Nothing screams Summer to me more than fresh, sweet, juicy tomatoes! I have been anxiously awaiting their arrival for months.
Finally, they have arrived! While I love to use tomatoes in so many different dishes, one of my favorite ways is a simple sandwich.
I love a BLT, but provisions have me improvising and I am using curly spinach today as a substitution.
When I brought home these tomatoes I wanted them to ripen a bit more, so they have been sunning on the windowsill.
I purchased a beautiful loaf of freshly made sourdough bread from a nearby bakery and sliced.
Sourdough is a healthier choice over other breads because it has a much lower score on the Glycemic Index. It is about 20-30% lower than white bread and causes a much slower rise in blood glucose.
Making the bacon is one the first steps. I have multiple techniques for bacon, but for this sandwich I want extra crispy.
I preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a baking pan with foil, then layer the bacon slightly overlapping.
I bake for about 10 minutes and then flip the bacon.
It then cooks for another 10 minutes or until it is nicely browned. I remove and place on towels to drain any excess grease.
Now I make my Basil Aioli. The basil is really the star here and I have a sweet little basil plant I have been keeping in my kitchen. I pull enough leaves to equal about 1 cup.
I rinse and add to the food processor. Then I combine 1 cup of Dukes Mayonnaise, 1/2 lemon juiced, garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste.
I purée until combined well and then at the last minute, I drizzle a bit of balsamic glaze.
I pour into a glass container, cover and chill.
Next, I slice my tomatoes. I want them thick enough to really let their meatiness shine. The key to slicing tomatoes is using a serrated knife.
The tomato is the primary actor in this sandwich and all the other ingredients are there to support and accentuate the flavor.
I like to toast my sourdough so before I get to that step, I take my unsalted butter out of the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature. It makes it much easier to spread.
I spread a generous portion of butter on one side of the bread and place on my baking pan. I toast at 350 for about 7 or 8 minutes.
The sourdough is slightly crispy on the edges bit still soft and a bit chewy.
Now is the fun part! Assembly!
I start by spooning the aioli onto both sides of the bread.
Layer the other ingredients…
And put it all together!
This is certainly a multi-napkin, eat over your plate type of sandwich! It is incredibly juicy and messy. But the flavor is Summer all wrapped up!
Leave a Reply