Pressed Picnic Sandwiches

Name: Pressed Picnic Sandwiches
Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 4 h 20 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 large French baguette, sliced in half; Mayo; 4 oz. Cabot Colby Jack cheese, thinly sliced; 1/2 lb. lean smoked ham, thinly sliced; 1/2 lb. bacon, done; 3 oz. sun dried tomatoes; 12 oz. pickle chips; 8 oz. carrots, julienned; Green leaf lettuce, washed and torn; 1/2 Red onion, thinly sliced; 4 celery stalks, julienned; Mustard (if that's your thing)

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Pressed Picnic Sandwiches are customizable picnic-ready subs that are pressed thin so they’re also room savers in your picnic basket or lunch bag.

These are so much fun to make, and the waiting makes you want to eat them more. It’s kinda like that ‘you want what you can’t have right now’ mentality.

But, wait you must.

The sandwich I made with this ham is not a typical sub sandwich, it’s different and soooo good. My muffuletta was the last sandwich I shared with you that’s pressed.

How are Pressed Picnic Sandwiches Made?

This is made with ham that I made last week with Strawberry Balsamic Jam that Mary from Cooking with Mary and Friends sent me.

It was absolutely divine.

I made a mixture of Strawberry Balsamic Onion Jam, butter and Worcestershire sauce, which was a perfect flavor combination for this piggy, and put it in the slow cooker for about 7 hours. I intermittently brushed it with the jam mixture while it was slow cooking.

This jam is so delicious, and I still haven’t made chicken with it, but I will be making it soon. It’s so good and so very different. I’ve scooped out some and put on cream cheese to eat with Triscuits, I’ve put a little on cottage cheese and toast, and I’m looking forward to making a chicken marinade.

Balsamic vinegar and berries always make a good team.

I made these pressed picnic sandwiches because I’m a sandwich fiend and sometimes I get the urge to create a brand spankin’ new one when it has been too long. If you don’t like what I put on mine, feel free to switch out ingredients.

However, I urge you to try it my way at least once, even if you feel the need to change it.

I don’t think you’ll want to after you give it a chance.

I press my sandwiches by wrapping it in saran wrap or parchment paper, then in aluminum foil, then press between the counter and something heavy.

This was the last one I made…

I let it sit on the counter for about 30 min, then transferred it to the refrigerator to sit with a heavy book on top of it overnight. This one actually was in the fridge for a day and a half.

AAALLLLL the goodies…

My method is to slice the bread longwise, then “gut” each half by pulling bread out from the middle and making a well. At that point, you have two sides with plenty of room to pile your toppings on.

You can add anything you want to, but this is a version I’ve made a couple of times and was a hit.

I filled this Italian bread (the size will make 4 servings) with apricot jalapeno mayo (whoa, divine), ham and more ham, bacon, sun dried tomatoes, pickles, carrots, Cabot’s Colby Jack cheese sliced, green leaf lettuce, red onion, chopped celery and more mayo.

They’re just so damn good.

The mayo is something I didn’t expect it to be.

Outstanding.

On a whim, I put two apricots on my grill pan with one jalapeno (cut seeds out this time), cut sides down for about 3-5 minutes. I peeled them and threw them in my food processor with 1 1/2 tbsp of Mary’s jam and 1 1/2 cups of mayonnaise. And damnit I forgot to take a photo of it, but I’m definitely making it again so I can post it for you.

Take it out of the refrigerator and slice it into individual size servings and wrap with parchment or butcher paper.

I added a ribbon that I made with baker’s twine to make it a bit more secure.

Because I like cute shit like that.

If you are going picnicking, put them all in a gallon sized zip lock back with an ice block wrapped in another small plastic bag – you don’t want condensation (water) getting in your bag in case you need to use it for something else.

Here’s your printable –

Yield: 4 sandwiches