Showing posts with label Sandwiches. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sandwiches. Show all posts
I am a HUGE fan of Mexican/Latin American flavours! I have never been to any of the Latin American countries myself, so my idea of Mexican food is probably a highly Anglicised version!
I do like to experiment with the flavours which is becoming a lot easier these days as more and more Latin American ingredients become available for us to use over here in the UK.
One company which really is at the forefront of this is Capsicana. I have been buying their products since I discovered them a couple of years ago now.
This recipe I am sharing today uses a pouch of their Ultimate Refried Black Beans. Spicy Refried Black Beans with Chipotle Chili, Garlic and Cumin. These are so delicious. I always have a pouch of them in my cupboard.
They are great just heated up and spooned over rice with a bit of cheese on top. I know the lazy man's supper, or you could go further and call it the Latin American's version of beans on toast!
Today I divided a pouch of them between two large flat breads and then topped them with a mix of grated cheddar and Mozzarella.
This is like a Tex Mex, Latin American Open Faced Chicken Club sandwich. Fusion cooking I guess.
The old and familiar combined with new and edgy flavours in a really delicious way!
I had some leftover cooked chicken to use up, but wanted to do something different with it, and this is the result!
I sweated some onions and peppers until soft and then added some garlic. Then I threw in the diced leftover chicken and some Tex Mex seasoning.
I used Swartz zingy Mexican Street Food seasoning. It has a nice bite. Once that was all heated through and seasoned, I divided the mixture between the two flatbreads.
Topping each with two slices of cooked streaky bacon that I had in the refrigerator leftover from our Sunday night's supper of pancakes, bacon and sliced peaches.
I really am a person that likes to use up everything rather than end up throwing stuff away! So here I have used some leftover chicken and bacon . . .
which on their own wouldn't have served many people but in this disguise end up serving four people! (Or two really hungry ones I suppose!)
The covered flat breads got popped into a moderately hot oven, just long enough to really heat everything through and melt the cheese . . .
While they were baking I whisked together some ranch dressing a a spoonful of chopped adobes in chipotle sauce to create a Chipotle Ranch Dressing . . .
The finished flat bread clubs got drizzled with this dressing . . .
And then I passed some sour cream and prepared guacamole at the table.
Delicious knife and fork sandwiches that were well received and enjoyed immensely . . . and it was just leftovers. A salad on the side goes perfectly with these for a light lunch.
Yield: 4
Mexican Chicken Club Flatbread
Quick, easy and delicious. Another store cupboard favourite and a great way to use up some leftover cooked chicken!
ingredients:
- 2 flatbread or naan
- 1 (2 serving size) pouch refried black beans
- 250g cooked chicken, diced (2 cups)
- 4 slices cooked streaky bacon
- 1 TBS oil
- 1/2 each green and red bell peppers, chopped
- 1/2 large red onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- 1/2 TBS Mexican spice (I used one from Swartz, Mexican Street blend)
- 185g grated mozzarella and cheddar blend (1 1/2 cups)
Chipotle Ranch Dressing:
- 60ml prepared ranch dressing (1/4 cup)
- 1 tsp adobe sauce
To serve:
- dairy sour cream
- prepared guacamole
instructions:
How to cook Mexican Chicken Club Flatbread
- Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Line a baking tray with some aluminium foil. Place the flat breads onto the foil. Spread each with half of the black beans and then cover with 1/2 of the cheese.
- Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the peppers and onions. Cook stirring until softened without browning. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Throw in the chicken and the Mexican seasoning. Stir to coat. Divide this mixture evenly between the two flat breads, placing it on top of the cheese. Top each with two slices of bacon.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes or so until heated through and the cheese has melted.
- While the flatbreads are baking make the chipotle ranch dressing by whisking the two ingredients together.
- Drizzle the finished flat breads with the chipotle ranch dressing to serve. Cut each in half diagonally and pass the sour cream and guacamole.
If you have never tried the Capsicana products and you are a fan of Latin American Flavours, you really should. Over here they are available at Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Ocado, Booths and Whole Foods. I think you might be able to get some of their things at Tesco also, but I'm not entirely sure about that.
I have one of these Ultimate Fajita Kits here to use as well. Latin fusion with tomato and coconut, sounds delicious don't you think? We love Fajita's!
I think I am becoming more adventurous in my old age when it comes to food. That's probably because I don't have fussy children in the house to please any more.
My husband is not a fussy eater. He doesn't really like pasta or chocolate, but he pretty much eats whatever I put in front of him.
I really enjoy the freedom I have now to explore and cook whatever I desire (within reason) and a variety of flavours and ethnic dishes, etc.
I have discovered in later years that I really enjoy Mediterranean and Middle East flavours!
