Antipasti Sandwich

Ingredients:
coarse salt and pepper
1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced lengthwise
1 red bell pepper
1 loaf crusty bread, sliced in half lengthwise
1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
1 T. lemon juice
1 T. olive oil
1/2 lb. mortadella, prosciutto, or thinly sliced deli ham
1/2 c. fresh parsley leaves
1 c. marinated artichoke hearts, drained and quartered or sliced
1/2 c. shaved Parmesan
1/2 c. pepperoncini, drained and halved if large

Directions:
*Make this sandwich ahead of time. Allowing the flavors to mingle.
Sprinkle a double layer of paper towels with salt and place zucchini on top. Sprinkle with salt and roll up like a newspaper. Let sit 10 minutes to draw out excess liquid.
Over a gas flame or under a broiler, roast bell pepper until skin is charred, 10 minutes, turning frequently. Place in a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let sit 10 minutes. Rub the pepper with a paper towel to remove skin, then core, discard seeds, and slice flesh into strips.
Pull out about 2 c. bread from the inside loaf halves. In a food processor, combine beans, garlic, lemon juice and oil and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Completely cover inside of both bread halves with an even layer of bean puree.
Arrange zucchini on bottom half of bread. Top with mortadella, parsley, roasted pepper, artichokes, Parmesan, and pepperoncini. Sandwich with top half of bread and wrap tightly in plastic. Place on a baking sheet in refrigerator. Place another baking sheet on top and weight with several heavy cans. Let sit at least 3 hours (or up to overnight). To serve, unwrap and cut into wedges.

Makes 6-8 servings. Total time 25 minutes + chilling.

Verdict:
First off I just used regular ham. I also only let the sandwich sit for 2 hours. I still liked it. Blake liked it too except for the pepperoncinis. I also ate it for lunch the next day and it still tasted good. The bread was getting a little soggy so I wouldn't have it sit for more than a day.

Quiche With Artichoke Hearts and Parmesan

Ingredients:
2 9-inch frozen pie shells
2 T. butter
1 onion, chopped
9 oz. artichoke hearts, slivered lenghtwise
salt and pepper
4 large eggs
2 1/2 c. half and half
1 c. parmesan, grated

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400. Line pie shells with foil and fill with dried beans. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil and beans and lower temperature to 350 and bake until lightly browned, 3-5 minutes. Cool slightly.
Melt butter in a large skillet. Add onion and saute for 3 minutes. Squeeze moisture from artichokes and saute for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and divide evenly between shells.
Whisk eggs, half and half, cheese, salt and pepper. Pour mixture over artichoke mixture. Bake until set in center and lightly browned, 35-40 minutes. Cool slightly before serving.

Makes 2 quiches. Total time 55 minutes.

Verdict:
I used those marinated artichoke hearts. I also put this all in one pie pan. This tasted good. It needed a little bit of salt. It won't fall under my favorite list but it is still good.