The Alternative Caprese Sandwich

Enter into any eating establishment and ask for a sandwich and you would expect to receive your chosen filling in between two slices of bread, and rightly so.
This week we had on the cafe menu mozzarella, basil, tomato and pesto on warm ciabatta as our sandwich of the day, as shown below.



Mozzarella, Basil, Tomato and Pesto on warm Ciabatta

One customer's order I received this week had the strange request of the sandwich but with the filling on the side. It's always hard when customers request changes as a chef serves any dish their own way and it's not always easy to interpret exactly what the customer is asking for, if that makes sense.

Charging the same as the sandwich on the board I also had to ensure I didn't get carried away putting more ingredients on the plate. Good for the customer but not good for the business profits. As one of my previous managers always stated "we are a business not a charity".

So, using the same amount of ingredients but spreading them out to fill the plate, I placed the mozzarella and tomatoes in layers on a small bed of rocket with basil leaves tucked in between, and the pesto in a small dish on the side. The oven warmed ciabatta was sliced and placed on the side.
 

Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil and Pesto with Ciabatta

The result looked lovely and the customer was happy that her request had been executed to how she wanted it.
For me I thought what a novel and alternative way to serve a sandwich this way in a cafe. I do love doing things differently, and with a twist.

The Alternative Caprese Sandwich

I wonder if all customers would be happy with this alternative way of  serving the cafe sandwich.

Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil, and Pesto with Warm Ciabatta.
The Alternative Caprese Sandwich

National Sandwich Week 2015 - May 10th - 16th

This week is National Sandwich Week so I investigated a little into where the humble sandwich originated from.
The story is that John Montague, the Fourth Earl Of Sandwich, was such an enthusiastic gambler that he didn't like leaving the gambling table whilst playing. So, instead of breaking for dinner, he asked that someone bring him some meat between a couple of slices of bread. Later on, others would do the same saying something like "I'll have what Sandwich is having" and, eventually, people would just ask for a "Sandwich"

Nowadays the humble sandwich has become big business in the catering industry and fillings and bread types have become far more  adventurous than in the days of The Fourth Earl Of Sandwich!!

At The Nook On The Square , because our daily lunch menu changes each week, I am always changing our sandwich fillings to keep things interesting for the customer and, also, because it keeps me on my toes always looking for new ideas.
Below is just a small selection of what we have produced the past year.

Our take on the New York Reuben -  home cooked beef pastrami, sauerkraut, pickles and Russian dressing all served on toasted sourdough.    

The Nook Reuben
National Sandwich Week

The breakfast ciabatta with old English sausage, best back bacon, chestnut mushrooms and roasted tomatoes. 

The breakfast Ciabatta
National Sandwich Week

Grilled halloumi and roasted veg on red onion focaccia.



Grilled Halloumi & Roasted Vegetables on Red Onion Focaccia
National Sandwich Week
 

Always popular - mozzarella, tomato and basil.

Mozzarella, tomato and basil focaccia
National Sandwich Week

Our own home cooked ham with rocket and tomato on red onion focaccia.

Home cooked ham , rocket and tomato on focaccia
National Sandwich Week

Our Mexican BLT ciabatta - bacon, lettuce, tomato and guacamole.
  

Mexican BLT
National Sandwich Week
 

And this weeks special - goats cheese, basil and roasted balsamic strawberries.

Goats cheese, Basil and Roasted Balsamic Strawberries
National Sandwich Week

So what's your favourite filling?

Linking up this week with:
Tasty Tuesday
Foodie Friday and Everything Else