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.

Swiss Chicken Casserole

Ingredients:
4 c. boiling water
2 boxes (6 oz each) sun-dried tomato Florentine long grain and wild rice mix
2 large boneless skinless chicken breast, cut in to 3 strips
6 slices fully cooked ham
1/4 c. diced red bell pepper
3 slices Swiss cheese, cut in half

Directions:
Heat oven to 350. Spray 3 qt. glass baking dish with cooking spray. In baking dish, stir boiling water, rice and rice seasoning mixes.
Cut chicken breasts; wrap ham slice around each chicken piece. Stir bell pepper into rice. Place wrapped chicken over rice.
Cover with foil. Bake 40 to 45 minutes. Uncover; bake about 10 minutes longer or until liquid is absorbed and chicken is no longer pink in center.
Top each chicken breast with cheese slice. Bake uncovered 3 to 4 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Makes 6 servings. Total time 1 hour 15 minutes.

Verdict:
When I made this, in the part of the recipe when it says to remove the foil, I removed the foil and thought Oh crap. It was liquidy so I thought for sure it was ruined. But the water cooked out nicely. I was some what surprised. This is kinda like chicken cordon bleu turned inside out. Blake loved it. One more side note: I just bought a box of long grain and wild rice mix I couldn't find sundried tomato Florentine rice mix. My rice boxes were also only 4.5 oz instead of 6 so I just didn't add as much water.

Creamy Pasta With Ham and Broccoli

Ingredients:
3/4 lb. broccoli trimmed and cut into florets
1 T. olive oil
coarse salt and pepper
6 oz. wide egg noodles
5 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
6 oz. thinly sliced deli ham, cut into 3/4 inch pieces

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss broccoli, oil, 1/2 t. salt and 1/8 t. pepper. Roast until broccoli is tender and lightly browned, 15-20 minutes, tossing halfway through. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook noodles according to package directions.
Reserve 2 c. pasta water; drain pasta.
Return empty pasta pot to med-low heat.
Add cream cheese and 1 c. pasta water; whisk until smooth.
Add broccoli and ham and cook until hot. Gently fold in noodles. Thin sauce to desired consistency with more pasta water and season with salt and pepper.

Makes 4 servings. Total time 30 minutes.

Verdict:
I had low expectations for this meal. Lets just say it surpassed my expectations. It was good. Kind of like a creamy Alfredo sauce but with out the spices. Blake really liked it.