Smoked Turkey, Kale and Blue Cheese Sandwiches

Last Year's Post: Seafood Cobb Salad

Two Years Ago:  Roasted Stuffed Squash

Football Season
I think sandwiches are one of the great food inventions of all time.  There's just something so visceral about picking your food up with your hands rather than using a knife and fork - I think that's why bar food and appetizers are so popular.  I was at a wedding shower the other day that involved brunch food such as scones, muffins, and fruit.  Even though there were plates and utensils nearly everyone just picked things up with their hands to eat.  America is a nation of casual eaters.

The one danger of sandwiches is that it's easy to get in a rut, even for foodies.  I specifically wanted to make this particular sandwich because kale is not something I would normally put in a sandwich.  Kale and broccoli rabe are very popular ingredients right now, partly because they're very healthy and partly because they go so well with meat in sandwiches or sliders.  Both have slightly bitter flavors that balance meats and cheeses well.  In this particular combination, the slightly garlicky kale balances the smoked turkey and the creamy, blue cheese dressing perfectly.

I always try to mention some options for ingredient substitutions in recipes.  In this case, you could certainly vary the type of bread and the meat, but I would encourage you to stick with the kale and blue cheese dressing because they're perfect together.  You could also substitute leftover roast turkey instead of the thin-sliced deli turkey, which is a great way to use Thanksgiving leftovers.

You start by mixing the blue cheese dressing. You could also use a good quality bottled blue cheese dressing if you don't feel like making it from scratch.

Then you stem, chop and saute the kale until it's nice and tender.

To assemble the sandwiches, spread the dressing on all the bread slices and top half the slices with kale, turkey, and more kale before placing the tops on the sandwiches.

 You could choose to finish the sandwiches in a skillet, in a panini press, or not toasted at all.  This is the kind of pub food that would be great with a cold beer, a crisp dill pickle, and a great football game on TV.

printable recipe
Smoked Turkey, Kale and Blue Cheese Sandwiches

Serves 4

 Note: High-quality blue cheese salad dressing may be substituted for the first three ingredients.

1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese

1/3 cup mayonnaise

2-3 T milk

Salt and pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup chicken stock

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 ounces fresh kale, stems and inner ribs discarded, leaves coarsely chopped

8 slices country white or sourdough bread

12 ounces thinly sliced smoked turkey

2 tablespoons butter, room temperature

Mash the blue cheese and mayonnaise together in a bowl to a coarse puree; season with pepper and thin with milk to desired consistency and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet; add the garlic and cook over moderate heat, stirring, about 30 seconds until fragrant.  Add the chicken stock and the kale.  Season with salt and pepper, cover and cook over moderate heat until the kale is tender, about 5 minutes.  Remove the lid and cook until the liquid has evaporated, about three minutes longer.  Let cool slightly.

To assemble the sandwiches:  place bread on work surface.  Divide cheese mixture between bread slices, spreading evenly.  Top four slices with half the kale, all of the turkey, and the remaining kale.  Top with the remaining bread slices, cheese side down. 

Melt one tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Spread the other tablespoon of butter over the tops of the sandwiches.  Place sandwiches in the skillet and cook until golden brown on the bottom, then carefully flip and cook the other side until golden.

Smoked Turkey Apple Panini

I love sandwiches, don't you?  For one thing, they're a great excuse to eat potato chips, my all-time guilty addiction.  You may have heard me say I don't have much of a sweet tooth, but chips are my vice.  I can't keep them in the house or they're mysteriously gone within a few days.  Thin tortilla chips are good, but kettle chips are the best.  One of the mental games I play involves choices for my Last Meal (assuming I'm aware it is my last meal and have time to plan, of course).  Various components have changed over time but two that remain constant are potato chips and a lobster tail with lots of melted butter (not margarine, no-no-no!, it has trans fats as my friends Ron and Susie explained to me recently).  Some sort of cheese would have to be part of the meal also.

Sorry, back to sandwiches.  I particularly like this recipe for several reasons.  First, it tastes wonderful.  Second, it has a combination of textures (crunchy bread, gooey cheese(!), crisp apple, tender turkey) that's very appealing.  Third, heating the sandwich highlights the horseradish flavor without it becoming too strong.  And finally, it has a surprising combination of ingredients which makes it interesting.  When was the last time you had cabbage and apple in your sandwich?  It's kind of like a Reuben gone wild. 

It's apple time of the year, so simply choose your favorite for this sandwich.  I've never understood why so many recipes will specify a type of apple, especially if it doesn't have to cook down to a particular texture.  I've tried crisp sweet and tart apples in this sandwich with equal success - it all boils down to personal preference.

I tried heating the sandwiches two different ways - on a panini press, and wrapped in foil in the oven.  The foil-wrapped version was very good but was missing the crunch of the grilled bread.  It also didn't get quite as hot in the interior so the horseradish was more subtle.  Who knew there would be such a difference from two heating methods?  The one big advantage of heating them in the oven, however, is that you can do  them all at the same time.  I used that method to prepare a batch of these sandwiches at a deck-cleaning "party" last spring.  They were gone quickly!

This is so easy it's not really even a recipe, it's more just an ingredient list and assembly instructions.


** click here for a printable recipe version **

Smoked Turkey Apple Panini
Serves 4

1/3 cup sour cream (light works fine)
¼ cup horseradish
8 slices caraway rye bread
8 oz thinly sliced deli smoked turkey
6 ounces thinly sliced plain Havarti cheese
½ cup thinly sliced cabbage (bagged coleslaw mix works great)
1 apple
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice


Combine the sour cream and horseradish thoroughly.  Cover and refrigerate if not using immediately.

Preheat a Panini press, a griddle or a frying pan. (Or see below for oven heating instructions)

Core the apple and cut into the thinnest rounds possible.  Alternately (if you don’t have an apple corer) cut the apple into thin rounds and then cut the core out of each with a knife.  Cut each round in half.  In a small bowl toss the apple slices with the lemon juice to prevent browning. 

Place the bread slices on a work surface and spread each with horseradish sauce. On half the bread slices, layer (in order) the smoked turkey, apple slices, cheese, and cabbage.  Place the remaining bread slices on top.

Cook the sandwiches on the Panini press or griddle for about 5 minutes.  If using a frying pan you will probably want to add some margarine unless the pan is non-stick.  Serve hot. 

To heat in the oven, wrap each sandwich in foil and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.



Assembled through apple layer

Fully assembled and ready to cook