Today I had the afternoon off and wanted something good and tasty for lunch. I had some tomatoes, which were decent (UglyRipe) but not salt-and-eat good. I tried replicating and improving on the tomato melt at a local deli and got rave reviews from Himself. Allow me to share it.
Mix equal parts olive oil and balsamic vinegar in a shallow bowl and marinate tomato slices - about two per sandwich - for a few minutes. Preheat your broiler and mix together a couple tablespoons of mayonnaise, some pepper, some whatever (I used Penzey’s Sunny Paris spice mix) and a good bit of hard cheese, grated (I used a peccorino romano). Spread the mayo mix on bread, top with tomatoes, and put some more of the cheese on top. Broil until toasty.
Any other most excellent quick lunch recipes beyond cold cuts and peanut butter? Especially welcome are things you can make on your lunch break without having thought about it the night before and things you can make with pantry ingredients.
Wow, that sounds really good. I’ll have to try it next time I find some decent tomatoes.
A favorite around here is a Croque Madame: Toast a couple nice slices of bread - crusty loafs are the best, or baguettes. Fry up an egg or two, top with a couple slices of ham. Place on the toasted bread, top with gruyere, broil until it gets all melty. Yum!
That’s one of my favorite post-farmer’s market lunches, although I’m not quite so fancy with the mayo and marinating. We haven’t quite made it to full-blown tomato season here, but I’m really looking forward to it! Another favorite is a big fat slice of yummy bread topped with some mayo, a fried egg (with a not-quite-solid yolk), a couple of slices of tomato, and salt & pepper.
Well, now I’m feeling a bit sad about the not so yummy leftovers I had for lunch.
Well, when it’s time for the really good tomatoes you don’t want to obscure the flavor with anything - just a bit of salt to bring it out and maybe some mayo, or just have them sliced on a plate with salt.