281020 Thu Nov 17 01:24:20 -0800 2005 8 31 Home Cooking 0 1494332 Did I get your attention? Sorry for the risque title, but this name just came to me. Dinner tonight was about 3's...3 different half-naked (ie, open-faced) cheese sandwiches, each one united by 3 different ingredients. Well, it took more than 3 minutes to make, but only 20 minutes, really. Not bad at all. Evidence of the love triangle is documented below. I wasn't planful about this, so just used what I had on hand. Great way to use up those last bits of cheese. All were made w/ the same flat ciabatta style loaf from one of my favorite bakeries in town. After layering everything, baked in 350F oven for few min. til bread was toasty and cheese started to melt. Finished under broiler for a little browning. Served w/ a simple salad of mesclun greens dressed w/ champagne vinegar, good EVOO, S&P. Tossed in some fruit and nut that were extra sandwich toppings. Salad was key to cut through richness of sandwiches. Great fun to pile a little fresh salad on top of toasty sandwich for eating pleasure. 3 versions were: Braeburn apple-French brie-TJ's dijon mustard: Both husband and I liked this one the best! Mustard had a nice bite and was a perfect marriage w/ the creamy cheese and crisp, sweet apple. Granny Smith would work great too for a tart element. Fuyu persimmon-walnuts-Italian gorgonzola: Gorgonzola and walnuts were meant for each other! Fuyu was lovely but may have been outmuscled by the strong cheese. Still quite good though...mild honey could be good for next time. Crimini mushroom-Californian teleme-balsamic/evoo: Earthy and a little sour and nutty. Teleme is great melting cheese. BTW, I got inspiration from Nancy Silverton's book on sandwiches which I checked out from my library a while back. Cute little book w/ gobs of gourmet sandwich ideas. Ok, what are some other open-faced cheese sandwich combos that hounds favor?? Can't wait for my next menage. Image: http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y45/btdoan/IMG_3264.jpg Thu Nov 17 01:24:20 -0800 2005 0 Carb Lover 1 1494336 These are great. I've also been playing around with fruit and cheese. I think it's the season - I want something fruity yet comforting when winter's around the corner.Can never quite let go of summer... I fall in love with a combo, the eat it on BBQ'ed pizzas, crackers, toast, and at the moment, in simple lunchtime omelettes. Recent ones: cortland apple, sauted red onion, smoked gouda roasted, cubed butternut, smoked gouda, black olives pear, rocket and taleggio feta, sweet potato, black olives gruyere, pears and crispy fragments of prosciutto homemade ricotta with homemade apple butter camembert and fresh cranberry sauce And nuts with everything!!! I think it's all about surprising combinations of flavours and textures. I gobble up all the persimmons before I have a chance to get creative, but I definitely want to do something like your mushroom one. Aren't mushrooms gorgeous??? You should also try some of the combos (perhaps without the cheeses) as interesting beds to roast chicken pieces or boneless breasts upon. Apple, mustard and onion is divine... Thu Nov 17 03:51:42 -0800 2005 1494332 0 Kate 1 1494342 Ooohhh, good topic! They sound fantastic. I'll add: melted raclette with potato slices (pickles & onions on the side) welsh rarebit (beer & cheese!) cheddar & apple havarti & bacon or ham Thu Nov 17 04:54:52 -0800 2005 1494332 0 petradish 1 1494355 Carb Lover, can I p-l-e-a-s-e come to your house for dinner one day...? Nothing gets me quite so inspired and so drooly as your gorgeous food shots. In the summertime, I love toasted baguette or ciabatta with St. Agur cheese and fresh, sliced peaches. Or prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella and sliced tomatoes with a drizzle of EVOO/honey/balsamic. Or sliced avocado with coriander, sea salt and a lime juice/EVOO drizzle. Simple and fresh. Thu Nov 17 09:32:06 -0800 2005 1494332 0 peppermint pate 1 1494370 Porn on a Plate (to complete your approach)...Thanks! Thu Nov 17 11:15:27 -0800 2005 1494332 0 WLA 1 1494373 As always Carb Lover, you have a great food imagination and your pictures always impress! Thu Nov 17 11:27:13 -0800 2005 1494332 0 Scagnetti 1 1494450 Lovely composition of both food presentation and photography, as always. Crab Lover, I mean, Carb Lover, here's one of my favorite open-faced crab sandwiches, from the Pacific Northwest the Beautiful cookbook -- Hot Dungeness Crab Melt with Two Cheeses, for those times when you've had your fill of steamed cracked crab right out of the shell. ;>) 8 oz. fresh Dungeness crab meat 2 t. lemon juice 2 T. minced fresh chives 2 T. minced red bell peppers 2 T. minced celery 4 oz. quality cream cheese (at room temp.) 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard 1/2 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese or milder cheese of choice, divided Salt & fresh ground pepper to taste 1/2 Ciabatta loaf, split lengthwise OR 2 English muffins, split Combine crab and remaining ingredients, but only half the cheddar (or milder cheese)--mix well. Spread on the bread and top with remaining half of grated cheese. Broil until heated through and cheese is nearly bubbling. Enjoy! Serves 2 Thinking of crab sandwiches, I still remember the simple, but delicious ones sold in a tiny shack off Highway 1 in Moss Landing called Bob's Crab Sandwiches. They were made on plain white sandwich bread and had a little hard-boiled egg mixed in with the crab, bound with mayo and wrapped in wax paper--we loved to buy them to take on trips north. I'm sure he's been gone for many years, so you may not have had the chance to try them, unless he popped up somewhere else in the area. Do you or anyone else know if Bob's crab sandwich shack is still around somewhere? Thu Nov 17 18:54:26 -0800 2005 1494332 0 Lauren J. 2 1494458 Sorry, I don't know anything about Bob's in Moss Landing...must have been a great sandwich though if you still remember it! It doesn't ever get mentioned on the CA board though, so perhaps Bob closed up shop... Thanks for the recipe. I never would have thought of that, but it sounds delicious and very timely w/ the start of crab season. Can't wait for some Dungeness! Thu Nov 17 22:04:04 -0800 2005 1494450 0 Carb Lover 1 1494459 Thanks for all the kind responses and ideas for future trysts. Lots of great combos that I can't wait to experiment with. I haven't eaten a warm open-faced sandwich in forever, and last night's trio really hit the spot! Such a quick thing to throw together too. Having 3 different kinds to nibble on makes it that much funner! Thu Nov 17 22:10:09 -0800 2005 1494332 0 Carb Lover