Earlier this week I posted about visiting Lyons last weekend and going to a new (to us) restaurant. I ordered a BLT that had been modified in some interesting ways, and I wanted to replicate it in my own kitchen. I loved the aioli, avocado, and spinach that Stone Kitchen used to make it an atypical BLT.
I started by making some aioli. Aioli is simply a homemade garlic-flavored mayonnaise made popular in Provence, France. I found an aioli recipe at Yummly and whisked it up in no time. If you've never made homemade mayonnaise or aioli before, treat yourself and make some. I consider it so much more flavorful and fresh tasting than store-bought and so easy to make! This is what added the extra punch of flavor to the sandwich.
The next thing I did was make a couple loaves of homemade bread. Even in the heat of summer, bread is worth making. My home smelled divine after baking this bread. I used this "Simple One Hour Homemade Bread" recipe. I'd never made the recipe before, but it is fabulous whether you're in a time crunch or not. It's soft and yummy and the perfect recipe for a BLT. I sliced it extra thick for a heartier sandwich and because I could...
It was better than the original bacon, spinach and tomato sandwich I had at the restaurant -- probably due to that unbelievably soft-crusted homemade bread.
I served it with the Chopped Pear Salad that I published the recipe for a year ago. They were a perfect match.
I often think it's difficult to duplicate recipes found in restaurants in my own kitchen, but this one was easy! The hubs gave me the biggest compliment when he said he'd never had a better "BLT."
