Thursday night I finished with my last appointment about 8:00. Kind of late to pull out the latest kitchen gadgets and whip up an exciting meal. But, carryout didn't sound too healthy or budget-friendly. We had honey turkey and pastrami in the fridge. Sandwiches it was. Now, you can "Cuban" a sandwich pretty easily. And, Connie LOVES dill pickles. Did I ever mention he LOVES dill pickles? I think he could eat a whole jar of the good garlic dills at one sitting. That and mustard. His favorite is Dijon. I love that and Guldens. We have a tough time finding Guldens here in Indy so when we're on Cape Cod, I stock up. Wonder what the TSA folks would think if they opened my suitcase and found SIX bottles of Gulden's Mustard? Ok, fine, I'm not sure I want to know. Remind me sometime to tell you all about bringing the screwdrivers back... That's one of my favorite family stories.
So, here's what wikipedia says about Cuban sandwiches:
A Cuban sandwich is a variation of a ham and cheese originally created in cafes catering to Cuban workers either in Cuba or in the Cuban immigrant communities of Florida, most likely Ybor City in Tampa, Florida.[1][2] Later on, Cuban immigrants and expatriates brought it to Miami[3] where it is also still very popular. The sandwich is made with ham, roasted pork, Swiss cheese, pickles, mustard, and sometimes salami[2] on Cuban bread.[1]
We had some great rolls so I knew I was in business. About twenty minutes later, dinner was served:
Cuban Sandwiches
Ingredients:
two kinds of meat - ham and pork or turkey and ham or turkey and pastrami... use your imagination!
garlic dill pickle slices
swiss cheese slices
Dijon or Gulden's mustard
Kaiser rolls or bulkie rolls (for those of you lucky enough to live where they actually sell these!)
Directions:Split the rolls. Slather them with mustard.
Lay the turkey (or first meat) on the rolls.
Then, the pastrami (or second meat.)
Top with the dill pickle slices.
Then, top with the swiss cheese slices.
You can either cook these in a grill pan or skillet. Whichever you choose, you need to cover the sandwiches with a weight. You can use a full teapot inside a skillet or an actual bacon or panini press.
Cook or grill for about ten minutes per side. You want the cheese to get softened but not necessarily gooey.
