Italian Club Sandwiches

Confession Time. I am vain about how food looks. When I enjoy food, I want it to be pretty and made with a little extra love. Honestly, I get totally grossed out when food looks slopped on the plate - guess that is why I am not a huge fan of buffet restaurants. Maybe I take a little bit longer to slice up cake or dirty up an extra dish so that it is on a pretty platter but I think it is worth it. Presentation is important to me because it shows that a little extra something went in to it.

I find myself drawn to recipes that look delicious and will certainly be beauties on the plate. These Italian Club Sandwiches look so yummy sliced up with all of the layers and make a great addition to any spread. I made these sandwiches months ago for Book Club and then I whipped them up again for a Super Bowl Party.

There are a several steps but do not let that intimidate you, it is super easy.

Recipe adapted from Giada De Laurentiis, Everyday Italian.

Italian Club Sandwiches 
1 Round of Focaccia bread
Pinch of Salt and Pepper
4-6 Slices of Bacon or Turkey Bacon
1/2 cup sun dried tomato pesto
4 ounces thinly sliced turkey
4 ounces sliced provolone cheese
2 eggs
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
Butter or Olive Oil Spray

Note: You could also make these vegetarian friendly by substituting meat for veggies. You could also just add veggies to make it a bit healthier or to add extra layers of color. Spinach and/or bell pepper would be great additions.

Step One: Egg Crepes
Whisk eggs and whipping cream with a pinch of salt and pepper. Heat a small skillet on medium, add butter or spray to coat pan. Add half of egg mixture, swirl around so that it coats the bottom of the pan. Cook egg crepe until set, about a minute or two. Invert skillet to drop the crepe onto plate, allow to cool. Repeat to make second crepe.

Step Two: Bacon! My fave
Cook bacon until crisp. I prefer to cook my bacon in the oven on 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until done. I place a cooling rack (for baking) over a cookie sheet and pop in the oven. The clean up is so easy and you can multitask. Just watch the bacon because it can burn quickly.

Note: I substituted turkey bacon because some of my friends do not eat pork. Sometimes I make two loafs of the sandwiches and do one with bacon and one without.

Step Three: Toast bread
Cut the focaccia bread in half horizontally. A bread knife is the easiest but use what you have. Brush a little butter or olive oil and heat on griddle for about 2-3 minutes, cut side down.

Step Four: Layers
Spread pesto on each side of toasted bread. Starting with the bottom piece begin to build layers. Place egg crepe on bottom. Add turkey, provolone, bacon. Repeat layers. Place top of focaccia half on layers.

Step Five: Slice and Serve
Slice into desired size wedges. My preference is bit size sandwiches but I made them a little bigger for the party being that it would be supper time. To hold sandwich together, place a toothpick through each sandwich.

Happy Eating!

For more pictures, click through slideshow.