Sandwiches: More than fine

With the heat in Toronto this summer, I'm actually kind of grateful for my basement living situation. I will take cool and damp and dark over hot and sticky any day. I'm mostly living off of popsicles right now, but sandwiches offer a little more sustenance and so I offer you a round-up of Toronto sandwich news and a sandwich of my very own.

First of all, Sandwich Box is opening a new location at Bay and Bloor which I am thrilled about, because since the Queen St. W location shut down over a year ago, I've had to find excuses to visit the Financial District. Although in a cruel twist of fate, I will likely be graduated by the time it opens and actually work near the Financial District locations. As long as I have regular access to this gourmet Subway with excellent packaging, I'm happy. No opening date posted yet but renovations have been going on for a couple months now. Soon, I hope!

Sky Blue Sky Sandwich has been open for months but I was late to the game and have only started going this summer. They have a huge customizable sandwich menu, all named after Wilco songs (if you're into that kind of thing) with lots of vegetarian choices (if you're into that kind of thing). So far I've tried the Casino Queen (turkey with a balsamic onion marmalade, bacon, and avocado) and the We're Just Friends (chicken with roasted red peppers, Swiss cheese and red onions), both of which have been stellar though in the future I will ask for them to be buttered before grilled as they were a shade dry. The bread is craving-worthy, with several varieties (three cheese, honey-nut whole wheat, cranberry cream cheese) baked in house daily. I also tried the avocado-cucumber soup which was the perfect choice for a sweltering afternoon. The owner is incredibly friendly and happy to chat. Best of all, all sandwiches are under five dollars. There can be a bit of a wait if you come at a peak time, but there is the option of emailing your order so it's ready for pick-up. The future.

Lastly in sandwich news, two of my favourite restaurants are facing off this Sunday at Deli Duel, as a fundraiser for The Stop Community Food Centre. Caplansky's, The Stockyards and Goldin's are the names, smoked meat's the game. Sandwiches are three dollars and admission is free. Caplansky's has never failed to impress in the smoked meat department (I'm partial to the smoked meat poutine) and other deli fare. I wouldn't call The Stockyards a deli, but I would bet that their smoked meat is a contender, after having tried their barbecue options. Goldin's I have never heard of before, so I'm looking forward to tasting what they have on offer. Deli Duel is tomorrow at 1pm at Wychwood Barns, on Christie at St. Clair.

Finally, I leave you with a fancy BLT that was just the thing on a night too hot to turn on the oven. Bacon, spinach, tomato and fresh mozzarella grilled until crisp and melty. Simple and delicious.

Freedom Pie

Inspired by the patriotic pies on the cover of the Martha Stewart Living and my American heritage, I pillaged the remaining rhubarb in the garden and I got baking.


The pastry is made just like this and with the help of some star-shaped cookie cutters. I know a lot of people are strawberry-rhubarb pie-hards but to me it is just too cliché and sickly sweet. The entire point of rhubarb is its tartness, in my opinion. It might not be to everyone's taste, but I have fond memories of dipping stalks into some sugar and gnawing away. This pie is that memory, grown-up and elevated.

Rhubarb Pie (adapted from Joy of Cooking)

• 2 lbs rhubarb stalks, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths, which should measure 5 cups (no metric for you on this 4th of July)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar + 2 tsp
  
• 1/4 cup tapioca or cornstarch (I generally use cornstarch but both work great)
• 2 tsp orange zest (optional but highly recommended)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp butter
• Milk or cream

Preheat oven to 425˚.
Combine rhubarb with 1 1/2 cups of sugar, tapioca or cornstarch, zest and salt in a large bowl and let sit for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

It should go from this:


to this:


Spoon this filling into your prepared pie crust (again, see this post) and dot with butter before covering with a basic lattice, or this festive variation. You can even do a double crust with vents if you don't want to bother with the occasional frustration of lattice tops, although I think they are worth it. I'm including some photos of a previous plain-old lattice top rhubarb pie which in my mind also screams 'America', if that's what you're going for. Not such a bad idea to double the recipe as it keeps well and makes a nice breakfast.

Once your lattice or top of choice is affixed, brush with cream or milk and dust with sugar. You can crimp the edges with a fork or more creatively.

Bake at 425˚ for 30 minutes, then lower the heat to 350˚ and bake 25-30 more minutes until crust is nicely browned and juices are bubbling. Cool completely on a wire rack.