Fried Egg, Ricotta Cheese, and Wild Arugula Open-faced Sandwich

Yet another sandwich post...Whay can I say? I love their easy preparation and convenience in eating.  They can be portable and eaten on the go when you are busy. They are also very easy to prepare and can be multiplied easily if you have to feed a small army.  They handy when you are in a rush and do not have time to prepare an elaborate meal.  They can either be dressed down or up depending on your mood :)

 I am also using wild arugula for this sandwich since I still have some arugula left over from my recent purchase at the Whole Foods.  They are fabulous in salad or used as green in sandwiches.  They a little more peppery than regular arugula which I really like.  This is the first dish that I have used ricotta with parmigiano reggiano and arugula since I usually use either blue cheese or goat in combination with other two ingredients.  Surprisingly they go well together considering that it is a lot milder in taste than blue or goat cheeses.

This recipe is not an original recipe but it is from this website.  Of course I have modified the recipe to suit my own taste and preference but I will post the original recipe. Coincidentally, I have also found a few sandwich recipes from this site as well as its affiliate websites that I am very interested in trying so be on the lookout for them in the coming days.  This and the rest of the sandwiches featured in that website are all easy to prepare with ingredients that are easy to find.  

To be honest, I've been eating this same sandwich for breakfast three days in a row.  The reason is not because I couldn't get the recipe right but because I could not get the pictures to come out the way I want them to.  So for the past three days, I have been preparing this same sandwich, photographing it, and then have it for breakfast... I do not mind, of course, since this is a great sandwich...hehehe... this batch of pictures is much better than the previous two batches...Ughhh, I really need to read that book that I purchased on how to take better food photography to improve my techniques. I am too lazy to read at times though... wish it comes in audio book format...

Ingredients:

4 slices of whole-wheat bread (I used bagel)

cooking spray

2 cups wild arugula

1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/2 tsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp salt, divided

1/2 tsp freshly grounf black pepper, divided

4 large eggs

3/4 cup ricotta cheese

1/4 cup grated parmigiano reggiano cheese

1 tsp thyme, chopped

1. Preheat broiler or toaster oven

2. Coat both sides of bread with cooking spray and broil for 2 minutes on each side or until lightly toasted.

3. Combine arugula, 2 tsp EVOO, lemon juice, 1/8 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Toss gently.

4.  Heat remaining EVOO in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat.  Crack eggs into pan and cook for 2 minutes. Cover and cook for an additional two minutes or until egg whites are set.  Remove from heat.

5. Combine 1/4 tsp salt, ricotta, parmigiano reggiano, and thyme.  Spread over bread slices.  Divide salad and egg and place evenly over the bread.  Sprinkle remaining 1/8 tsp salt and remaining 1/4 tsp pepper over the eggs.

6. Serve immediately.

Recipe source: cooking light

Turkey, Spinach, and Pesto Panini

Good morning, World. I went to bed early last night so I woke up bright and early this morning...huh? Did those words come out of my mouth... este, did I really type those words? Hahaha...quite strange coming from a girl who is not always in a good mood in the morning. I am not a morning person but strangely I feel okay this morning...maybe because I got some much needed rest last night after a few days of not sleeping well. I tell you, I slept like a baby with a few dreams here and there but i cannot even remember those dreams when I woke up...strange, huh? 

Anyways, I have some blogging to catch up to so I will start with this entry and maybe back-track posts for the last two or three days and post entries for the dishes I cooked but haven't had time to post...hehehe...was busy with school trying to finish a paper that was due Monday so didn't have time to post...

I had an appointment with my therapist yesterday morning...hand therapist, not psychiatrist...hehehe.... and as usual I usually stop by at several shops before finally making my way home. In the process, I usually end up with tons of stuff by the time I reach home. What can I say? There are just so many temptations along the way. First, I stopped by at Whole Foods and picked up more arugula, ciabatta, and basil as well as well as corn, jam, and mustard. Next off, I went to Monsieur Marcel at the Farmemr's market and picked up prosciutto, and oven-roasted turkey breast from their deli section. Next, I went to World Market and La Surla Table(still at the Farmer's Market) and picked up some glasses, small dishes, and tea towels...Oh, the joy...they are like candy stores for the kitchen....too many pretty and shiny stuff :). Finally, I bought some fresh produce at the Farmer's market which were really great and fresh.

By the time I finally made it home, it was past lunch time. Unfortunately, there was nothing ready to eat at the house A quick rummaging on the cupboard and refrigerator and I found some ingredients I need to make a quick lunch...the result is a turkey, sinach, and pesto panini. I am telling you, I have been hooked on panini lately...hehehe... If you do not have a panini press or panini maker, refer to this post for idea on how to make it... it is easy and tasty

The combination for this pesto sandwich came from sister who told me after she saw the picture of my sweet chili, chicken, and pesto panini which I posted on my facebook account. I was a little skeptical at first because I was not sure how the wilted spinach taste in the panini but this converted me into a huge fan. Everything meshes well together perfectly and you cannot even tell that the spinach is in there which will be a good way to sneak veggies into your children's diet. I think it also helped that the roasted turkey breast from Marcel's taste great even by it itself. I was in panini heaven, so easy to make and tasty...a combination that's hard to come by....hehehe...

