Sandwich

This was a fun day. A promise of a hearty lunch with my long time friend Jun and Amy in their cozy Seattle home was upon us. I provided sandwiches and they the lemonade and dessert. I chose to assemble two types. First one, a black forest ham and Gruyere sandwich, was inspired by a sandwich I used to build working in a Seattle bakery on madison valley. My version was simply black forest ham, Gruyere cheese, arugula, and a healthy spread of tarragon-thyme mayonnaise, all sandwiched between savory caramelized garlic bread. The second offering was a more involved and well received roasted vegetable sandwich. It was my homage to an inspiring visit to La Mela Ristorante in New York City where I had an incredible antipasti course; insanely bountiful and simple, yet very flavorful, with lots of roasted and marinated vegetables lovingly drowned in extra virgin olive oil. For the sandwich (pictured), I marinated and roasted eggplants, peppers, and tomatoes, then assembled them with some fresh mozzarella between olive bread which got a generous coating of fresh pesto (simply olive oil, pine nuts, basil and seasonings).

We ate up as we caught up on each other's lives, and needless to say, by the end of the meal, stomachs and souls were stuffed and satisfied. Of course big ups for the beautiful lemonade which washed everything down nicely and for dessert: ice cream sandwiches and tamarind candy!