BARBECUE PORK SANDWICH

Today a wonderful sandwich. We can use loin or tenderloin pork. Pork and barbecue sauce. The perfect combination. Let’s cook.

Ingredients:

1 pound pork loin or pork sirloin

Some salt and freshly ground black pepper

Some extra virgin olive oil

Some barbecue sauce

First, you will have to prepare the meat. Put some salt and pepper to it and if the meat is too big, you can cut it in two pieces. This time, I cooked the meat in a pressure cooker. But first put a couple of teaspoons of olive oil in the cooker and heat it. Put the pork inside and sear the meat for about 5 minutes. Then cover the meat with water and close the pressure cooker. Follow the instructions of your pressure cooker. What I do is setting the fire to high first and when the cooker starts to release steam, I set it to low and then I start counting the time. In this case, we should have the meat in the cooker for about half an hour, counting from the moment it starts to release steam. After that, turn the cooker off and let it cool before you open it.

Next, when it is safe to handle the pork, shred it finely. Once it is shredded, put the meat in a not too hot pan and add the barbecue sauce little by little. The fire must be low. Keep on stirring so that all the meat gets the sauce and add more sauce if necessary till you get the results you want. You do not want to add too much sauce, believe me. If you think that it is too dry, you can add a bit of the liquid from the pressure cooker. Have the meal in the pan for about five minutes.

You only have to make the sandwiches with your favourite bread. You will really love this sandwich. You can cook the pork in a slow cooker too. The results are amazing. Enjoy!

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BAGUETTES

Bread!!! I love bread. And I love Baguettes. I grew up with this kind of bread and that cannot be easily forgotten. Let’s make bread!

Ingredients:

1 cup and 1 tablespoon water

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon sugar

½ teaspoon salt

3 cups bread flour

2 ¼ teaspoons yeast

I normally use my bread machine to make the dough for my baguettes. You can make it by hand too. Or even a stand mixer or a good food processor that can make dough bread.

I used the bread machine and I put the ingredients in this order: water, oil, sugar, salt, flour and yeast. I selected the program just to knead the dough and turn the bread machine on. The machine will do its job and then it will let the dough grow.

If you want to make your dough by hand, you can do it placing the flour on a table making a well with the water inside. Add the rest of the ingredients and make the dough. And then you will have to knead the dough properly. Knead and knead till the dough is elastic. Let it rise in a bowl covered by a wet cloth.

It is important to let the dough rest and rise. To make good bread you cannot do it in a fast way. Good bread takes its time. Let it rest for an hour or so.

Now shape your Baguettes and let them rest for an extra 30 minutes on the oven tray.

A word about humidity. I like crusty baguettes. And to get that you need to have humidity in the oven. This is sometimes difficult to get. The problem is that if you do not have an oven that can provide the necessary humidity, you will have to take care of it. What I do is opening the oven two or three times and spraying the baguettes with some water. By doing this you give humditiy but you also lower the temperature in the oven while opening the oven door. You have to be quick so that the temperature does not get too low.

Let’s come back to our baguettes. Once they have rested, we will start baking them. Make some cuts in the baguettes. Put the baguettes on an oven tray. This tray must be lightly greased. The oven must be preheated to 450ºF. Put another tray with water at the bottom of the oven. Try not to open too much the door of the oven when you spray some water on the baguettes. And be quick doing it. Losing temperature is not good. The time of the baguettes on the oven will depend on the times you open the door and on the water you spray. Minimum 30 minutes. Make sure the bread is well baked.

And then you will have your homemade Baguettes. Crusty Baguettes!

Enjoy!

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FALAFEL

One of my favourite foods. Falafel. A wonderful dish with chickpeas and sometimes with fava beans too. You can find it in many countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea. They know how to eat over there. Let’s make Falafel.

Ingredients:

A 15 oz chickpeas can

A 15 oz fava beans can

½ chopped onion

2 cloves of garlic

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 tablespoon parsley, fresh if it is possible

Some flour, 2 or 3 tablespoons

Salt to taste

Some freshly ground black pepper

Some vegetable oil

Pita bread

Pickles

Sliced tomato

Tzatziki sauce

First we will have to make the paste for the Falafel. We will use chickpeas and fava beans. Open the cans and wash the chickpeas and beans a bit. Chop the onion and the garlic. Blend the cumin and coriander seeds in a mortar. Put the chickpeas, the fava beans, the garlic, the onion, the parsley, the cumin and coriander in a blender and start blending. You have to get a paste. If the mixture is not thick enough, you can add more flour.

Then we will have to make the balls with the paste. It is helpful to make them with the help of a tablespoon.

The next step is frying our falafel. Heat some oil in a frying pan. When it is hot, fry the falafel in batches. Fry them on both sides. Once they are done, leave them on kitchen paper towel or on a metal rack to get rid of extra oil.

Then we will only have to prepare our pitas. Heat them for a couple of minutes in an oven. And after that, just put some pieces of falafel inside along with the sauce, tomato and pickle. You can add some lettuce if you want. In fact, you can add other favourite vegetables. Delicious. Enjoy!

