Sandwiches needn't be boring (Sandwich)

Member Name: GentleGenius

Product:	Sandwich
Date:	06/11/08 (189 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: They might seem oddball, but they are all delicious - some are even nutritious!

Disadvantages: None

If anyone out there doesn't already think I'm strange, then chances are good that you might do after reading my favourite sandwich fillings.

I love my sandwiches.....they can be either evil or nutritious, or a combination of both - all down to how you choose to make them - and they are a perfect form of food for someone (like me) who hates cooking, has limited spare time, and even more importantly, hates washing up.

As to whether I prefer to make my sandwiches with wholemeal/wholegrain or white bread, entirely depends on the filling as I find some sandwiches are better made with one type of bread, and other sandwiches better with another.

Some of these sandwich fillings (and I list 20 of my favourites in no particular order of preference) are self-created and others have been recommended to me by all sorts of different people.

So.....here goes - GentleGenius' all-time personal top 20 sandwiches!

1. TOASTED BACON, CHEESE AND LETTUCE SANDWICH
Take 2 slices of buttered or margarined white bread. Chop up 2 or 3 rashers of well-grilled bacon - remove the fat before grilling. Mix the chopped bacon with a little soft creamy cheese. Line one slice of bread with a couple of lettuce leaves (I like Webs lettuce), then pile the bacon & cheese mixture on top, spreading it around a bit. Sprinkle ground paprika generously over the bacon/cheese mixture, then place a couple more lettuce leaves on top of that. Top with the other slice of bread.....cut in half, and eat!

2. PRAWN MEDLEY SANDWICH
Take 2 slices of wholegrain bread, and spread each slice quite thickly with crunchy peanut butter. Line one slice with a couple of lettuce leaves, then a few sprigs of watercress. Sprinkle with finely sliced raw mushroom and a few raisins - then add a generous serving of large prawns. Place a little more watercress on top of the prawns, then another couple of lettuce leaves and finish with the 2nd slice of bread....of course, eat! This sandwich gets rather full, so may need to be eaten with a knife & fork.

3. XMAS TURKEY USE-UP SANDWICH
Take 2 buttered or margarined slices of bread....any kind is good for this sandwich. Line one slice of bread generously with lettuce leaves, then add a generous amount of thinly sliced turkey breast. Add a couple of thin slices of sage, onion & sausagemeat stuffing, then drop little dollops of cranberry sauce over the turkey and stuffing. Sprinkle generously with freshly ground black pepper, cover with a couple more lettuce leaves....top with the 2nd slice of bread, and hey presto, ready to devour!

4. FISH FINGER SANDWICH
Goes much better with white bread.....so, take 2 margarined/buttered slices of. Grill or fry (if frying, drain really thoroughly) 4 fish fingers. Place the cooked fish fingers on one slice of bread, and sprinkle with vinegar or lemon juice. Slap the other slice of bread on top and gorge .... you will probably want more than one of these, so double up on the above quantities of everything.

5. CHEDDAR, CRISP AND ONION
Better with wholemeal bread, 2 slices, buttered/margarined. Slice some eye-wateringly strong cheddar quite thinly, and lay on one slice of bread. Cut a few rings from a Spanish onion and place onto the cheese. Add about 10 potato crisps - whatever flavour you like, but I prefer plain ones - then cover with the 2nd slice of bread. Press the sandwich down slightly so that the crisps just break a little.....then....of course, scoff!

6. CHEESE, GRAPE & MARMITE
Better with wholemeal brad, so do the usual with 2 slices and a bit of butter or margarine. Then, add a very thin spreading of marmite on each bread slice. Cover one piece of bread (on top of the marmite) with thinly sliced crumbly white cheese (such as Wensleydale), then place about 6 to 8 de-stalked, halved, seedless sweet white grapes evenly over the cheese. Place the other piece of bread on top, then enjoy this rather amazing sandwich.

7. TONGUE WITH REDCURRANT JELLY & LETTUCE
Goes better with wholemeal bread, so butter/margarine 2 slices. Line one slice of bread with a couple of lettuce leaves, then add about 3 very thin slices of tongue. Spread with redcurrant jelly, add another couple of lettuce leaves......sprinkle generously with freshly ground pepper, then bung the other slice of bread on top.....this sandwich is better when you press it down firmly before eating (for some strange reason!).

