Prosciutto Sandwich w/Basil Apple Fennel Slaw

October 2nd, 2008 | Filed under: entree, recipe, sides & bites | Tags: apple, basil, cheese, fennel, prosciutto, saintalbray, sandwichProsciutto Sandwich w/Basil Apple Fennel Slaw

Lately, I’m loving big, delicious sandwiches full of meats, cheeses and “slaws”. I tried looking up the definition of a slaw, but all I got was “sliced cabbage”, which isn’t really what I had in mind. Here’s my definition. Slaw (n.): A crunchy mix of thinly sliced vegetables and herbs, dressed with mayonnaise or vinaigrette, and usually served as a side or topping with a sandwich. There. I feel better. Now I can use the term slaw as loosely as I have been and we can get back to talking about the sandwich.

I like to think of this sandwich as a transition meal between Summer and Fall. The fennel and basil make it taste Summer-fresh, but the green apple definitely says Fall. The rest of the sandwich is a neat little stack of prosciutto, Saint Albray Cheese — a creamy, Brie-like, spicy cheese — and the slaw. It was perfectly simple, a nice balance between meat and cheese and vegetables, and absolutely delicious!

 

Prosciutto Sandwich w/Basil Apple Fennel Slaw

1 small fennel bulb (or half a large one), thinly sliced
1 large green apple, thinly sliced (peel on)
1/4 cup basil leaves, thinly sliced
a small handful of fennel greens
2 tbsp. good olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon
pinch salt

1 loaf crusty French Bread (I used a Multi-grain loaf)
12 slices prosciutto
4 oz. Saint Albray Cheese, freshly sliced

Begin by making the slaw. Toss the fennel, apple, fennel greens and basil with the olive oil, lemon juice and salt until evenly combined. Set aside.

Slice the baguette in half so that you have a top piece and bottom piece. I like to hollow out the soft bread-y parts of the top half to make more room for the slaw. (Save this and use as a meatloaf or meatball “moistener” instead of dried breadcrumbs.)

Layer the prosciutto, then the cheese, then heap on the slaw. Cover with the hollowed-out top half and cut into 4 sandwiches. Serve with your favorite potato chips or side salad.

Makes 4 sandwiches.

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7 Comments

7 Comments on “Prosciutto Sandwich w/Basil Apple Fennel Slaw”

  1. 1Swedish Mike said at 12:07 am on October 3rd, 2008:Come on, you can’t do this to me. It’s 8:05AM here in the UK when I read this post. I got a full days worth of work before I can go home and try this.I think we need to look at some kind of posting schedule that works, not one where I’ll be thinking about great dishes/sandwiches like this one instead of doing my job. 😉

    Great sandwich, keep up the good job.

    // Mike
    http://www.freestylecookery.com

  2. 2TexasDeb said at 6:10 am on October 3rd, 2008:What a great blend of flavor profiles. This would be perfect for a weekend after-the-yardwork reward meal. Fresh, hearty, won’t heat up the kitchen or the cook, seeing as our “Fall” temperatures haven’t fallen very far yet.My DH doesn’t enjoy fennel so I’ll have to come up with a substitution. Any suggestions? A thin sliced really sweet onion perhaps? Green pepper maybe?
  3. 3mel said at 7:04 am on October 3rd, 2008:Deb – Thanks! Instead of the fennel, you can try thinly sliced Savoy or Napa cabbage or the sweet onion that you suggested. It’s still hot here too – gets up to the mid-80′s during the day, but the humidity has dropped a lot – Thank God!
  4. 4mimi said at 7:18 am on October 3rd, 2008:HI! Just wanted to drop you a note and say that I love your blog! I just discovered it! Its great! I am Cuban also and originally from Miami but have been living in DC for almost 3 years. Will keep reading and trying your recipes!MiMi
  5. 5mel said at 11:57 am on October 3rd, 2008:MiMi – Thanks! I moved away for awhile too, but came back almost 2 years ago and loving it 🙂
  6. 6mel said at 12:02 pm on October 3rd, 2008:Mike – HA!! Awesome comment (Had been caught in my Spam Filter until today 🙂
  7. 7Prosciutto, Cheese, Apple and Fennel Sandwich | He Cooks, She Cooks said at 9:57 pm on September 16th, 2009:[…] was enough flavor-wise, but the sandwich could benefit from the crunch of fennel bulb slices. See this version from Bitchin […]

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