Pan Bagnat (Provençal Tuna Sandwich)

My parents made a version of this sandwich from the Time Life Foods of the World cookbook series. We loved it. Loaded with different ingredients, bathed in a vinaigrette (the title means "bathed bread"), weighted down and left for all the flavors to meld — it was the perfect summer meal.

So I was intrigued when Cooks Illustrated had their own version and tried it out last weekend. Theirs is more like a Salade Niçoise than the one I grew up with, but I love Salade Niçoise so that was no bad thing!

It was truly delicious, simple to assemble (though requiring about an hour), and perfect for hot weather.

Note: We had extra pieces of this in the fridge for up to a week as we slowly consumed them for lunch (or breakfast!). It held perfectly well and could be made well ahead of time for a party or picnic if you let it come up to room temperature.

PAN BAGNAT

STEP 1
1 vine-ripened tomato, cored and sliced thin
1 small red onion, sliced thin
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large baguette, or ciabiatta (18 inches long, 3 inches wide, and at least 2 inches tall), halved horizontally [You can also do this in a large, round loaf as long as it holds the ingredients.]

Heat oven to 350°.

Lay tomato slices on paper towel-lined plate and set aside.

Toss onion, vinegar, garlic, and salt together in bowl.

Using hands or metal spoon, remove inner crumb from bread bottom to create trough, leaving 1/4-inch border on sides and bottom Place breat halves cust side up on baking sheet and bake until very lightly toasted, 5 minutes.

STEP 2
3/4 cup niçoise or kalamata olives, rinsed, pitted
1/2 cup fresh parsley
3 tablespoons capers, rinsed
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves
3 anchovy fillets, rinsed and patted dry
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons Dijon
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Pulse olives, parsley, capers, oregano, and anchovies in food processor until coarsely but evenly chopped, 10-12 pulses. Add to bowl with onion mixture. Add oil, mustard and pepper and toss to combine.

STEP 3
1/4 cup olive oil
3 5-ounce cans oil-packed tuna
3 hard-boiled eggs, sliced thin

Brush inside of each bread half with 1 tablespoon oil. Place two-thirds of olive mixutre in hollow batuette bottom and spread evenly.

Distribute tuna evenly over olive mixture and drizzle with remaining two tablespoons oil.

Shingle tomato slices over tuna.

Shingle egg slices over tomato.

Top eggs with remaining olive mixture and cap with bread top. Sandwich will be very full.

STEP 4
Press gently on sandwich and slice in half cross-wise. Wrap each half tightly in plastic wrap. Sit on a baking sheet to catch any juices that escape the wrap. Place rimmed baking sheet on top of sandwiches and weight with heavy Dutch oven or two 5-pound bgs of flour or sugar for 1 hour.

Flip sandwiches halfway through weighting.

Wrapped sandwiches can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Let come to room temperature before serving.

Serves 4-6. Prep time 1 hour.

Savory (Ham, Mozzarella & Basil) Brioche Couronne

Couronne means "crown" and this is obviously named for the shape. However, it is also fit for royalty. An enriched brioche dough is filled with ham, mozzarella and basil to make a wonderful meal.

This is from Paul Hollywood's book Bread and it looks a lot harder than it is. On one hand it does take a fair amount of time for several dough risings. On the other hand, it is really impressive and really delicious and really basic to put together if you are used to making bread. If you aren't, then Paul Hollywood's description will lead you through it without a problem.

Mom said it was better than pizza. Tom didn't want to make rash statements but he agreed it was at least equal to a very, very good pizza.

Savoury Brioche Couronne

Ingredients
500g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
10g salt
10g instant yeast
170ml tepid whole milk
4 medium eggs (we used 3 large eggs)
250g unsalted butter, in small pieces, at room temperature
1 pound buffalo mozzarella (we used regular fresh mozzarella)
8-10 slices Parma ham (turns out this is proscuitto - we didn't know that and used applewood smoked ham - mmmm)
Small handful basil leaves, roughly chopped
1 medium egg, beaten
Pinch salt
Handful grated parmesan

Put the flour into a food mixer fitted with a dough hook and add the salt to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other. Add the milk and eggs and mix until well combined. Add the butter, bit by bit, as you mix for a further 5 minutes. It’s important to add the butter very gradually.

Tip the dough into a large oiled plastic container or bowl and covered with an oiled lid or cling film [plastic wrap]. This dough can rise greatly and needs room to expand. Leave until at least doubled in size — at least 1 hour.

Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, without knocking the air out of it. Roll out to a rectangle, just under 1½cm (3/4 inch) with the long side facing you. Lay the ham slices over the dough. Tear the mozzarella into pieces and scatter over the ham. Sprinkle basil on top.

Roll up the dough from the long side furthest from you to enclose the filling. Roll into a sausage, 40-50cm [16-19 inches]. Cut down the entire length of the roll to reveal the filling [leaving you with two long strips side by side]. Hol the pieces firmly at each end and twist quite tightly together, moving your hands in opposite directions. Now coil the twisted dough into a circle and press the ends firmly together.

Put the crown on a parchment-paper lined baking tray. Put the tray inside a roomy plastic bag and leave to rise for 1-1½ hours, or until at least doubled in size. [We just covered the baking sheet with a towel, as per always.]

Preheat the oven to 400°.  Brush the top of the couronne with beaten egg and scatter with grated Parmesan. Bake in oven for 25 minutes until golden brown. Leave to cool slightly and serve warm or cold.