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BEEF AND PROVOLONE SANDWICH

Today we will prepare a delicious sandwich. A Beef and Provolone Sandwich. Perfect for lunch. But very good for dinner too. Let’s start.

Ingredients:

2 pounds Angus beef chuck

2 cloves of garlic

Salt to taste

Some freshly ground black pepper

Sliced tomato

Some sliced onions

Some pickles

Some sliced Provolone cheese

Your favourite bread

Your favourite sauce, optional

First slice the garlic. Then we will prepare the meat buy making some cuts in the Angus beef chuck. Do not make them too deep. Now put the slices of garlic in the cuts of the meat. Put the meat in a pressure cooker and add some salt and pepper to the meat. Cover the meat with water and cook the meat in the pressure cooker for about 30 minutes, starting counting when the pressure cooker begins to steam. Let it cook and when you open the cooker, if you see that the meat needs more cooking, you can do it with the cooker open. You can remove the garlic if you do not want it.

Carve the beef, as finely as you can.

Once you have the beef cooked and carved, you will only have to prepare the sandwich. Take your favourite bread and put pieces of beef inside. Then add tomato, pickle, onion and cheese. You can take the sandwiches and put them in the oven for a couple of minutes. This will melt the cheese.

And then you will have your sandwiches ready. You can add some sauce if you want. I do not think it is necessary though. But make it your way. Get a beer. Or two.

Enjoy!

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BEEF SANDWICH

A sandwich for today. Meaty. Easy, delicious and rewarding. Let’s go to the kitchen.

Ingredients:

1 thin beef steak
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Some water
2 tablespoons chopped onion
Some salt to taste
Some freshly ground pepper to taste
1 slice of favourite cheese
Some roasted red pepper
Your favourite bread
Some sauce to taste (tartar sauce, horseradish sauce, mayo… you choose)

First we will start preparing the meat. Cut the steak in little pieces and put it in an oven tray with the vegetable oil. Put that in a preheated oven to 400ºF. Twenty minutes later add the onion and some water. We add some water, a tablespoon, so that the meat does not get too dry. Cook it for ten more minutes. Remove from the oven.
Now we will prepare our sandwich. Prepare your favourite brand and put a slice of cheese. Put it in the still hot oven for one or two minutes. Remove it from the oven and then fill the sandwich with the pieces of steak and the onion. You can also add some roasted red pepper. I love it. Add some salt and pepper. And top it with your favourite sauce.
Ready to serve. Enjoy!

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PAN CON TOMATE

A delicious recipe from my country. A Mediterranean pleasure. Bread, olive oil, tomato and garlic. Simple but delicious. A wonderful side and a brilliant way of preparing bread for a sandwich. This means that you can eat it just like that or using the preparation of Pan con Tomate to make your favourite sandwich. Let’s start.

Ingredients:

Your favourite bread, baguettes, ciabatta… But do not use just regular white bread.
Ripe tomatoes
Some cloves of garlic
Some extra virgin olive oil
Some salt to taste

Not much, is it? It is enough, believe me. Just that. Do not add anything else.
We just have to cut the bread. Do it in the way you prefer. Bear in mind that we will have to rub the tomato on the bread.
Once you have the bread ready, cut some tomatoes in half and rub them on the bread. You will do the same with the cloves of garlic. Cut them in half and rub them on your pieces of bread. Chop more garlic and add the little pieces of garlic to the bread.
And finally, add some extra virgin olive oil to the bread. Add some salt to taste and enjoy this wonderful Spanish delicacy.

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MUFFALETTA

Muffaletta, or whatever you want to spell it, as you will find it spelt in many different ways, is a wonderful sandwich. Typical of New Orleans, one of my favourite cities. I still remember my first Muffaletta. I ate it there, in New Orleans, at Central Grocery, the place that is supposed to have made the first Muffaletta. I love New Orleans and its food.

Ingredients:

Muffaletta bread
¼ cup black olives, chopped
¼ cup green olives, chopped
¼ cup roasted chopped red pepper
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1 tablespoon capers, chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon basil
Some freshly ground black pepper
2 slices serrano ham or prosciutto
6 slices salami
2 slices deli chicken breast (or turkey)
2 slices deli ham
Some slices of tomato
Some slices of onion
2 slices or cheddar cheese
Some grated provolone cheese
Some grated mozzarella cheese
Some mayonnaise sauce
Some mustard

These are the ingredients I used this time. Of course, you can put the ones you like. You can use your favourite deli products.
To make my Muffaletta I will start making my olive salad mix. I use a chopper in which I will put the olives, the red pepper, the garlic and the capers. I do not like to chop them too much but, of course, you can do it the way you like. Once this is chopped, I add the olive oil, the vinegar, the lemon juice, the oregano, the thyme, the basil and the black pepper. I do not add salt because the olives and ham and deli products are already salted, but, you know, it is up to you if you want to add some salt. You can also add some chopped anchovies, pepperoncini, etc.
Now, we only have to make our sandwich. We will open our Muffaletta Bread and spread some of the olive mix that we have prepared before. And then we will add the slices of ham, salami and deli meats. Then we will add the tomato, the onion, all the cheese, the mayonnaise sauce and the mustard.
And now, well, I do not have to tell you what is next. Enjoy your Muffaletta!

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