BLT's and Tomato Sandwiches
 

I've been waiting for someone to start this thread, but since no one did I thought I'd get the ball rolling, and give sandwiches their own special thread.

A good BLT is a big thing for all tomato lovers. As simple as it sounds, there are still many different ways to make a BLT and other tomato sandwiches. All sorts of fresh bread to use, toasted bread, just plain tomato on toast, many different spreads and dressings, some store bought, some home made, and all sorts of other ways to make and enjoy a tomato sandwich. I especially like seeing the international scoop on such things. Maybe we can discover a true and unique favorite here, and name our own tomato sandwich!

All I know how to do right now is the regular old way. I'm sure many of you have some great recipes. Can't wait to see em.

Don

Aw, come on. Surely someone can post here with a favorite way to make a BLT or tomato sandwich!

Wheat? Light bread? Toasted? Mayo? Salad dressing? Crisp bacon? Bacon bits? Fresh sliced tomato or fried green? Cheese? Jalopenas? Plain tomato and bread? There's got to me dozens of was to do this, and you all have your favorite way. Let me hear!

Don

Well, I have been conformed to a"eat only home-made wheat bread cause it's good for you" kind of person. HOWEVER... I can't help but drift back to Sunbeam white bread dreams of the tomato sandwiches I ate as a child. Go for a swim in the creek until you are exhausted and shaking with hunger. Hurry home and make a sandwich with soft, sticky Sunbeam or Colonial bread with Blue Plate Mayo, lots of salt, and one slice of a giant, acid-tart red tomato (the bacon is optional). And of course, an ice-cold Coca-Cola... the old fashion ones... before they ever changed the formula!

Yum YUM!
Lisa

I can't help but go back to basics with my BLT's.

Two slices el cheapo white bread, toasted. Light smear of un-named white stuff :oops: on each. Crispy bacon, about 5 half slices. Lettuce, of course. 3/8" to 1/2" thick slices of perfectly ripe maters to cover bread.

Bacon goes on one slice of toast, lettuce on other slice of toast, mater in the middle so it won't sog out the toast too soon! Salt and pepper on maters.

Why am I torturing myself like this??

Some great ideas and pics. Fine stuff. I was tempted to copy some of them here. In fact, I may still do it!

Don

Don,

AS you will notice, a few of us here are represented on that other thread. The best BLT (in fact, the only BLT) last year was from the NORCATT gathering. There were so many tomatoes, and so little time, and since it would be my only BLT for the year, it was fabulous.

Before the sodium restriction, bacon was a passion. A good BLT needs great bacon and great tomatoes. I prefer red romaine, or some mesclun, for the greenery.

Bob

Yes, Bob, there are just some things you have to do the wrong way to get it the right way. A GOOD BLT is one of them. Thick, fat, salty bacon, buttered toast, fat-heavy mayo, and all the other good stuff. Some things I just can't give up!


I went to the BLT web site posted earlier, and saw things I'd never heard of. I drolled for three hours, and then had to wipe my hands with a Tidy-Wipe. I'm still licking my fingers.

Don

greatest sammy of all time.

unless you ruin it with miracle[i] whip[/i]..... :P :P :P :P

let the mayo wars begin :twisted:

Ahhh, Bully,

but which mayo? and how much? on both pieces of bread, or just one? butter knife or spoon?

I don't care what kind of bread. I don't care if there is bacon or not. As long as there is a thick center slice of a "real" tomato, and "real" mayonaisse. Keep that nasty miracle stuff away.

speaking of diets - I had to settle for bacon bits
and low-fat mayo (Hellman's of course)
~ here's mine :

[img]http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e94/tomstrees/BLT.jpg[/img]

oh, the glory days of fatty foods ~ Tom

BLT Rules
 

1. Bread must be white, but of a dense homemade style, and should bring some flavor to the party.
2. Bread must be lightly toasted. Enough to crisp the sides and color the edges, not enough to make it crumble when you take a bite.
3. Spread must be full-fat Hellmans. For those who are dieting (as I have been since I was 17): The key is choosing quality over quantity. One good BLT and ten salads is better than ten bad BLTs.
4. Spread goes on both pieces of bread to prevent sogginess, but thickness of spread is a matter of personal taste.
5. Bacon must be thick-cut and chewy-crisp. There IS such a thing as too much bacon, but the rules do not specify how much is too much. That's a private matter between each sandwichmaker and his or her physician. Turkey bacon or veggie bacon is allowed for those with religious, medical, or ethical issues.
6. Lettuce must be iceberg, the juicy greenish-white parts, not the bitter all-white parts or thin dryish all-green parts. Several layers is called for.
7. Tomato must be at least 1/2" thick and MUST BE sandwich-sized. Color of tomato is left to the individual.
8. Correct layering is: bread, spread, tomato, bacon, lettuce, spread, bread. This is because bread and bacon will both provide some friction, while tomato provides little and lettuce almost none. Tomato against lettuce will always result in slippage and therefore is not recommended.

Val

Val: Excellent set of BLT rules. :D

The only exceptions I would make would be for number 6, since I find lettuce is optional (though I still called it a BLT because there's something unappetizing about a BT sandwich, for some reason. :wink: ) and number 7, because I will use any sized tomato, except maybe a cherry (though I've used those, too, out of sheer desperation! :P )

3 to 5 slices of bacon seem to be about right, depending on the size of the bread. The bread we get is quite tall and can easily accomodate 5 bacon slices. :)

I'm really hungry now!

