BLT....With a Twist

So one night in September, when the Jersey tomatoes were still around here in all their sweet, delish glory, I decided to make us some BLTs.

I know, I know. We’re now in October when pumpkins should be on the brain. But I had mixed emotions about posting this recipe. I mean, it’s just a BLT.

But, I did make it with a special Suzie touch: Lemon Scallion Mayonnaise. So, I thought dear readers, you would want to know about this sandwich. Or as the people in my hometown say, sangwich.

Anyway, Mark does not groove on mayo, but he totally digs scallions and lemony things, so I thought I would try to spice up the condiment. Because in my humble opinion, it ain’t no BLT without the mayo.

When I assembled the BLTs, my fellow Aries husband and I had a great debate regarding the way in which to stack the sandwich. (Aries people are VERY opinionated, in case you didn’t know.) Does the B come before the T followed by the L? Should ingredients follow the order of the name: the B, the L, the T.

You get the picture.

Of course, a bottle of wine and being really hungry makes you realize: Does this debate really matter?

So…..we went with Mark’s suggestion: Tomato, Lettuce, Bacon. This kind of baffled me, but I went with it. It totally tasted amazing and that’s all that counts. Mark thought the bacon should be on top so that my devoted readers could see it in his pic. Isn’t he thoughtful?

Mark also thought we should make the sandwiches in an open face style. He said that’s how his Moms did it back in the day. Plus, less bread is better for you I suppose. The open-faceness prompted us to dine with utensils which made me feel like I was totally in the “Seinfeld” episode where everybody’s eating candy bars and cookies with a fork and knife and Elaine is like, WTF?

I guess in this scenario, I’m Elaine.

To go with the BLTs, I served the Barefoot Contessa’s Cheddar Corn Chowder. I was making bacon for the BLT’s and I had a ton of fresh corn that I had boiled a week earlier and frozen, so the stars aligned for my menu.

The corn chowder recipe is on the FN Web site and in "The Barefoot Contessa" Cookbook. I cut the recipe way in half. Ina Garten’s recipes are always big enough to feed an army – or your fabulous group of gays and ladies who lunch from East Hampton.

Sigh, I wish I was Ina Garten. An estate in the Hamptons, a flat in Paris, an amazing collection of le Creuset, a group of fellas who can help you buy shoes and decorate your house.

Well, a girl can dream.

Here’s the BLT recipe. Enjoy! Feel free to make it closed-face if you desire. Ha ha!

BLT with Lemon Scallion Mayo
Makes 4 open-face sandwiches

12 strips of bacon, cooked. Lay on paper towels to drain oil
4 romaine leaves, washed and dried
2 tomatoes, sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste
Lemon Scallion Mayo (recipe follows)
4 slices of fav bread, toasted

Spread toast with thin layer of mayo. Layer tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Layer romaine on top of tomatoes, then two or three strips of bacon per sandwich.

Lemon Scallion Mayo
3 Tbsp. Hellmann’s mayonnaise
Zest of one medium lemon
1 small scallion, minced
Pinch of salt
¼ tsp. black pepper.

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Spread on your fav sandwich.