The Ultimate Fried Egg Sandwich {a Guide}

I don't know about your family, but in mine the fried egg sandwich was the quintessential "go-to" lazy day comfort food dinner. I don't know what it is about a fried egg and a slab of cheddar slapped between two pieces of toasted bread, but it almost always sounds good. You can make it in about five minutes and I can just about guarantee you'll have the ingredients on hand.

The other thing that's awesome about this sandwich is that, much like any other sandwich, it's infinitely customizable. The only thing that must remain is the egg. Switch out everything else, but as long as you keep that egg you can label it a "fried egg sandwich".

Unless of course you scramble the egg. Then it would have to be a "scrambled egg sandwich" wouldn't it?

But, as my brother would say, I digress.

Hubby and I have been enjoying traditional fried egg sandwiches every Sunday night now for awhile. It is so nice to have a few routines thrown into your weekly menu- not only does it make it a little easier to plan meals, it gives us something sure to look forward to! For instance, our week looks like this:

Monday- who knows. This is Travis' day off, so we don't plan anything. Usually we eat out or make something easy at home.
Tuesday- normal, but I can plan something a little more complicated or time-intensive because I don't have afternoon or evening activities.
Wednesday- Soup of some kind in the winter, salads in the summer
Thursday- normal
Friday- pizza
Saturday- breakfast for dinner
Sunday- Fried egg sandwiches and smoothies

See? Just a little structure.

So back to Sunday. We usually aren't super hungry on Sundays because we have a late lunch and just spend the afternoon napping or doing lazy things, so a light supper of sandwiches and smoothies (I'll have to share my staple smoothie guidelines with you soon!) is just perfect.

The other day, though, we decided to go a little crazy on our sandwiches. You know, break out of the order and make some chaos in the kitchen? It was fun and the end result was amazing. Best fried egg sandwich ever.

I want to share it with you, not because it's an amazing recipe you need to follow step by step, but because I want to give your imagination a springboard to create your own fried egg masterpiece!

But seriously, if you wanted to recreate this sandwich exactly as we made it, you really would be making a wise move.

Because it is incredibly yummy. Yum-tastic. Even.

But you knew that when scrolled down and peeked at the ingredient list, didn't you?

And you thought I wouldn't notice.

Yes, as we all know, bacon makes everything more amazing. So does fresh, ripe avocado. And cheese. Especially Tillamook Vintage White Cheddar cheese (as previously established). Oh, and bagels! Bagels are, of course, also on the amazing list.

So make your list, check it twice, and make some new traditions in your house!

The Ultimate Fried Egg Sandwich (a guide)

You don't really need to print it, but if you want to... (printable version)

a KitchenJoy Original "recipe"

makes 2

2 onion bagels (Safeway artisan bagels are amazing)

2 eggs

4 slices bacon (we used turkey bacon)

2 slices Tillamook Vintage White Cheddar cheese

1 ripe avocado, coarsely mashed

Fry eggs to your desired doneness, seasoning with salt and pepper or Lawry's seasoned salt. Meanwhile, fry bacon and toast bagels. If desired, butter bagels lightly. Spread one half of each bagel with half of mashed avocado. Assemble: place two bacon slices on top of avocado, top with cheese, egg, and other half of bagel. Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

I don't know about you, but I loooove chicken caesar salads.

I don't care if there are anchovies in the dressing!

Who brought that up anyway??! Back to the salad.

A Caesar salad is such a simple thing. Romaine lettuce, Parm, croutons. Occasionally chicken. And the dressing. Mmm, the dressing. My current favorite is Ken's Lite Creamy Caesar. It really doesn't taste light. It is yummmy.

So you know what is just a crazy genius idea? Putting all that Caesar salad goodness into a sandwich! And even more awesome? Let's use the crock pot! Or this would also be amazingly simple with leftover shredded chicken.

It is really amazing just how much these sandwiches taste like a classic Caesar salad. There's chicken, totally soaked in your favorite Caesar dressing. Then there's Parm- mixed in to the chicken and sprinkled on top. There's a good helping of crispy green romaine. And even the buns, golden toasted, pose pretty convincingly as croutons.

Wow, seriously. If you're having a Caesar salad craving, try one of these sandwiches. So good and incredibly simple!!

Slow Cooker Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

(printable version)

slightly adapted from Chef in Training

makes about 6 large sandwiches

2 lbs. chicken breast (or leftover shredded cooked chicken)

1/2 to 1 cup of your favorite Caesar dressing

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or 2 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp pepper

2 cups shredded or chopped romaine lettuce

6 hamburger buns (you could also do sliders!)

Place chicken in slow cooker. Cover with 1-2 cups water, cover and cook on low 4-6 hours. 

Remove chicken and shred. Pour water from the slow cooker. 

Return chicken to slow cooker and add dressing, Parmesan cheese, parsley and pepper. Stir until combined. Cover and cook on high 30 min. or until hot.

Toast hamburger buns until broiler until just browned.

To assemble, put some chicken mixture on each bun, top with extra Parmesan cheese and lettuce and serve!

BLT Sliders with Avocado and Chipotle Camp Sauce

Some days don't you just love a simple recipe?

There's something so satisfying about the combination of flavors in a BLT. Each ingredient compliments the other in delicious, mouth-watering simplicity. Juicy tomatoes, crunchy lettuce, crisp, smoky bacon...add a little creamy avocado and a zingy sauce and you've got it made!