I was sent some lovely Greek Flat Breads the other day and took advantage of them to make these fabulous Easy Chicken Gyros. (Yee-ros)
The Greek Flat Breads are from Deli Kitchen and they are just beautiful. Soft and flexible they are perfect for recipes such as this!
Gyros are a Greek sandwich which consists of grilled meat (chicken, lamb, beef or pork) which has been marinated in a delicious marinade prior to grilling, sliced and layered onto a flat bread along with some salad and some creamy Tzatzki sauce.
Sound yummy? They are incredibly tasty to say the least!
They are a popular sandwich found in many takeaways here in the UK. Along with a lamb/beef version.
I prefer to make them at home so that I know exactly what goes into them. (I have seen too many horror stories on the television about the cleanliness in these types of establishments!!)
They are really a very easy sandwich to make and quite quick if you do a bit of planning ahead of time.
Today I used chicken thighs which I had marinated in a fabulously tasty, garlicky, yogurty, oregano rich marinade.
You want to plan ahead a bit as you will want to marinate the chicken for a while before grilling it. Ideally about 12 hours, but certainly no less than 2 hours.
This makes it the perfect quick supper for a week night. Just pop the chicken into marinate while you are out all day at work or school or whatever and then pop it onto the grill when you get home!
Along with the grilled chicken you will need Tzatziki sauce. This is a cool cucumber/yogurt sauce.
You can use a good ready made one, but it is really quite simple to make your own, and infinitely tastier!
You also will want a simple salad garnish. Tomatoes, cucumber, red onions, parsley.
You can mix all of this together with some seasoning and just spoon it on, or you can leave things individually so that people can help themselves.
That is the way we do it in this house as my husband doesn't like much cucumber, but he does like the tomatoes and onions. That way he can please himself.
The chicken is simply grilled. For the most flavour you can do it on the outdoor grill (especially nice in the summer months) or you can pop it under the oven grill, or even in an electric grill.
Whatever is easiest for you and brings you joy! Let it sit for a few minutes after to settle the juices and then slice into bits, ready for layering on the flat breads.
You warm your flat breads while the chicken is resting, then dollop on some of that Tzatziki sauce, some salad fixings and the grilled chicken . . . ready to roll up, secure and enjoy!
Now that's what I call proper tasty!
Quick, easy and DELICIOUS! What more could you want???
Easy Chicken Gyros
Yield: 2 - 3
A small proportioned recipe for the smaller family. Delicious marinated chicken thighs, grilled and served wrapped in a lovely flat bread along with Tzatziki Sauce, tomatoes, cucumbers and chopped red onion. Easily doubled to feed more.
ingredients:
For the chicken:
- 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
- 1 1/2 TBS fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 TBS olive oil
- 1 1/2 TBS Greek yogurt
- 3 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the Tzatziki:
- 3/4 of an English cucumber, deseeded, grated and squeezed to remove as much juice as possible
- 1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
- 1/2 fresh TBS lemon juice
- 1/2 TBS olive oil
- 1/4 tsp minced garlic
- 1/4 tsp salt
- black pepper to taste
You will also need:
- 2 to 3 soft Greek Flat Breads
- 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
- 1 ripe tomato, deseeded and diced
- 2 - 3 TBS finely chopped red onions
- a small handful of fresh flat leaf parsley leaves
- salt and pepper as needed
instructions:
How to cook Easy Chicken Gyros
- First put the chicken in to marinate. (You should do this at least two hours ahead of time, and up to 12 hours ahead of time. Mix together all of the marinade ingredients in a plastic refrigerator container. Add the chicken and turn it to coat on all sides. Put the lid on and then place in the refrigerator to marinate.
- To make the Tzatziki, make sure your cucumber has been squeezed quite dry, then put it into a bowl and stir together with the remaining ingredients. Set aside for about 20 minutes in order for the flavours to meld well together.
- To make the salad for the Gyros, mix together the cucumbers, onion, tomato and parsley. Season to taste with some salt and black pepper. Alternately you can just lay the ingredients out on a plate and let people help themselves.
- When you are ready to serve, heat the grill to high. Remove the chicken from the marinade, discarding any marinade. Grill the chicken on the grill for about 2 to 3 minutes per side., until golden brown and cooked through.
- Cut the chicken into pieces. Keep warm while you warm your flat breads as per package instructions.
- To serve top each flat bread with some of the Tzatziki sauce, a portion of the chicken and some of the salad. Roll up, secure and enjoy!
Oh so yummy. You can get these new Deli Kitchen Greek Flat breads at Sainsburys! They're excellent! The Canadian in me just loves messy eat with your hands food. My husband . . . he prefers a knife and fork. He is just so proper British!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan@aol.com
Over here for the last few weeks a certain fast food place has been having their annual Tastes of America promotion.
