Don’t you love, crisp, thin, crunchy things?
Ya know how you get an idea stuck in your head and can’t stop thinking about it? Well, I do that all the time. Five or six years ago I was watching one of Giada’s cooking show and she made this turkey sandwich with crisp pieces of puffed pastry. The puffed pastry wasn’t baked the normal way where it gets about two inches high (I am not a fan) but was sandwiched between two baking sheets lined with parchment paper and baked until crisp and brown.
I started thinking about doing this sandwich for a “back to school” post but then what kid is going to take a puff pastry sandwich to school. Maybe same kid that would have a pig roast for his first birthday (grandson Donovan). He might not like puff pastry either but I’m sure you will like this “bread” with either a spread or just put some freshly sliced lunchmeat with some avocado and mayo and have the crunchiest flakiest sandwich ever.
When my kids were in school seems like all they wanted for lunch was either pbj or turkey on white bread of course, plain, no mayo or mustard. When I was growing up my favorite sandwich was probably a thick slice of bologna on white bread with mustard or an egg sandwich made like a toad in a hole but with two slices of bread.
Sandwiches have come a long way since I was a kid; everything but the kitchen sink gets put on top of sandwiches/burgers — eggs for one. I’m hoping this “egg on top of everything” trend goes away soon. I like eggs but I want them for breakfast. Muffulettas — Believe it or not, I’ve never had one. If I had, I’d probably posted about it. I’d never had a Patty Melt until I posted a recipe back in 2014. I’ve sampled everything from pig’s ears to tripe but never a muffuletta; maybe it’s time I try to make one of those.
BLAST FROM THE PAST: One of my all time favorite salads when catering was the Crunchy Romaine Toss Salad which I named Emerald City Salad after my daughter and I went to see Wiz a few years ago.
Fresh shrimp makes the best shrimp salad.
Cut the puffed pastry into rectangles or any shape you want. Wouldn’t heart shapes be pretty? Put on parchment paper and then cover with another piece of parchment paper.
Take another cookie sheet (mine is kind of old) and put on top of the parchment covered puffed pastry shapes.
Season the shrimp with some “slap ya mama”, more if you like it hot, less if you want just a little spice.
Cook the shrimp in a non-stick skillet. You can add a tad of olive oil or butter if you want.
Chop your shrimp into small pieces and finely mince the celery.
Mix the mayo, lime juice and lime zest with the shrimp and celery and stir to combine. Chill until ready to make your sandwiches.
Add whatever toppings you want; I have tomatoes, pea shoots, avocado and some baby romaine lettuce leaves.
Top one piece of the puffed pastry with some shrimp salad and avocado, then…
Top with tomato and some pea shoots and lettuce leaves.
I was going to use this for a “back to school” sandwich blog but when I went with the shrimp salad, I thought “no kid would eat that”, but I just had to take a picture of this little vintage school desk.
- 1 lb. shrimp, shelled and deveined
- Slap ya momma seasoning
- 1/3-1/2 c. mayonnaise
- 3/4 c. finely minced celery
- zest and juice of one lime
- dash cayenne pepper, optional
- To make the puffed pastry pieces: Cut the puffed pastry into rectangle or other shapes.
- Season the shelled and deveined shrimp with some of the slap ya momma seasoning. Heat a non-stick skillet and add the shrimp, single layer, and cooked until pink and done, about 3-4 minutes; turning halfway through. You can add a tad of olive oil or butter to the skillet if you want while cooking the shrimp.
- Chop the shrimp into small pieces and finely minced the celery. Mix the shrimp, celery, zest and juice of lime and enough mayonnaise to hold it all together.
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