Even with the side salad and fruit cup, I was done in less than 20 minutes. I prepared a simple salad of baby spinach, pine nuts, and apple in a simple olive oil-lemon dressing to go with the salad. A fruit cup of mixed, sliced fruit such as apple, blackberries, and strawberries round out the meal. The fruits were part of the produce that I purchased from the farmer's market on Third and Fairfax.

Ingredients:

1 Rustic bread or any crusty bread, sliced in half

Prepared (I used my homemade) pesto

2-3 slices of oven-roasted turkey breast

a handful of baby spinach leaves

grated mozzarella or sliced provolone cheese



1. Spread pesto on both sides of the bread.

2. On one side, add a layer of cheese, then spinach.

3. Add turkey on another layer and top with another layer of cheese.

4. Cover with the other half of the bread and press down. Set aside

5. Heat your cast iron grill pan over medium heat.

6. Add about 1/2 a tsp of olive oil.  Using a non-stick, heat-resistant basting brush, spread the oil all over the grill pan.

7. Position your panini in the middle of the pan.  Place a layer of foil on top of the panini before placing you weight.

***make sure that the weight is stable and provides even weight on the panini.  I used a cast iron pan and then topped that with a cast-iron wok to provide a a heavier weight on the sandwich.

8. Grill each side for about 3-4 minutes or until it is toasted according to your preference.  When one side is done, use a spatula to turn it over and cook the other side using the same procedure.

9. When done, remove from heat and slice into two equal portion. Serve with potato chips, fried, salad or your choice of sides.

Sweet Chili, Chicken, and Pesto Panini

As I mentioned in my previous post, I stopped by at Whole Foods and found really good quality greens.  My finds included really fresh and good quality basil which were sold in huge bunches.  They looked really good that I picked up a couple.  I was planning on making a batch of pesto which is great to have around for quick pasta recipes, sauce for flat breads, and of course, panini... hehehe

The price per bunch is around $1.75 which is a steal considering the same amount of basil cost a little over $3 at Ralph's and Pavilions.  I know because I checked those stores a couple of days ago but didn't get any since their basil didn't look very fresh...they looked like they have been sitting on the chiller for about a week or so.  I do think the prices for fresh spices are outrageously high that sometimes it makes me want to plant my own...Oh, wait... I might end up killing them like I did my other plants...hehehe

Making your own pesto is really easy because it doesn't involve a lot of slicing or dicing.  All you need to do is place all the ingredients in the food processor and let it do all the hard work.  Washing all the small parts of the food processor afterwards though is the problem.  Too many small parts to clean and wash which requires hand washing to remove all the food particle that gets stuck in the nooks and crannies.  Having a homemade pesto though is, in my opinion, better than store-bought ones since you can control the amount of ingredients that you want to include.  I, for one, like a lot of garlic in mine so I usually put a whole garlic head instead of just a few cloves.  Besides, basil and pine nuts, you can practically use any nuts and greens of your choice to make pesto.  Besides the traditional basil/pine nut pesto, I also like arugula and walnut combo.

After making the pesto, I made chicken pesto panini to go with the wild arugula salad.  This is such an easy to make meal and with some shortcuts, they can be prepared in less than 30 minutes.  Panini is nothing more than a grilled sandwich.  No panini maker?  No problem because you can use you stove top cast iron grill pan.  Just make sure that it is well seasoned to avoid the panini from sticking otherwise you will have a mess on your hand.  And believe me, cleaning a cast iron pan with burnt, stuck-on food is no fun.  Besides the grill pan, you also need something to weigh your sandwich down.  My Le Creuset wok's function has been redefined to double as the weight for making panini...hehehe.

Ingredients:

Basil Pesto

2 cups packed fresh basil

1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano

1 head of garlic, peeled (this is just based on my preference but you can use less if you prefer)

1/2 cups pine nuts

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Place garlic, pine nuts, and parmigiano reggiano in the food processor.  Pulse for a few seconds.

2. Add basil and pulse some more until it is slightly chopped.

3. With the food processor still going, add the EVOO in steady stream until blended.  Stop to scrape the sides occassionally and then pulse until well blened.

4. Season with sea salt and pepper according to taste.

Sweet Chili, Chicken, and  Pesto Panini

Ingredients:

skinless, boneless chicken breast, boiled and sliced

1 Cubanelle chili pepper - seeded, cored, and  thinly sliced (or any sweet chili pepper variety)

Basil Pesto

Shredded mozzarella cheese

sea salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

ciabatta breads

olive oil

*** NOTE: you can determine the amount of ingredients to use per panini based on your preference.

1. Slice ciabatta into half.  Spread pesto on each side of the ciabatta.

2. On one side, place one layer of chicken.  Season with sea salt and pepper according to taste.

3. Add a layer of cubanelle chili pepper and top with mozzarella cheese.

4. Place the other halfof the ciabatta on top and set aside.

5. Heat your cast iron grill pan over medium heat.

6. Add about 1/2 a tsp of olive oil.  Using a non-stick, heat-resistant basting brush, spread the oil all over the grill pan.

7. Position your panini in the middle of the pan.  Place a layer of foil on top of the panini before placing you weight. 

***make sure that the weight is stable and provides even weight on the panini.  I used a cast iron pan and then topped that with a cast-iron wok to provide a a heavier weight on the sandwich.

8. Grill each side for about 3-4 minutes or until it is toasted according to your preference.  When one side is done, use a spatula to turn it over and cook the other side using the same procedure.

9. When done, remove from heat and slice into two equal portion. Serve with potato chips, fried, salad or your choice of sides.