Weekly Dish

A sandwich.

And a menu.

I wish I had more to offer, but school is all-consuming at the moment. I’m hoping things will slow down soon.

The thing that makes these sandwiches special is a seasoned black bean spread that will also double as part of the enchilada filling later in the week. Sweet potato fries make a great side for these hearty sandwiches.

Ham and Black Bean Tortas

For the black beans:
4 slices bacon
2 cloves garlic
1 jalapeno pepper
1 14 1/2-ounce can black beans
1 t. cumin
1 t. chili powder
1 t. seasoned salt
Juice of 1 lime

Cook the bacon in a large skillet. When crispy, remove and set aside. Drain off all but about a teaspoon of the fat, and return the skillet to the heat. Saute the garlic and pepper over medium heat until both are tender, a few minutes. Add the beans and their liquid, and turn the heat down to medium-low. Season with cumin, chili powder, and seasoned salt. As the beans cook and the liquid reduces, mash some of the beans with the back of the spoon. The mixture should become thick and spreadable. Remove from the heat, and stir in the lime juice.

For the sandwiches:
Black bean spread
Reserved bacon
6 slices ham
Havarti cheese, sliced
1 avocado, sliced
Thick, crusty bread

For each sandwich, spread each slice of bread with a nice coating of the black bean mixture. Top with cheese, avocado, ham, and bacon. Heat the sandwich if you wish, and save the remaining black bean mixture for enchiladas, fajitas or quesadillas.

For super-easy enchiladas, mix this black bean mixture with cooked, diced chicken, and a fourth-cup of salsa; divide the filling among 6 warmed flour tortillas; roll them up and arrange them in a baking dish; top with 1/2 cup salsa mixed with 1/4 cup half-and-half or whole milk; shred cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese over the whole dish; and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

–Recipe adapted from Intercourses by Martha Hopkins and Randall Lockridge

Posted: Saturday, September 30th, 2006 at 2:24 pm Filed under: Weekly Menu, Quick, Sandwiches, Tex-Mex, Double-duty dishes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.