Muffuletta-esk Sandwich

Despite my love of bread, I'm really not a big sandwich eater. I don't have anything against sandwiches, and the ones I do like, I really really like. I just don't eat them often. This little number is my own creation based on a sandwich I tried when I lived at Fort Polk, La. called a muffuletta. Please note, this is not a muffuletta though. I have not and will likely never be interested in an olive spread. Ever. And I fix my sandwiches very plainly. You may want to add some mustard or lettuce or other normal sandwich items to your version, but here's the basic form of it. I use a good sandwich roll, turkey, salami, and provolone. The key to these though begins with the bread! You must have a good bread for these. Kaiser rolls usually work good, but there are others that will work as well.

Bread rolls

2-4 slices of turkey

1-2 slices of salami

1-2 slices of provolone

This is a very simple sandwich - all you do is layer the parts. Cut the roll in half and place on baking sheet. Depending on the size of your bread, layer 2-4 slices of turkey, 1-2 slices of salami, and 1-2 slices of provolone. For the sandwich pictured, I used 2 slices of turkey and 1 each of salami and provolone.

Turn oven on broil and toast sandwich until top of roll is golden brown and provolone has melted to desired consistency. Watch it closely. You may need to pull the tops and let the cheese melt a bit longer. The goal is to warm the meat and slightly melt the cheese.

Add some chips and a fruit salad, and you have a wonderful and fairly healthy meal!

Grilled Peanut Butter

The tried and true stand-by 10-minute dinner in my house has always been grilled peanut butter. I know, I know! Huh? Yeah, I get lots of "you're fixing what???" every time I make this and post something about it, so I figured, why not share? This is something I grew up with my daddy making for me, and I've made it for my daughter nearly all her life. She's even introduced it to a few of her friends. Apparently, grilled peanut butter and banana was one of Elvis Presley's favorite dishes, but since I don't like the texture of bananas, I'll just stick with my favorite!

Bread

Crunchy peanut butter

Butter

I'll go ahead and warn you, if you've ever made a grilled cheese, then this will be a easy-peasy for you. Put about 1-1.5 Tbsp of butter in your skillet, and turn the heat on med-high. Then simply spread a healthy dose of crunchy peanut butter (yes, I have tried it with creamy, and while it works in a pinch, it will run out of the sandwich a whole lot more) on one piece of bread. Then butter one side of the other slice of bread.

Once the butter in the skillet is hot, place the sandwich, butter side up into the skillet. Be sure not to let it sit too still. I like to shake the skillet back and forth slightly to move the sandwich around. Cook for a couple minutes until the bottom is brown, then flip the butter side down and cook for a few minutes more.

Sometimes we serve it with fries; sometimes we serve it with chips. Add some grapefruit or cantaloupe, and you've got a tasty and very quick meal.