Sandwich Blog
Wednesday September 3, 2008
LET THE JUDGING BEGIN The final search for America's Best Sandwich is underway!
After a beautiful Labor Day weekend here in Napa Valley, we returned to Mezzetta rested and ready to take on the challenge of judging the hundreds of fabulous recipes from all corners of the U.S.A. We are delighted with the style and inventiveness of your sandwich creations, and are now in the process of going through each and every recipe. Our judging team, headed by Executive Chef Shea Rosen and Consulting Chef Marisa Chruchill, will narrow the field down to the top ten, and then the top three entries in each category. The final twelve contenders will be judged on the basis of appearance, taste, creativity and use of Mezzetta products at a gala sandwich luncheon here at Mezzetta. Stay tuned for an announcement of the winners on September 15! Here are some of the fab photos sent in with the entries.
Tuesday July 29, 2008
MEZZETTA MAKES SANDWICHES IN THE BIG APPLE Gourmet Sandwich University and the Mezzetta Paninoteca travel to the Fancy Food Show
Not long ago, we packed up our panini grills and took our sandwich show on the road. Destination: the 54th Annual Summer Fancy Food Show at the Javits Convention Center in New York City. Mission: to sample Mezzetta products (along with 2,400 other producers of the world's most special specialty foods) to thousands of influential members of the gourmet food community.
Usually the show is an opportunity to introduce new products to the food world. Since this is the Summer of Sandwiches, our goal was to generate buzz for our Make That Sandwich Contest and talk to customers about how Mezzetta ingredients turn bland-wiches into gourmet sandwiches. Our Mezzetta Executive Chef Shea Rosen and Consulting Chef Marisa Churchill had created three fabulous recipes in our test kitchen and we planned to serve them at the show. I mean, how hard good it be?
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Mezzetta Cuban
Mezzetta Sliced Olive Roast Beef Hero
Veggie Mediterranean
Turns out, a little harder than we anticipated. Maybe it was because, bored of bits of biscotti, chips of chocolate and crumbs of cheese, showgoers were looking for some real food. Maybe it was the savory aromas of grilling that wafted through the airspace around our booth. Maybe it was our sparkling personalilties and logoed aprons. Whatever the reason, the first day, as soon as we put out our platters of Mezzetta gourmet sandwiches, we were indundated with customers. Slammed. In The Weeds. Keeping up with demand was barely possible. We ran out of bread (from the wonderful Amy's Bread in Hell's Kitchen). We ran out of meat (Cabbie, take me to Whole Foods and step on it). We raided our display racks for more jars of Deli-Sliced Peperoncini and Kona Coast Honey Mustard. At the end of the day, we were sandwiched-out. And the busiest days of the show were yet to come.
Luckily, the Fancy Food Show offers a temporary chef service which provides kitchen hands-for-hire. The next morning, a wonderful culinary professional named Chef Phil showed up at the booth. He cleaned, organized, prepped and generally got everything under control so we were free to do what we normally do at shows: talk to customers about our great products. I even had a chance to sneak away and deliver boxes of Mezzetta products to The Today Show, Good Morning America and Food and Wine Magazine. Who knows? Maybe we'll see Al Roker with a jar of Napa Valley Bistro Creamy Marinara someday soon!
If you want to recreate the sandwiches that had New York waiting on line, here are the recipes:
Mezzetta Cuban
2 slices French Bread
2 T Kona Coast Honey Mustard
1/8 Cup Deli-Sliced Mezzetta Jalapenos
1/8 Cup Deli-Sliced Mezzetta Banana Wax Peppers
1 Slice Swiss Cheese
1 Slice Fontina Cheese
2 Slices Black Forest Ham
1 Slice Roasted Pork
Mezzetta Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
Preheat the panini grill according to manufacturers instructions. Plasce one tablespoon of mustard on to each slice of the bread. Sprinkle the peppers evenly on top of the4 mustard. Place the sliecs of cheese on top of the peppers and top the cheese with the meat. Press the sandwich together and brush a light coating of olive oil on to the slices of bread. Place the sandwich in the panini grill and cook for 5-6 minutes or until the bread is golden brown and cheese melted.
