Almond Chicken Salad with Asparagus

 

It is starting to feel a lot like summer around here.  I usually take a casual walk on Sundays, but last Sunday was so hot I couldn't talk myself into it.

The hot weather has discouraged me from riding my bike to work as well.  During the Spring I rode my bike to work two to three times a week.  Last week I didn't ride my bike to work once.

Jam and Brie Sandwich

I grew up eating open faced jam and cheddar cheese sandwiches.  They are still a favorite of mine.  We wouldn't melt the cheese on the bread.  It was a simple sandwich to make.

This brie and jam toasted sandwich is a rift on that idea.  I made this on sourdough bread.  It wasn't a complicated sandwich, but it was  delicious.

Prosciutto, Brie, and Pear Sandwich

Last Fall I went to Newport, Rhode Island  for a long weekend.  We visited many large mansions and walked along the ocean.  We also ate at a little cafe that served delicious sandwiches.  I ate a prosciutto, brie, and pear sandwich.  I though it was such a unique and creative idea.

I decided to create it at my apartment a few weeks ago.  I search online to see if there were other sandwiches like it, and it is not that unique.  There are apparently many people who eat prosciutto, brie, and pear sandwiches.  It's hard to be unique these days.

Smoked Salmon and Egg Sandwich

I went to Iceland a few weeks ago.  I ate lamb, black licorice, a rhubarb cake, and a couple of smoked salmon sandwich with thinly sliced eggs.  I ate the first sandwich for lunch and enjoyed it so much that I ate another for dinner.

What do you know about Iceland?  A friend who traveled with me said the entire country only has a little over 300,000 people.  The language, Icelandic, is derived from old Norse.  Everyone I encountered spoke perfect English.  It was impressive.  

Ruben Quesadilla

Since I moved, I have wanted to ride my bike to work.  Today I did it.  I feel a sense of accomplishment.

It was a beautiful day for a bike ride.  It was sunny and not too hot.

Turkey, Bacon, and Ranch Panini

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Unfortunately, I did not spend Thanksgiving with my family.  Given how expensive it is to fly during the holidays, I had to choose going home either Thanksgiving or Christmas.  Christmas won.

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving anyway.  I went to the Great Smokey National Park and Nashville.  The Great Smokey National Park was beautiful.  It felt and looked like winter, but winter is breathtaking even if it can be a little unpleasant.

Turkey and Cranberry Sauce Sandwich

I have two major complaints about winter:  my toes are perpetually cold and my skin is dry regardless of how much lotion I use.

My hands are often cold, but cold hands don't bother me as much as cold feet.  I'm sure as the winter progresses, my list of complaints will get longer and longer.

Ham and Robusto Grilled Cheese with Mango Chutney

By my office, there is a restaurant that only sells grilled cheese sandwiches.  I have never been, but I have wanted to go for a few weeks.  

I have been to a restaurant whose sole focus was macaroni and cheese and another who only sold rice pudding.  You have to be pretty confident in your product if you are only going to sell one type of food.

Grilled Vegetable Sandwich

From what I have read on other food blogs, today is cheesecake day.  I can't imagine that is a real holiday, but I have enjoyed reading several posts about one of my favorite desserts.

Instead of posting a decadent dessert recipe, I'm posting a veggie packed sandwich.  Those are almost the same thing, right?

With this recipe I can pretend I'm a healthy eater, when in fact, I ate a frozen yogurt sunday for lunch today.  

Vegetable Garbanzo Wraps

As I get older, I care more and more about the food I put into my body.  I exercise more and am less likely to binge on a pint of Ben and Jerry's.  There were times in junior high school when I would eat a candy bar and soda for lunch.  It provided no nutritional benefit, and by the end of school I was ravenous.  

A work friend let me look through a health cookbook called Eat to Live Cookbook.  These wraps are one of the few recipes I copied down.  All the recipes were packed with vegetables and had no meat.

The recipe says it makes four wraps, but I ended up making 6 wraps with the amount of vegetable filling I had.  The directions also wanted me to cup of the lettuce and mix it in with the other vegetables.  I decided to keep the lettuce leaves whole.

Asparagus, Mozzarella, and Basil Sandwich

What do you do when you have leftover baguette, mozzarella cheese, and basil left over from your tomato, basil, and mozzarella sandwich?  You replace the tomato with another vegetable: asparagus!

I think these ingredients made a beautiful, bright, and green sandwich.  I made my sandwich with frozen asparagus.  I heated them up in the microwave before adding them to the sandwich.  You could use fresh, but you'd need to cook it beforehand. 

I cut the asparagus to fit the baguette, added salt and pepper, and then layered on the mozzarella slices.

Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil Sandwich

For a few months I have been attending exercise classes after work at my office's gym.  The people who attend are all regulars.  I enjoy getting some exercise after sitting all day.  

A few have recently told me that I look like I have lost some weight. I really like when people tell me that, and I really like when it's true.  Unfortunately, I have not lost weight recently.  I weigh myself regularly, and all my cloths fit the same.

I like to think that even though I weight the same, I'm a little firmer.  That seems plausible, right?  It has definitely improved my overall fitness.  I can kind of do real pushups now.  I don't go as low as I should, but four months ago I just collapsed when attempting a real pushup.

Cosi has a sandwich like this.  They make theirs on a really delicious flat bread, but it's the same idea.  It's simple but delicious.  I ate this sandwich two ways:  an open-faced, toasted version and an un-toasted version.  The toasted version is the best.

Prosciutto, Fig, and Brie Grilled Cheese

A new restaurant opened near my office that only served grilled cheese sandwiches.  There is also a restaurant that makes waffle sandwiches.  I guess people in my part of town like creative sandwiches.

 I haven't at either restaurant yet, but I these specialized restaurants are kind of fun.  When I went to New York in December, we went to a rice pudding restaurant and a macaroni and cheese restaurant.

I'm not sure what kind of grilled cheese sandwiches they make, but this sandwich is posh enough for a grilled cheese sandwich restaurant.  It's crunchy, gooey, savory, and a little sweet.

Avocado Toast

Today during lunch I heard about Elon Musk for the first time.  I looked him up on google after my lunch break, and I'm wondering how I never heard about him before.  Have I been living under a rock?

I feel like I learn more during my lunch break talking to people than I do any other time at work.  I'm not sure how useful the information I learn at lunch is, but it's always interesting.

My parents were into avocado toast for a while several years ago.  It's simple but tasty.  Avocados are so creamy and delicious.  I could probably eat many questionable things if they are smothered with a good, rip avocado.

This recipe, if you can call it a recipe, came from Everyday Food.  It's shameful the amount of cooking clips I watch on YouTube any given week.  

Curry Chicken Salad

Tomorrow is the Friday before a three day weekend.  I'm like a kid waiting for Christmas.  I made a New Year's resolution to get out of town every three day weekend, and tomorrow my first long weekend begins.  Until then, I'll have to content myself by looking at pictures of chicken salad.