow everyone to take a big bite without the sammy guts dropping out.

Blue Cheese and Steak Sandwich

1/2 lb skirt or hanger steak (the fresher the better)
1 tblsp molasses
1 tblsp soy sauce
1 splash hot sauce
1 tblsp oil
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tblsp crumbled blue cheese
1/2 tsp fresh cracked pepper
1 12-14 inch ciabatta loaf, split
6 oz roasted red peppers, sliced into strips
fennel fronds, optional
olive oil

Marinate the steak for 1-4 hours in molasses, soy sauce, pepper, hot sauce, and oil. Meanwhile mix blue cheese and buttermilk together to make the dressing. Remove the steak from the marinaded. Squeeze off excess marinade, and pat with paper towels. Turn the heat up to high/medium-high under a hot grill pan until it begins to smoke. Add steak and cook for 2-3 minutes per side until medium rare. Remove and let rest for 10 minutes. Slice the steak in thin layers.

Roasted red peppers, buttermilk blue cheese dressing and steak, slap it on some bread

When its almost sandwich time slice your ciabatta bread in half length wise. Drizzle a little olive on in each side, and rub to spread evenly. Next spoon some of the blue cheese dressing on the bottom half. Place the sliced roasted red peppers in a row over the bottom. Its nice to layer the slices parallel to the length of the bread. When you cut, and later bite into it the skinny slices are less likely to fall out. Next layer the steak slices, also parallel to the length of the bread. Sprinkle with fennel fronds, or whatever green you have laying around like lettuce, basil, arugula etc. Adding something green shows that you are trying to be healthy, and adds a nice contrast to the other ingredients. Drizzle remaining dressing on top of the sandwich pile and cover it up with the top half of bread.

I wrapped mine in wax paper and chilled it for a half an hour so the flavors could get to know each other. Cut into 2-inch slices, serves 6.

Garlic Goodies

I love roasted garlic. Sweeter, smooth, spreadable easier-going version of garlic. The acme of savory garlic flavor without bite. Set garlic on foil square, drench in oil, wrap foil into a present and bake. Thats what I did for years until I finally realized that I could be making a second product at the same time. Garlic perfumed oil isnt just a by product of roasted garlic, its an equal garlic treat to dab on vegetables, use to dunk bread, blend into sauces, dips, sprinkle on fried food, pizzas, salads and everywhere else you use plain oil.

Roasted Garlic and Oil

3 cups vegetable oil

2 heads of garlic

cracked pepper

a few fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, mint, sage etc)

red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Remove the excess loose papery skin around the garlic. Its fine to leave most of the skin, but you dont want the excess floating around in the oil you plan to eat. Cut the top of the garlic heads, and place in a oven-proof pot with oil and seasonings. Cover and cook for 45-60 minutes. Flip garlic heads half way. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Squeeze roasted garlic out of the heads and use on any and everything. Pour oil into a glass jar with a lid or carafe. Should be good for 1-2 weeks.

Bread and Burritos in Springy San Francisco

San Franciscos best Tartine bread basking in 4:59 pm light

I havent been updating Cantaloupe Alone much, but I have not stopped eating. I know some people love to blog, twitter, and post while on vacation, but Im in my element away from electronic devices. Today is my first day back from a quick 2 day trip to San Francisco visiting good friend and food lover / artist extrodianare Ava.

First stop: Tartine. Hands down the trip could have ended after a morning of sampling 1 gougère (light and cheesy), 1 scone (just nice), 1 almond croissant (monstrous and delicious), and 1 morning bun (the classic). The morning bun was so much more sophisticated then I imagined. Flaky croissant dough with crispy caramelized top with crusty and sweet bottom, hints of orange, rich but not overpoweringly decadent. Worth waiting in line for. Perfect with their bottomless coffee. I didnt remember my camera!

Tartine bread several minutes old

The next afternoon we happened to be biking home from nearby Dolores Park at approximately 4:50 pm. Several minutes before their famed bread comes out of the oven. In perfect time we snagged a loaf with zero wait. Fortuitously Josey Baker Bread happened to bike by for a with a 3 gallon drum of flour under arm. A real San Fran moment in gluten history. I found the bread incredibly flavorful with a great sour dough tang. Our bread was still steaming inside. We were perhaps a few minutes too early cutting the loaf in half before the hot moisture finished absorbing into the thick loaf, as explained by Mr. Baker Bread. Later on when the bread was cool I found the texture silky and soft with a big chew. Easily one of the best bread experiences ever.

Ceviche from El Farralito

You cant visit San Francisco without eating Mexican food in the Mission. I had a veg bean burrito with drips and drops of all the different salsas from El Farralito. Avas ceviche was the winning item at lunch. California has some choice produce and seafood that make every flavor bigger and fresher.