Tuesday June 24, 2008
OLIVES, WINES, SANDWICHES AND VERY BIG HATS Mezzetta goes to the Napa Valley Wine Auction
Several Fridays ago, we packed up cases of Napa Valley Bistro Olives, platters of cheeses, and two large salamis and headed north up Highway 29 to St. Helena. Destination: the Napa Valley Wine Auction's "Taste of Napa" event. Held on the spacious grounds of Trinchero Family Estates (home to Sutter Home Winery) this event gathers Napa's top chefs, vintners, and food purveyors in a celebration of food and wine. It's all for a good cause, too. Since its inception in 1981, the auction has raised $88 million for local health care, youth services and affordable housing. Mezzetta was proud to be a part of the wine auction, and to give back to our local community.
We decided to wear the crazy hats in case Town and Country or People magazine wanted to take our photo.
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As it turns out, the paparazzi was not a problem, since the press was more interested in following Opah Winfrey around, who was making her first wine auction appearance.
We, on the other hand, were checking out the sandwich scene. A number of the food vendors were serving up some very gourmet sandwiches including this juicy-looking pulled pork from a popular local barbecue joint called Barber's Q. This shot was taken by Jason Tinacci, staff photographer for the Napa Valley Vintners Association.
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But we were most excited to have Mezetta as a featured condiment served alongside the starring sandwich of the day, a Panino Filletto created by the culinary team at Trinchero Family Estates. Served inside the winery, where the auction of very expensive barrels of wine was taking place, this grilled sandwich consisted of thin slices of filet mignon, smoked gouda cheese and fresh basil, grilled on a panini grill and served with Mezzetta Pimento Stuffed Spanish Olives and Sweet Cherry Peppers.
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Trinchero Winery Chefs Jeffrey Starr and James Houghton did not use any spreads or condiments on the sandwich. They wanted to keep the flavors relatively simple so the sandwich would not overpower the wines being tasted. We've adapted the recipe for home use, and jazzed it up with some sassy Mezzetta products. Great with $100 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon--or whatever you like to drink!
Roast Beef Panino with Smoked Mozzarella, Roasted Red Bell Pepper Aioli and Sweet Cherry Peppers
(yield 1 sandwich)
2 slices French bread
1T. Kone Coast Honey Mustard
1 T. roasted red bell pepper aioli
1/8 c. Mezzetta Deli-Sliced Sweet Cherry Peppers
1 slice (1 oz) smoked mozzarella or
2 slices (2 oz) roast tenderloin of beef (use good-quality medium rare deli roast beef slices or prepare your own)
2 fresh basil leaves
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
Roasted Red Bell Pepper Aioli
½ cup mayonnaise
1 Mezzetta Roasted Red Bell Pepper
1 clove fresh garlic (optional)
Aioli Procedure:
Place ingredients in food processor fitted with the blade attachment and process until blended
Panino Procedure:
Pre-heat the panini grill according to manufacturer’s instructions. Place one tablespoon of mustard on one slice and a tablespoon of the Roasted Red Bell Pepper Aioli on the other. Arrange sweet cherry peppers slices on the aioli; layer with slices of roast beef and smoked mozzarella. Top cheese with basil slices. Press the sandwich together and brush a light coating of extra-virgin olive oil on to the slice of bread. Place the sandwich in the Panini grill and cook for 5-6 minutes, or until bread in golden brown and cheese has melted. Serve with your favorite olives.
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Tuesday May 20, 2008
TGIF: GOURMET SANDWICH UNIVERSITY GOES ON A FIELD TRIP Napa, California. The Oxbow Public Market opened this fall in downtown Napa, and we've been hearing some great things about it. The market, a smaller version of San Francisco's uber-tasty Ferry Plaza Market, features fresh and seasonal ingredients from local and artisanal purveyors and farmers.
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No permission slips were needed for this foodie field trip!
