Tomato Mozzarella

A simple sandwich, yet ridiculously simple to screw up. It really only requires 6 ingredients. This sandwich is not just bread tomatoes and mozzarella, but I suppose it could be if you're the kind of person who throws chicken into a pan with non stick spray and eats it when it's cooked through. (This is basically the recipe most of my friends used when they decided they don't like tofu, but that's a different rant.) Simple does not have to mean bland. In fact, simple should not mean bland. If you complain that a meal you cooked is bland, then you have to cook it again but use more spices. I say more cause I assume you wouldn't complain about something being bland without first trying to spice it. You should not assume the dish is bad and never make it again. Now that that's cleared up, I can get to telling you what a good tomato mozzarella sandwich should look, feel, smell, and taste like. I don't really care about the sound of my sandwiches, but that's your call. And if the sandwich doesn't sound right to you, then try increasing or decreasing the resonance frequency of your sandwich. I'm sure it will all work out in the end.

The bread you use. It should have a crust. I don't care if it's a flaky crust like on a croissant or a hard crust like you'd find on a German brotchen. If you have sliced loaves then I suggest you either go back to the french toast post or go out and buy crustier bread. Personally, I don't like brotchen that aren't made in Germany or floppy croissants for holding together wet ingredients (which most sandwiches will have unless they are actually made with sand). Therefore, I go with a Kaiser roll. French bread will also work, but absolutely make sure that it isn't stale. Stale bread makes everything except for sea voyages worse. Cut the bread in half sandwich style. (If you don't know what sandwich style is then please educate yourself with google image search.)

The cheese. It should be mozzarella, but I'm guessing you already knew that. It should be in a ball or similarly round shape. Sliced or string mozzarella will not do here. You should unpackaged and slice the cheese with a thickness between 1 and 2 centimeters. It's hard to slice mozzarella thin, but that's okay because less cheese isn't necessarily good. If you're on a diet, don't make the slices thinner, eat half of the sandwich for lunch instead of the whole thing. You would still take in the carbs from the bread with tinner slices, and my method leaves you half a sandwich for dinner, breakfast tomorrow, or to give to your friend. Layer the cheese on one half of the bread.

Then the tomatoes.  Or tomatoes I guess depending on how you pronounce them. (The best part is you probably read that the way I intended you to without even thinking. Yes, I am psychic. Thanks for asking.) You need to slice them as well. Perhaps a centimeter thick. Perhaps slightly thinner. I don't mind. Use your own discretion. I trust it to serve you well. Now piece those slices into a layer on top of the layer of mozzarella.

Now come the important ingredients. You need salt, pepper, and oil. I don't care whether or not you like pepper, just take some out of the cupboard. Put the salt on the tomatoes. A pinch or two should work fine, but I generally put on more than is necessary without too many consequences. (I tend to like my food salty) This should get the tomatoes to dry a little fairly quickly which is good because in a dish this simple, things as seemingly unimportant as the tomato texture can make or break the dish. Now put on pepper. Once again, I don't care whether or not you like it. The mozzarella cheese (if cut thick enough) will absorb most of the flavor put onto this sandwich. That's why I see many people not minding putting jalapeno peppers on this sandwich. They taste much less spicy with a slab full of cheese. If you actually want your sandwich to taste peppery, then put on a bit more than you usually would. After the "spices" are on (spices is in parentheses because salt and pepper are more staples than spices) you should put on olive oil. A tablespoon or two should be enough. In fact, two should be more than enough. Aim for one. Use a second if your sandwich is particularly large.

If you want to get interesting you can put on grilled zucchini, steamed bell peppers, roasted carrots, or numerous other vegetables (raw artichoke hearts work well), but I believe the plain mozzarella tomato should be tried first so you know the strength of the sandwich that you are messing with. It's base is an amazing piece of architecture that you should explore and take in before you cover the walls with paintings and photographs. For one of the best instantiations for this monument of a sandwich, you should try the Mozzarella Tomato on a kaiser roll at Santucci's in Silver Spring, Maryland. They have seemed to perfect the sandwich, as I have enjoyed it every time I get one there.