A BFF Sandwich

There are two stories I'd like to tell you about this sandwich.

The first is the story of how I am too easily swayed by the thought of restaurant food when I get hungry. Remember how I told you about my melt downs? Well, the meltdown is preceded by a ravenous hunger. The kind of hunger that makes you scrap your dinner plans of a little Saturday night picnic in front of a movie on your couch (i.e. the reasonable, budget-friendly, fairly healthful option) and decide that if you do not have pizza, specifically deep dish pizza, in the next half hour, you are going to melt the f down*.

This explains why I was left with a bowl of chopped garden tomatoes (worth their weight in dollar bills) in the fridge on Sunday morning. Everyone knows that the refrigerator is the death of delicious tomatoes, turning their beautiful texture mealy. I had intended to use my chopped tomatoes in a tomato salad for our Saturday night picnic before the hunger demons took hold of me, my budget, and my healthful-eating ways.

Which brings me to the next thing I wanted to tell you.

Sunday morning I was drinking my coffee and pondering my tomatoes languishing in the fridge, when I noticed two nectarines languishing in the produce basket, looking like they needed to be used yesterday. And I was hit with a flash of my beloved white hot inspiration: Nectarine Tomato Compote.

I took my lemons and turned them into lemonade. Or in this case, took my now-mealy tomatoes and turned them into a delicious topping which then led to the creation of what I like to call the BFF sandwich. Because these sandwich ingredients get along so famously, they should definitely be together forever. The creamy cheese, the salty prosciutto, the tart sweetness of the compote, the freshness of the basil, the spice of the Dijon - be still my lunch-loving heart:

The BFF Sandwich
A White Hot original
serves 2

1 baguette, sliced in halved and toasted
2oz bleu brie (or brie or a creamy blue cheese), room temperature

8 - 10 paper-thin slices prosciutto
1/2 cup Nectarine Tomato Compote (recipe below)
8 leaves fresh basil
Dijon mustard

Spread cheese on one side of baguette.

Top with prosciutto, compote, and basil.

Spread Dijon (to taste) on other side of baguette.

Slice in half and eat it up.

Nectarine Tomato Compote
A White Hot Original

makes approximately 1 cup

1 cup chopped fresh tomatoes
1 cup chopped ripe nectarines (or peaches or apricots)
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar
dash cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 grinds black pepper (approximately 1/4 teaspoon)

Combine all ingredients in small saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat for 10 - 12 minutes, or until liquid begins to thicken.

Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 5 minutes, or until liquid has been reduced to a syrup.

Chill. If you are in a hurry, you can put this in a shallow bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes.

*Let's go ahead and acknowledge that my husband is a saint. St. Hugh, Patron Saint of Awesome. And of patience with his favorite wife.