We popped in last week and ordered the Alabama Chicken sandwich with a smoky white BBQ sauce, bacon, cheese and onion crisps.
There was also lettuce and the bun was supposed to be a cornbread style bun.
To say I was slightly disappointed is to say the least. I will say no more.
I came away thinking I could make a far better chicken burger at home and today (Saturday as I write this) I did just that.
It wasn't quite a copycat. I infused ours with Tex Mex Flavours . . . but it was still a chicken burger and it was mighty tasty if I don't say so myself.
Chicken Burgers and Tex Mex are two of my favourite things. Why not combine the two!
I don't think a chicken burger is all that hard to get wrong. Why is it so often it is done so very poorly???
I hate that when I eat out, more often than not, I am disappointed by food which fails to deliver what it promises.
I am probably eating in the wrong places. That's the truth of it and what it boils down to.
I have a connoisseurs appetite and a pauper's budget, which is probably the whole problem in a nutshell.
I created a coriander lime mayo to spread on the buns, using chopped fresh coriander, garlic, and some lime juice and zest, with a tiny bit of salt.
This got put into the refrigerator so that the flavours had some time to meld. I also used a low fat mayo.
I also marinated the chicken for a couple of hours.
I pounded two boneless skinless chicken breasts until they were even in size, or as even as I could get them . . .
These were marinated in a mix of beaten egg, oregano, chili powder, hot sauce and a bit of salt.
I used the Green Tabasco sauce for a real Tex Mex Jalapeno flavour . . .
While they were marinating I pulverized tortilla chips in the food processor until they were like fine bread crumbs.
I actually used a mix of cool ranch and lightly salted, but you could use nacho cheese, or whatever tortilla chips you enjoy.
Just make sure that your crumbs are really fine . . .
Take the chicken out of the refrigerator and remove them from the marinade, allowing any excess to drip off, and discarding the marinade. Pat the chicken into the tortilla crumbs and then brown them lightly on both sides.
I finish them off in the oven to make sure they are cooked all the way through, adding some grated pepper Jack to the top so that it melts a bit before removing them.
I served them on toasted whole wheat buns that I spread with that delicious garlicky mayo, along with some shredded lettuce and raw red onion rings for a bit of zip! Tasty tasty!
Yield: 2
Spicy Chicken Burgers with Coriander Lime Mayo
Spicy chicken cutlets on a toasted bun with a delicious garlic, coriander and lime mayonnaise dressing. A garnish of shredded lettuce and sliced red onion bring additional flavour and crunch. Do note that the chicken needs to marinate for 2 hours prior to cooking.
ingredients:
For the Mayo:
- 55g low fat real mayonnaise (1/4 cup)
- 2 TBS chopped fresh coriander (cilantro)
- 1 tsp lime juice
- 1/2 tsp lime zest
- 1 small clove of garlic, peeled and minced
For the Burgers:
- 2 free range organic chicken breast fillets
- 1 small free range egg, lightly beaten
- 1 1/2 TBS Tabasco sauce
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp mild chili powder
- 65g tortilla chips, pulverised (3 cups before pulverising)
- 2 TBS light olive oil
- 2 TBS grated pepper jack cheese
To serve:
- shredded lettuce
- red onion rings (raw)
- toasted whole wheat burger buns
instructions:
How to cook Spicy Chicken Burgers with Coriander Lime Mayo
- Take your chicken breast fillets and pound them out to an even layer. Prick them all over with a fork. Put them into a container along with the egg, hot sauce, oregano, chili powder and salt. Cover and shake to coat. Place into the refrigerator for 2 hours. (You can also use the milder Green Jalapeno Tabasco sauce if you want.)
- To make the mayonnaise, combine all of the ingredients well, then cover and refrigerate until you are ready to serve.
- Make sure your tortilla chips are really pulverised and fine for the chicken burgers. I do this in my food processor. Place the finely ground chips into a shallow dish.
- Working with one piece of chicken at a time., remove the chicken from the marinade, allowing any excess to drip off. Coat completely in the ground tortilla chips. Repeat until both are well coated.
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Have a small baking tray ready.
- Heat the oil in a non-stick skillet. Add the chicken breasts and cook for about 3 minutes per side. Place them onto the baking tray. Bake in the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes, until cooked through and the juices run clear. Sprinkle the top of each with 1 TBS of the pepper jack about 5 minutes before finishing so that it melts.
- Split the burger buns and toast on the cut sides under the grill. Spread the tops and bottoms of each with the mayonnaise. Place the bottoms on serving plates. Top with some shredded lettuce and onion rings. Place the chicken burgers on top. Finally place the toasted bun tops over all. Serve immediately.