8. MOCK HOT-DOG
Better with white bread, so butter/margarine 2 slices. Open a tin of hot dog sausages, drain well, then swill with lots of cold water to remove the excess salt. Slice or chop up a little onion...I prefer stronger-tasting onion for this. Heat the sausages gently in a little water in a pan....when hot through, pat lightly with a clean tea towel or kitchen roll to soak up excess water. Place lengthways onto one slice of bread, and cover with the onion. Add ketchup, brown sauce or mustard (or all three if you wish!) to taste, cover with the 2nd slice of bread, and enjoy something that isn't quite a hot dog, but can satisfy the craving spot for one by more than 99%.

9. LAMB & MINTY YOGHURT
Works best with wholemeal or wholegrain bread - 2 slices - but don't butter or margarine them. Mix about 2 tablespoons plain yoghurt with 1 teaspoon mint jelly, and spread evenly over the 2 slices of bread. Place a couple of lettuce leaves over one piece of bread, then add thin slices of cold roast lamb (much nicer if all the fat is cut off first) - lay another couple of lettuce leaves over the lamb, then press the 2nd slice of bread on top - press down firmly, and eat. This is lovely eaten with a couple of cherry tomatoes on the side, that have been dipped in mango chutney.

10. VEGETARIAN YUM-YUM
Wholemeal/wholegrain bread for this is an absolute must, and is even better when thickly sliced. Spread each slice generously with crunchy peanut butter. Grate half a medium-sized carrot and mix with a handful of fresh (don't use tinned ones as they are unsuitable for this sandwich) beansprouts, about a tablespoon of raisins, and half a carton of mustard & cress. Pile high on one slice of bread, and press the 2nd slice down firmly onto the mixture. This is YUM, even if you have an aversion to veggie food.

11. PRETEND PIZZA
Goes better with white bread, thickly sliced, and unbuttered/unmargarined. This is a toasted sandwich, and is not really like pizza.....but let's pretend. Toast each slice of bread on one side only. Spread the untoasted side of each of the bread slices with a generous smear of tomato puree, then sprinkle with just a little dried basil - a flat teaspoonful should be enough for both pieces of bread. Very finely chop one small garlic clove and mix with about 2oz grated cheese of your choice (hard cheese of course). Sprinkle the cheese/garlic mix over the tomato puree/basil mix, then finely chop one slice of ham and a couple of cubes of drained canned pineapple - distribute the pineapple and ham evenly over the cheese/garlic on each slice of bread. Slice up (very thinly) 2 cherry tomatoes (one for each slice of bread), and arrange on top of the pineapple and ham. Place under a hot grill and cook until the whole thing is sizzling and starting to brown. After that, you just have to eat....it's best eaten as hot as possible for full effect.

12. SURPRISING SALMON
Better with 2 sliced of buttered/margarined wholemeal or wholegrain bread. Drain a small tin of pink salmon....take the skin & bones off if you wish, but I prefer them left in. Mash very finely with 1 fairly thick slice of lean corned beef. The corned beef doesn't alter the taste of the salmon, and if you're poor like me, it can make pink salmon seem like red. Line one slice of bread with a couple of lettuce leaves, spread the salmon mixture over the top, then cover with a few thin slices of cucumber. Add a couple more lettuce leaves, then sandwich together with the other slice of bread....then fool yourself that you're eating red salmon.

13. OMELETTE DELUXE
This can be done with any kind of bread, 2 slices of which have been buttered/margarined. Beat one egg in a teacup with a little finely chopped onion, about a flat tablespoonful of thawed frozen peas and one roughly chopped cherry tomato. Melt a tiny knob of butter in a small non-stick omelette or frying pan, and add the egg mixture. Fry for about 3 minutes, then turn over with a fish slice, and fry for another 3 or so minutes. When cooked, slide the omelette onto one piece of bread - smear with a little tomato ketchup or brown sauce if wished - then cover with the other slice of bread, and gorge yourself. Easier to eat with a knife & fork.

14. POLITICALLY VERY INCORRECT, BORDERING ON THE NUTRITIONALLY EVIL SANDWICH
This time take 4 slices of bread - preferably white. Butter/margarine 2 of the slices...lay on a plate until needed. Rub a crushed garlic clove around a frying pan, and melt a little knob of butter in it - heat until the foam subsides. Fry the other 2 bread pieces over a high heat in the garlicky butter until very crispy on all sides. Remove from the frying pan and keep warm in a pre-heated hot oven. In the remaining garlic/butter mix in the pan, fry one egg, however you like yours done. Lay one slice of the fried bread on top of one of the buttered/margarined slices....top with the egg, then place the other fried bread slice on the egg...cover with the other buttered/margarined slice. This probably will give you indigestion, but it's worth it.