Is "zingy" a word? Well, since spellcheck isn't putting up a fit, I guess it must be! It's the best word I can think of to describe the yummy chipotle sauce that pairs so well with these adorable little sandwiches!

BLT Sliders with Avocado and Chipotle Camp Sauce

(printable version)

adapted slightly from Catz in the Kitchen

makes about 6 small sandwiches (feeds 2-3 people for a meal)

Rhodes (or other brand) frozen dinner roll dough

1 egg white

2 TB water

sesame seeds

approx. 9 slices bacon, cooked until crisp and broken into halves

approx. 2 roma tomatoes, sliced.

several lettuce leaves

1/2 an avocado, sliced

3 TB mayonnaise

2 TB Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ Sauce

1/2 tsp adobo sauce (can be found in a can of chipotle chili peppers), or to taste

Follow directions on roll package, placing dough on greased cookie sheet, several inches apart instead of in a baking pan. After the first hour of thawing (before dough begins to rise), flatten each dough ball with the palm of your hand. Cover again with plastic wrap and allow rising to complete (about 3 more hours). Once dough has risen, prepare egg wash by whisking egg white and water. Brush tops of buns with egg wash, then sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake according to package directions.

Make sauce by combining mayonnaise, BBQ sauce and adobo sauce.

When buns are cooked and cooled, slice and toast lightly. Spread sauce evenly on each side. Layer bacon, tomato slices, lettuce and avocado in each sandwich. Enjoy!

Note: You can also use regular pre-made dinner rolls or slider buns or your own favorite roll recipe! Catz in the Kitchen suggests King's Hawaiian Dinner Rolls which are also tasty!

Garlic-Rubbed Grilled Cheese with Bacon & Tomatoes {a Crazy Cooking Challenge}

 I don't think I've met anyone yet who doesn't like grilled cheese.

Even regular white bread and a slice of cheddar (sorry, I will NOT concede that it is ok to make grilled cheese with Kraft singles American "cheese"...really, there ARE limits) is delicious when "grilled" to ooey gooey crispy perfection.

And who can deny that a hot cheesy sandwich is the perfect compliment to a steaming bowl of tomato soup? In our house growing up the two were inseparable.

That said, what if you upped the ante to include a few simple yet outstanding ingredients?

Such as...a special cheese (Gruyere)?

Such as...juicy ripe tomatoes?

Such as...BACON?

And...wait for it...garlic???!!

What would you have then??

Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway for the fun of it), you would hold in your hands the most amazing, grown-up, flavor-packed, blow-the-socks-off-your-white-and-cheddar grilled cheese sandwich to ever walk the planet (okay, so that's a little weird, but really, if any sandwich were to ever get up and walk, trust me, it would be this one...a little cayenne pepper goes a long way).

Tracey over at Tracey's Culinary Adventures is a genius.

So, for the method.

Start with some great crusty bread (you know, the kind that comes in the brown paper)- Italian, French, whatever smells heavenly and looks thick enough to support a load of amazingness.

Generously (and when I say generously, I do mean generously) sprinkle one side of each sandwich with cheeses (which you have mixed with the aforesaid cayenne pepper). The original recipe called for Gruyere, fontina and Parmesan. However, I couldn't locate fontina in my grocery store, so I doubled the Gruyere. It was great, but next time I might try mixing in another cheese just for the heck of it.

White cheddar would be awesome.

Top the cheeses of choice with BACON.

Yes, BACON is one of those words that is always deserving of capitals.

With the cheese duly shielded by the BACON, layer a couple of thick and juicy tomato slices.

Top this with MORE cheese!

The grilling part, obviously follows the construction, then THIS important detail. So simple, so easy, and yet it makes a fantastic flavor difference. Immediately after grilling, rub each side of each sandwich with a fresh halved garlic clove.

Oh wow.

What this does to the sandwich is not within my powers to describe.

You must simply make it for yourself.

Now all that's left is to find a side that is worthy of this incredible creation. If you're not in the tomato soup mood, try what I chose, a perfect BACONY compliment, the Best Ever Potato Salad.

Garlic-Rubbed Grilled Cheese with Bacon and Tomatoes

(printable version)

by Tracey's Culinary Adventures

makes 4 sandwiches

8 slices bacon, cooked crisp

3 oz. (about 1 1/4 cups) grated Gruyere cheese

3 oz. (about 1 cup) grated fontina (or other cheese- I used more Gruyere)

2 TB finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1/4 tsp (or to taste) crushed red pepper flakes (cayenne)

8 1/2-in.-thick slices Italian bread

2 med. ripe tomatoes, sliced into 1/4-thick slices

2 TB butter, room temperature

1 to 2 large cloves garlic, peeled and halved

Combine cheeses and red pepper flakes. Lay 4 slices of the bread on your work surface and distribute half the cheese mixture evenly among the bread. Top with 2 slices of bacon per sandwich, followed by 2 or 3 slices of tomato (enough to cover the cheese and bacon). Evenly distribute the remaining cheese among the four sandwiches. Lightly butter one side of each of the remaining 4 slices of bread and put them on top of the sandwiches, butter side up.

Heat skillet over med. heat. Place sandwiches butter side down in the pan and cook on the first side until the bread is golden brown and toasted. Meanwhile, butter the top slice of bread on each sandwich. Flip sandwiches using a spatula and continue to cook on second side until bread is golden brown and the cheese is melted. You can use the spatula to compress the sandwich as it cooks on the second side.

Remove the sandwiches from the pan and immediately rub both sides with the cut side of a garlic clove. Cut sandwiches in half and serve.