BB: Caesar Club Sandwich

I have been pretty bad lately about keeping up with my fellow bloggers over at the Barefoot Bloggers site for a few months. Which is really a shame, as they've been picking some really good recipe over there that I know for sure taste a whole lot better than the cereal which is my stand by dinner after a long day at work. So when I saw this one, I was happy because I love caeser salad. At least I love the dressing, which I've found makes a lovely dip for crackers. Putting that together with a chicken sandwich was culinary genius for me.

I kept fairly close to the recipe which is always a bit of a shock, even picking up anchovy paste and sun dried tomatoes. The only exceptions I really made were to use a wrap instead of ciabatta bread and to go with bottled lemon juice versus squeezing my own (I know, someday I will get there. I've heard it's lovely in recipes). Also, I went with boneless chicken breasts since I already had that in the freezer.

Now my dressing was a little runny I thought so I might have been a little off on some of my measurements. But OH MY...this was good. Really good. Makes me wonder what the caterer we use for some events at work is putting in their caeser dressing because this was so much more tastier and zingier and just more of everything. It makes me a convert over to homemade dressings for sure. And the chicken was perfect just as it was..now I'm starting to realize that I may be completely inept when it comes to grilling chicken on my foreman grill but I can do quite a decent job with roasting.

This would be an easy enough recipe for me to put together on a weekday night, assuming I did some prep work in the morning  and had the ingredients on hand. It looks great and tastes wonderful.


Caesar Club Sandwich (Ina Garten)
Inocoupons

• 2 split (1 whole) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
• Good olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta
• 1 large garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise
• 1 large ciabatta bread
• 2 ounces baby arugula, washed and spun dry
• 12 sun-dried tomatoes, in oil
• 2 to 3 ounces Parmesan, shaved

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan skin side up. Rub the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until cooked through. Cool slightly, discard the skin and bones, and slice the meat thickly. Set aside.

Meanwhile, place the pancetta on another sheet pan in a single layer. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes, until crisp. Set aside to drain on paper towels.

Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until minced. Add the anchovy paste, mustard, lemon juice, and mayonnaise and process again to make a smooth dressing. (Refrigerate the Caesar dressing if not using it immediately.)

Slice the ciabatta in half horizontally and separate the top from the bottom. Toast the bread in the oven, cut side up, for 5 to 7 minutes; cool slightly. Spread the cut sides of each piece with the Caesar dressing. Place half the arugula on the bottom piece of bread and then layer in order: the sun-dried tomatoes, shaved Parmesan, crispy pancetta, and sliced chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and finish with another layer of arugula. Place the top slice of ciabatta on top and cut in thirds crosswise. Serve at room temperature.