BACON BITS AND LOW FAT MAYO????????????

that could be used as an example under the definition of :

sac·ri·le·gious ( P ) Pronunciation Key (skr-ljs, -ljs)
adj.
Grossly irreverent toward what is or is held to be sacred.
Having committed sacrilege. ( I.E. eating bacon sandwich made with bacon bits and low-fat mayonaise)

:roll: :roll: :roll:

(Miracle Whip-yuk. It is 30 calories less per TBL than mayo but it isn't worth it. My mother prefers it and that was all we had as children-talk about a deprived childhood!)

Val,

Yes Ma'am. Your posted rules of a BLT are most appropriate. I will observe them carefully. And I especially agree with one thing. Slippage is not recommended.

Now, as to Mayo vs. Miracle Whip...I will sit and watch the rest of the thread...then try both when the first slicers come into fruit. Here...it will be late May, I hope.

Don

:lol:

I think Miracle Whip has a sweet taste to it. (yuck) I don't think it belongs anywhere near a tomato. :P

[b]Word of Mouth Fried Tomato, Mozzarella and Bacon Sandwich

Source: Word of Mouth, New York
Yield: 6 sandwiches

1 1/2 pounds firm, fresh tomatoes, cored
12-inch loaf semolina bread
1 pound mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup fine cornmeal
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup prepared pesto
12 basil leaves
12 slices bacon, cooked

Slice tomatoes into 12 (1/2-inch) slices. Cut bread diagonally into 12 slices; toast. Cut mozzarella into 12 (1/4-inch) slices.

In small shallow bowl, combine cornmeal, garlic salt and pepper. Dip tomatoes in mixture, coating both sides; shake off excess.

In large skillet, heat oil over medium- high heat until hot; pan-fry tomato slices until browned, about 2 minutes per side. Remove; drain on paper towels.

Spread each bread slice with pesto; arrange mozzarella slices on 6 of bread slices; top each with 2 tomato slices, 2 basil leaves and 2 bacon slices. Top with remaining bread.[/b]

[b]Panera Bread Tex Mex Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato

Tex Mex Mayonnaise

1/4 cup mayonnaise
Pinch chili powder
1 teaspoon chopped fresh jalapeno pepper

Sandwich

4 thick slices Panera Tomato Basil Bread
8 slices crisply fried bacon
6 thin slices ripe tomato
Thin slices avocado
Sprigs of cilantro, roughly chopped
Washed lettuce leaves

Mix the mayonnaise with chili powder and jalapeno pepper; set aside.

Spread Tex Mex Mayonnaise on two slices of tomato basil bread. Pile on bacon, tomato, avocado, cilantro sprigs and lettuce and top with other slice of bread.

Yield: 2 servings[/b]

[b]The ultimate BLT:

Whole wheat bread, toasted in the oven, then rubbed with a cut clove of garlic - makes it VERY garlicky!

Bacon, lots of bacon.

Crisp buttery lettuce and a few slivers of fresh basil

Cracked black pepper and season salt

Cherokee purple tomato

No mayo or butter or any kind of wet stuff, this is a minimalist BLT.

Bread - bacon - lettuce - tomato - lettuce - bread. That way, the wet tomatoes don't come in contact with the bread and make it all soggy.[/b]

Lettuce is optional here.

Butter Krust Texas Toast
Kraft Real Mayo (sometimes sprinkled with a touch of ground chipolte)
Thick cut Deli Bacon (Boars Head if available, peppered)
Cherokee Purple cut at least 1/2" thick

Mayo sort of seals the toast, so it doesn't get too soggy. But for ultimate satisfaction, you should have juice dripping down your chin.

laurel-tx

This is our favorite: quick and easy late night snack.

bake some flaky biscuits according to direction
while baking...make the Aioli

Aioli
4 (or more) cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 egg
2 tbl lemon juice
1/2 tsp dry mustard
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Cayenne pepper to taste (optional)
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

Combine the egg, garlic, lemon juice, mustard, salt, pepper, cayenne, and 1/4 cup of the oil in an electric blender or food processor. Turn on the machine (medium speed...I use 4) and add the remaining oil in a thin stream. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

When finished cut biscuit to make a top and bottom half
put thinly sliced turkey on the bottom and some thinly sliced swiss cheese. On the top half spread Aioli on it, and add 1-2 slices of your favorite voluptuous juicy tomato...put together sandwich and eat....

I like to make my blt sandwiches with croissants. I cut the croissants in half, toast in the toaster,bacon, hellmans mayo,sliced tomato, lettuce with salt and fresh ground black pepper. I will occasionally add sliced avacado for a BLAT yummy!!

Has anyone substituted Thousand Island dressing for Mayo? Ami

Interesting idea, Ami. I think I'd be too worried about the 1000 Island being tangy enough to compete with the tomato, but if you had a tomato with a strong, classic tomato flavor, that might work well. I like mine with Duke's mayo, on whole grain toast, with some green leaf lettuce, center cut bacon and some cracked black pepper.

White sandwich bread slathered with Hellman's and a 1/2 thick slice of large heirloom sprinkled with fresh ground seasalt and pepper. Going to be a long couple months wait!

a big ol' slab of 'mater stuck inside a sliced open hot biscuit ain't bad either.....

[SIZE=4] [/SIZE]Bacon, Avocado and Tomato Sandwich is a fav of mine.