15. POSH HAM WITH YOGHURT
This tastes best when made with a baguette or french bread. Halve your baguette or piece of french bread, and spread each half generously with plain yoghurt. Cover each piece generously with shredded iceberg lettuce (I find iceberg nicer for this particular sandwich as the flavour is milder). Slice or buy some very good quality ham, cut straight from the bone, from a delicatessen or the deli counter at your local supermarket - ask for it to be sliced quite thickly.....then sandwich between the two slices of "yoghurted" and "lettuced" baguette or french bread. One thing which can enhance it even more, is to drizzle the surface of the ham very finely with a tiny bit of runny honey before sandwiching together. This sounds boring - with or without the honey - but it's delicious!

***WARNING: Those of you who are neurotic about what we should and shouldn't eat, may have a complete emotional breakdown over this next sandwich recipe - so if you are of that disposition, read at your own risk***

16. FRIED CHEESE SANDWICH (This is even more nutritionally evil than no.14 above, and is a hangback from my early childhood...we ate these all the time)
This absolutely must be done with the cheapest, nastiest, most highly-processed sliced white bread you can lay your hands on....take 2 slices of it and butter thickly. Place thick slices of strong, mature cheddar cheese in between the two bread slices and press down very, very firmly - especially around the edges. Heat a lump of lard - yes it's much better done with lard than oil - in a frying pan until it's almost, but not quite smoking. Carefully drop the made up cheese sandwich into the hot lard and fry for about 2 minutes on each side. Drain well and eat - it goes great with a glass of cold milk!

17. CHEESE, CHERRY & WALNUT
This is better on wholemeal/wholegrain bread - so, butter/margarine 2 slices. Take some fairly thick slices of either Jarlsberg or Emmenthal cheese and lay on one slice of the bread. De-stalk, stone and halve a few cherries - about six, to make 12 halves - and arrange over the cheese slices. Sprinkle chopped walnuts over the whole lot, and cover with the 2nd slice of bread. This works even better if you are lucky enough to find some of those old-fashioned little red cherries rather than the enormous (and in my opinion tasteless) big dark-coloured cherries that seem to be all the rage now. Avoid trying to make it with glace cherries though, as the end result will taste disgusting.

18. BEEFY TOMATO WITH MUSTARD PICKLE & HARD-BOILED EGG
Best with wholemeal/wholegrain bread - butter/margarine 2 slices. Spread (over the butter) each piece of bread with a thin smear of Bovril. In a bowl, mix one medium-sized finely chopped tomato with one mashed hard-boiled egg (de-shelled, of course!) and a couple of teaspoons of sauce taken from a jar of mustard pickle. Spread this mixture over the Bovril on one slice of bread, then press the other slice firmly on top. This is an unusual mix of flavours that may not appeal to all, but I love it.

19. HONEYED PEACH & NUTTY GREEN LEAF SALAD
Works best with wholemeal/wholegrain bread, or french bread or a baguette - if using french bread or baguette, split in half first. Butter/margarine each slice or piece of bread - quite generously. Make up a mixture of roughly shredded green salad leaves, or use a handful from a supermarket ready-made bag of leaves. Suggestions: Watercress, spinach, different sorts of lettuce, Chinese cabbage, mustard & cress, rocket...whatever you choose really. Place this leaf mixture on one slice of bread. Take one small fresh peach, de-stone it and cut into thin slices. Drizzle just a tiny bit of runny honey onto the peach slices, and place on the leaf mixture. Sprinkle a few finely chopped nuts of your choice (I like this done best with Brazils) over the peaches, add another layer of salad leaves, then lop the 2nd slice of bread on top. Probably is easier to eat with a knife & fork.

20. TRADITIONAL CHEESECAKE SANDWICH WITH WATERCRESS
Only works with wholegrain bread - butter/margarine 2 slices. Take a small amount of soft cream cheese (about the amount you'd normally spread onto one slice of bread) and beat in a bowl with 3 or 4 small drops of Jiffy lemon juice, and a flat tablespoon of sultanas. Spread over one slice of bread, and top with a few watercress leaves - dump the other slice of bread on top, and feel the taste explosion!

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Though the above aren't in any order of preference, I saved my own personal favourite until last - I could live on no.20 quite happily.

You will notice that none of the above sandwiches contain any kind of salad dressings/mayonnaise etc....this has been done deliberately, as I have a deep aversion to them, particularly mayo.

If you are brave enough to try any of the above, I hope and trust you will enjoy.....and go on, I dare you to try no.16!!!! Honestly, just one in your life won't kill you or fur up your arteries to crisis point.

Thanks for reading, and I hope I don't poison anyone!

Summary: Unusual but decidedly delicious