A sandwich-savvy spy told us to check out Folio Enoteca and Winery. This tasty little cafe is owned and operated by the Michael Mondavi Family and serves their selection of Folio wines along with a fresh, local, seasonal menu of casual bites. We heard Chef Sarah Scott, who headed up the kitchen at Robert Mondavi Winery for years, has created some terrifc sandwich offerings and we decided to take a long lunch last Friday and see just what all the buzz was about. Well, if you love gourmet sandwiches paired with scrumptious Sauvignon Blanc, in a chic but Napa Valley-casual atmosphere, this is the place for you. Prices are in the $8-14 range for sandwiches, salads and entrees
Since we are Mezzetta, and olives are our thing, we started with a dish of the Citrus Olives Mix, a lively little combo of Mediterranean olive varieties with fennel, orange and lemon zest. Mezzetta uses fennel, a classic Italian ingredient, in our Mezzetta Napa Valley Bistro Pitted Bistro Blend Olives, which are also marinated in Napa Valley Chardonnay. No more delightful way to start a meal than with a big bowl of olives!
Along with soups, entree salads, a pasta selection (that day Rigatoni with Braising Greens, Garlic, Reggiano Parmigiano and Toasted Bread Crumbs)) and a Grilled item (Mahi Mahi Brochettes with Romesco Sauce and Farro Salad), Friday's menu featured three cold and three hot pressed sandwiches. Here's what we ordered:
Fulton Valley Chicken Breast with Applewood Smoked Bacon, Oven Roasted Tomatoes and Arugula
Slow Roasted Pork with Carmelized Onions, Spicy Tomato Relish and St. George Cheese
Roasted Peppers and Avocado with Pickled Red Onions, Meyer Lemon and Herbed Cream Cheese
Prosciutto with Date and Olive Tapenade, Teleme and Arugula
Now, this one was just crying out for some Mezzetta Deli-Sliced Peperoncini...something zesty and tart to cut through the richness of the fat from the prosciutto and teleme!
Sandwichwes were all on chewy, delicious artisan bread and accompanied by a fresh Giardiniera mix with slices of fennel, baby cauliflower and carrots.
The 2007 Folio Sauvignon Blanc was a perfecto sandwich pairing wine. I think it's my new favorite Sauv-Blanc. Hello, summertime!
No, we did not have room for dessert despite the fact that the Buttermilk Panna Cotta with fresh, local strawberries was hard to resist. Instead, we sublimated sugar for shopping at the cute shop called Fete next door.
You will be seeing mav and HI in these at the Napa Valley Wine Auction in a couple of weeks, where we will be providing samples of our fabulous Mezzetta Specialty Olives for all the beautiful people and help raise money for local charities. Stay tuned for our sandwich report from there!
Wednesday April 30, 2008
WE VISIT PITTSBURGH AND PRIMATIS Last week, Mezzetta chef Shea Rosen travelled to Pittsburgh to do a couple of sandwich demos at the Giant Eagle Market stores. The idea was to show people how Mezzetta products like Peperoncinis and Roasted Red Bell Pepper Strips can be used to make any sandwich snazzier. We'll post some of Shea's sandwich creations in a later blog.
In the meantime, we asked our regional manager Tony Gaudio to take him to Primanti Bros. for one of their famous, French-fry filled sandwich. Although they didn't make the pilgrimage to the original store in the Strip district, they did have a bite at the Cranberry Township edition (there are quite a few Primanti Bros in and around Pittsburgh, and surprisingly, two in Fort Lauderdale!). Shea and Tony chowed down, and snapped these shots for our blog. For more about Primanti Bros. sandwiches, check out their website at www.primantibros.com. You'll also find helpful links to Pittsburgh's Penguins, Pirates and Steelers. Gotta love a sandwich joint that supports their hometown sports teams!
- LET THE JUDGING BEGIN
- Wednesday September 3, 2008
- MEZZETTA MAKES SANDWICHES IN THE BIG APPLE
- Tuesday July 29, 2008
- OLIVES, WINES, SANDWICHES AND VERY BIG HATS
- Tuesday June 24, 2008
- TGIF: GOURMET SANDWICH UNIVERSITY GOES ON A FIELD TRIP
- Tuesday May 20, 2008
- WE VISIT PITTSBURGH AND PRIMATIS
- Wednesday April 30, 2008
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