Chicken Salad Sandwich

Tired of that same old peanut butter and jelly, lunch meat, or tuna sandwich? Eating at home is clearly the more cost effective choice these days. Although we wish an In-N-Out burger still cost 25¢, that's just not the case anymore. So we thought we would share a fantastic sandwich that has lots of flavor and more importantly a break from the other sandwiches. Grapes, walnuts and celery spice up this chicken salad sandwich and make it a textured, tasty summer sandwich.

6 ingredients needed: bread, a can of chicken, grapes, celery, walnuts and mayonnaise.

The measurements on this recipe are rough. Go by eye. It really depends how much u want in your sandwich.

Start by draining the chicken and shredding it using a fork. Put in a large bowl.

 Take maybe a cup of grapes, depending on the size of the grapes, and slice them into quarters.

Throw the grapes into the bowl.  We like a lot of grapes in ours, its what gives the mix it's sweet taste.

Next ingredient is the celery.  All that's needed is one stock. Slice into small pieces.  This gives the crunch. It's also healthy so hey, that's always good. 

Once again throw the celery into the bowl and go by sight for how much you want.  If you don't want or like or can't have nuts then we would double the celery to add more crunch.

 Walnuts. Delicious.  All you need is about 1/8 cup, 1/4 cup max.  We didn't buy a large bag from the store to avoid over purchasing.  So we went to Sprouts, and scooped out what we needed from their self serve section.  This way we saved $. yey!

So throw the walnuts in and then add in the mayo.  It only takes about 1 tbsp- 1 1/2 at the most.  Stir and go by eye to see if you need more or less.

The great thing about this sandwich is that it's easy to make in mass production.  Make the Chicken Salad Sandwich on croissants and it looks like the sandwich is from a restaurant.  It's truly a nice alternative to the boring ham and cheese sandwich.

Recipe

1 can chicken breast

1 cup grapes

1 stock celery

1/8 cup walnuts

1 tbsp mayonnaise 

Drain chicken and shred with fork.  Place in large bowl.

Dice grapes and add to bowl.

Slice celery into small pieces and combine with chicken mix.

Chop walnuts and add to bowl.

Add in mayo and stir.

Place on bread and devour. 

Peanut Butter Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich

 While we're pretty sure it's much easier to just go to the store and buy ice cream sandwiches, there is something great about being able to decide exactly what type of cookie ice cream sandwich you want.  As our first attempt to this slightly messy recipe, we decided to keep it simple with our homemade peanut butter cookies.  Then, to keep it easy, we bought neapolitan ice cream from the store.   (If you want to be ambitious, try our Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream instead of the store bought) Peanut butter and chocolate, vanilla or strawberry are all fantastic options.  Be creative and don't let the ice cream melt!

Start by making the cookies.  For the peanut butter cookies we needed butter, peanut butter, egg, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, and flour.

The 1/2 cup peanut butter and 1/2 butter should be mixed together, then add in 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1 egg, sugars (1/2 cup packed brown and 1/2 cup sugar), 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1/2 cup flour.

After mixing in the remaining flour (3/4 cup) roll the desired amount into a ball and roll in sugar. Make sure to use a fork to make the criss-cross shape.

Bake at 375 for 7-9 minutes.

When they come out of the oven let them cool on a wire rack.  The recipe makes around 36 cookies so if you can resist the urge to eat one you'll have around 18 sandwiches.

Next is the ice cream part.  Take a cookie sheet and line it with parchment or wax paper.

Meanwhile let the ice cream soften so that you can reshape it. 

Once the ice cream is softened flatten it out on the cookie sheet using a spoon.  Then place it back in the freezer to harden.

Once the ice cream is ready it's time to put it in between two cookies.  We used a pizza cutter to cut through the ice cream.

Wrap the ice cream sandwich in saran wrap and the freeze for another hour or so.  This ensures that the ice cream sandwich will keep its shape.

If the ice cream softens too much while making the sandwiches, put the ice cream back in the freezer.

Whether strawberry or chocolate is your favorite, this recipe can please the whole family.  With neopolitan ice cream, everyone can get their perfect flavor.  Plus, you really can't go wrong with this peanut buttery greatness!













Recipe

Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/14 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Mix peanut butter and butter in mixing bowl
Add 1/2 cup flour, the sugars, egg, baking powder, baking soda and vanilla. Combine thoroughly
Beat in remaining flour.
Shape dough into 1 in balls.  Roll in sugar. Flatten by crisscross method.
Bake at 375 for 7 to 9 minutes.

Ice Cream Sandwiches

On parchment covered cookie sheet flatten softened ice cream.  Freeze for 1 hour.
Place ice cream on cookies.  Wrap in plastic wrap.  If the ice cream becomes too soft place back in freezer.  Once completed freeze for an additional hour.
Eat quickly once ready!

Mediterranean Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Everything is better grilled and buttery. But not every day calls for deep frying donuts. Sometimes you just need to put it on a hot grill and listen to the sizzle.  This grilled cheese sandwich is on crack, the good kind of crack.  Not the plummer or illegal kind.  It's fairly healthy, has great flavors and easy to make.  Plus as always the cost: a 6 inch sandwich costs under $2.  We believe that's cheaper than a $5 foot long.  Sorry if we got that obnoxious jingle stuck in your head.

Start with some bread. A thick bread, like Ciabatta, is needed.  We took a loaf from Trader Joe's and cut it into fourth, then in half again.  Because the bread is raised on the top we cut a section of it off to make it level.

The next step is to work on the onions. Cut 1/2 an onion and then saute them in some olive oil.  Let them sit when you are done.

Rinse some basil and let dry on a paper towel.

Buy a jar of fire roasted red peppers from Trader Joe's.  They are arguably the best part of the sandwich. (They're not hot just in case you were concerned).

Slice a tomato.  It's about 3-4 slices per sandwich depending on the size of the tomato.

We used 2 types of cheese. Monterrey Jack and Sharp Cheddar.  The cheese needs to be grated. You will use a little less than 1/3 cup of each type per sandwich.

Butter the bread on both sides.

Heat a non-stick pan with olive oil.  On medium heat, place the inside of the bread and let brown.  This will only take a few minutes.  Then flip. 

Place Monterrey Jack on one side, the cheddar on another.  Add basil, tomatoes, grilled onions and peppers to the sandwiches.  Let sit for a minute.

Check the bread to make sure it does not burn.  In order to further melt the cheese place in the microwave for a 30 seconds.

 Cut the sandwich and prepare for greatness.  It's really hard to only eat one side, so good luck!

Recipe

Ingredients:
Ciabatta bread
1/2 Onion
1 jar Trader Joe's Fire Red Pepper
1/2 cup Basil
1/3 cup Monterrey Jack
1/3 cup Sharp Cheddar
3-4 slices tomato
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil

1.Cut bread and butter
2. Saute onions. Let sit.
3. Rinse basil, slice tomato, grate cheeses,
4. Medium heat non-stick pan, poor in olive oil, place inside bread on top. Flip bread
5. Place one type of cheese on each slice. Add basil, tomato, onions, and peppers on top.
6. Microwave for 30 seconds. Cut in half. Eat!