- We had some leftover coleslaw vinaigrette from the other day with this along with some oven chips.
NOTES:
Note - if you wish to serve more people simply double the ingredients.
I was really, really pleased with how these turned out. I was a tiny bit worried that the tortilla chips would be too crisp, but they were perfect. I think the key is to really grind them small, almost to a powder. We enjoyed them with some oven chips and some leftover coleslaw vinaigrette!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
When the children were growing up, during the time we lived in New Brunswick, we often drove across the border into Houlton Maine where we would go shopping. This was really exciting for me because they had a Wal Mart there and Wal Mart hadn't yet made its way into Canada. I have always loved grocery shopping in the US.
We would leave our home early in the morning and not get back home until the evening. This meant that we also used to go to the Elmwood Diner in Houlton for a hearty lunch. This diner was exactly what you would expect for a small town diner. The walls were covered with their dining specials handwritten out on paper place-mats. The place was always super busy and the food was always super good. I don't think it is in operation any longer, sadly.
Every time we went my ex husband would order their Turkey Club Platter, which involved a turkey club sandwich, fries and coleslaw. I think you could get any kind of potato you wanted with it actually. He always wanted the fries.
I used to get either fish and chips, or a roast turkey dinner. Those are my two favourite things when dining out, and nobody does them better than diners do.
I decided to recreate that dining experience today for Todd. He has been working really hard in the garden and I thought he would enjoy the treat.
I don't know many people who wouldn't enjoy a club sandwich . . . its like a double decker sandwich on 3 slices of mayo spread toasted bread . . .
with layers of sliced cooked turkey, sliced ripe tomatoes, cheese . . .
lettuce, crisp streaky bacon, sliced ham and more cheese . . .
I even made some coleslaw to go with it, only today I made a vinaigrette coleslaw. That way the leftovers could be kept easily in the refrigerator, and I thought there was enough mayo in the meal with just the sandwich.
A coleslaw vinaigrette makes a nice change every now and again. I will confess I am not fond of the coleslaw over here in the UK. Its too gloopy and overloaded with mayo. They don't do it well in my opinion. There is such a thing as TOO much of a good thing, and they way over do the dressing.
Speaking of overdoing it . . . boy can you tell we are senior citizens now . . . one sandwich would have fed the two of us amply . . .
Neither of us could get through a whole thing. The most we managed was half a sandwich each and we never touched the pan fries. (Not to worry, I have an idea for those for tomorrow, watch this space.)
In any case this little taste of home put a smile on my face today and pleased Todd to no end!
Turkey Club Sandwich
Yield: 2
A favourite Diner restaurant special. Served with home fries and a coleslaw on the side, it always goes down a real treat!
ingredients:
- 6 slices of sandwich bread, toasted
- 4 TBS real mayonnaise
- 4 ounces sliced deli turkey
- 4 ounces sliced deli ham
- 4 slices Jarlsberg cheese or your favourite cheese
- 6 slices cooked streaky bacon
- 2 tomatoes thinly sliced
- shredded lettuce
For the coleslaw vinaigrette
- 1/4 head of white cabbage, thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 medium carrots, peeled
- 2 spring onions, finely chopped
- 1 tsp grainy Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp celery salt
- 1 TBS fine white sugar
- 80 ml apple cider vinegar
- 1 TBS vegetable oil
- 1/4 tsp celery salt
- 1 tsp dry parsley flakes
- freshly ground black pepper
instructions:
How to cook Turkey Club Sandwich
- First make the coleslaw. Combine all of the vegetables in a bowl. Whisk together the vinegar, oil, sugar, mustard and seasonings. Heat in the microwave on high for about 30 seconds. Whisk to melt the sugar. Pour over the vegetables in the bowl and toss together. Set aside to macerate while you make the sandwiches.
- Arrange two slices of the toasted bread on a cutting board. Spread with some of the mayonnaise. Top each with 1/2 of the sliced turkey and 4 slices of tomato. (You can season the tomato with salt and pepper if you wish.) Top each with another slice of toast, which you have spread with some of the mayonnaise on both sides. Divide the shredded lettuce between the two and top each with 3 slices of streaky bacon. Divide the ham between the two and then top with a final slice of cheese. Spread one side of the remaining toast with the remainder of the mayonnaise and place mayonnaise side down on top of each sandwich. Press down lightly. Cut into quarters. You may need to secure each quarter together with a tooth pick.
- Place sandwiches onto each of two dinner platters/plates. Serve with a side of the coleslaw and some pan fried potatoes if you wish. (Potato chips are also very good.)
Something happens to you when you get older. You just can't eat like you used to. I can remember when it was nothing to polish off one of these and a piece of pie to boot! Not anymore, that's for sure. I leave that kind of eating to the younger generation these days!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Social Icons