The Bacon Bomb Sammie

Photo by Michael Piazza / Styled by Catrine Kelty
Submitted by Monica Keleher of Methuen, MA.
“This sandwich is one of my boys’ favorites—they ask for it all the time. We sometimes change out the bread depending on where we shopped or what we have on hand, but the pretzel bun is a favorite of theirs. We are very lucky to live near many great markets and farmers markets and the roasted tomatoes help us prolong the life of all the delicious fresh tomatoes that we find.”

Makes 1 sandwich

1 pretzel roll
Applewood-smoked bacon, thickly cut
Avocado
Roasted tomatoes
Lemon juice and zest
Mayonnaise
Cheese of your choice
Romaine lettuce heart, grilled if desired
Fresh basil leaves, torn or roughly chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cover a baking sheet with tinfoil and lay out desired amount of bacon. Place in the oven and cook until crispy. Remove from the baking sheet and place on paper towels. In a small bowl combine mayonnaise, lemon zest and lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat a grill or grill pan. Rub a bit of olive oil on the Romaine heart, season with salt and pepper and grill until grill marks appear. Keep an eye on it so it does not burn! Grill the inside of the pretzel bun to toast it and then immediately top it with the cheese so it melts a bit.

To assemble the sandwich, spread the mayonnaise on the cheese-less side of the bun, add the bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado slices, roasted tomatoes and sprinkle with a bit more salt and pepper to taste, then serve.