El Farralito burrito

Other food moments of note included sushi from Japantowns grocery store, Italian food in North Beach, Its It ice cream sandwich, ice cream, ice cream, more ice cream, and homemade spaghetti, and numerous sweet California oranges. Ill have San Francisco on the brain for a while. Its a great city to get to know. I was lucky to see so much in a short time with the help of two bikes and a fun friend.

Three Pizzas

Potato, bacon, cheddar, roasted garlic and sage better than a baked potato pizza

Yams, onions, potatoes, winter squash, kale, chard, beets, and mushrooms are all excellent winter veggies. Its even possible to get some of these winter garden foods at the farmers markets around New York City. I know, because Ive been eating them all winter. I needed a break from winter and with my favorite mid-winter holiday upon us, the Super Bowl, I decided I would make pizzas. Even if the fresh stuff isnt around cheese, olives, artichokes, garlic, meat, canned tomato sauce are all excellent toppings which can be locally sourced. Baking pizza in a hot oven is appealing in winter, and gruesome in the summer.

I used the crust recipe from Serious Eats because they suggest techniques Ive tried, but in different proportions. I think the Serious Eats is a keeper. Mine has too much yeast, and theirs has more flavor with sugar and salt. The recipe makes 3 medium pizzas that would happily feed 2-3 people each. Dress them up how you like. My potato, bacon, cheddar, roasted garlic and sage pizza (pictured up top) KILLED!

Potato, Bacon, Cheddar, Roasted Garlic and Sage Pizza
1/3 recipe pizza crust here
1 head roasted garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
6-8 torn sage leaves, divided
salt and pepper
4 pieces of bacon
4 small russet potatoes
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon white wine
1 tsp cornmeal
6 oz sharp white cheddar, sliced thin or grated

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cut the top of the garlic head and place in a small oven proof bowl or ramekin. Cover with oil, add salt and pepper and a few pieces of sage leaf. Cover with foil and let roast for 60-90 minutes. Flip garlic head over half-way. Cook until garlic cloves are soft. Remove from oven and let cool. Can be made up to 4 days in advance.

Meanwhile cook bacon in a skillet until browned. Do not cook until crispy. The bacon will crisp up in the oven. Reserve 1 tblsp bacon fat.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Slice potatoes 1 cm thick by hand or on a mandolin. Place in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover with water and wine plus reserved bacon fat. Bake in oven for 20-30 minutes until soft and golden brown.

Assemble your pizza. Crank the oven to 450 degrees. Pull your dough out to a 12x9 inch rectangle or whatever shape you can manage. I find that after you pull the dough it snaps back. If you let it rest for 30 seconds it will stretch a bit farther then the previous. Be patient when working the dough. Place dough onto a baking sheet which has been sprinkled with cornmeal.

Squeeze the cloves out of the roasted garlic head. Gently rub onto dough with some of the garlic oil. Cover with a layer of cheddar, followed by potatoes. Sprinkle sage and bacon on top. Follow with a drizzle of garlic oil. Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the bottom of the crust is brown. Remove and cool. Cut up and serve warm. Salad, wine, beer, hockey, football, music all go great with pizza.



Olive and Artichoke Heart Pizza
1/3 recipe pizza crust here
1 tsp cornmeal
1/2 cup tomato jarred sauce
6 oz fontina cheese, sliced or grated fine
15 kalamata olives, pitted
10 preserved artichoke hearts
(canned, jarred are fine, but also look for them at your deli near the olives so you dont have to buy more than you need)
olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Shape dough into a 12-14 inch circle, as above. Place on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Spoon an even layer of tomato sauce over the crust. Cover with a layer of cheese. Top with olives and artichokes. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 20-25 minutes until bottom is browned. Serve warm. This one pairs with white wine.



Turkey Meatball Pizza
1 small onion finely chopped
1 tblsp olive oil
1/2 bunch parsley finely chopped
1 tsp milk
1/3 cup bread crumbs
pinch of red pepper
1/4 tsp allspice
1 egg
1/2 lb ground turkey

1/3 recipe pizza crust here
1 tsp corn meal
1/2 cup tomato jarred sauce
6 oz fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced into rounds
2-3 torn sage leaves
1 tblsp grated Parmesan cheese

Make meatballs first. Preheat oven to 35o degrees. Saute onion and olive oil in a pan over medium heat until translucent. Turn off heat and stir in parsley, bread crumbs, milk, and seasonings until clumpy. Let cool 10 minutes and mix in turkey and egg until evenly combine. Shape into 1/4 - 1/2 inch clumps on a baking sheet leaving an inch in between. Bake for 15 minutes until cooked through and browned. Can be made 3 days in advance.

Assemble the pizza. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Shape dough into a 12-14 inch circle, as above. Place on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Spoon an even layer of tomato sauce over the crust. Cover with mozzarella rounds. No need to overlap, they will spread when cooked. Top with meatballs. Sprinkle with sage and Parmesan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until bottom is browned. Serve warm.