Italian BLT

I love sandwiches!  In particular, nothing beats a good old BLT!!  Last night, before Erin and I headed off for yet another shift at Scotties Tournament of Hearts (yep, today is now on day SIX of the event!!) I made us a super quick, super delicious version of a BLT - including tons of fresh basil, sliced bocconcini, crispy salty bacon... oh yeah, and a bit of garlic - maybe not the best idea before a 5 hour shift of interpersonal information giving, but I think cause we're so cute, people are pretty forgiving.  Plus most patrons at Scotties seem to be drunk, so... does it really matter???  Anyways, here's the recipe!

Italian BLT
Sandwich Ingredients:
1 loaf calabrese or ciabatta bread - your preference
8 slices bacon
2 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
4 leaves romaine lettuce
2 good sized bocconcini balls (or about half of a 200g bucket)
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil

Basil Spread Ingredients:
1/2 cup low fat mayonnaise
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1 clove garlic

Method:
First things first, get that bacon going.  Cook to your desired crispness and then set aside on paper towels.

While that's happening, get your basil spread ready: combine all of the ingredients in a mini food processor and pulse/chop till it's nice and smooth. 

Slice tomatoes, wash lettuce and slice the bread lengthwise down the middle.  Pull out the the inner bread guts and then fight Erin for them later.

In a small bowl, whisk together the balsamic and olive oil.  Set everything out like an assembly line.

Start by spreading some of the basil spread inside the bottom and the top of the loaf.  Layer the bottom with bacon, then follow with tomatoes and the sliced bocconcini.  Sprinkle with the balsamic/oil mixture.

Throw on the lettuce and then the top half of the bun!  Now slice crosswise into about 2 inch sandwiches - done and done!  So great! 

nom nom

Make sure to keep any leftover basil spread in the fridge - I used mine for dinner tonight, in a completely unexpected way!! 

Check me out on shift at Scotties:

MASCOT HAPPINESS!!!