Chances are that if you have to pack your lunch now and then, you’ll be looking for some creative sandwich ideas to mix things up. My kids will gladly eat plain turkey and cheese sandwiches or peanut butter and jelly nearly every day if they need to, but I definitely want to spice things up when making my own lunches.
A few months ago, I got so fed up with the price of sandwich bread at the grocery store that I decided I just wouldn’t buy it anymore! We were spending $4-5 per loaf of sandwich bread, plus another $3 for sandwich rolls and $3 for English Muffins. The store-bought bread was so dry and flavorless that no one wanted to eat it anyway!
I had had enough and needed a change! Since I had been making artisan style crusty sourdough bread, I finally decided to also learn to make sourdough sandwich bread. I learned to make it in a normal loaf pan (like the kind you’d use for banana bread) as well as in my bread maker, which allows the dough to rise for 8 hours before baking and then cooling down. This has been a game changer in my lunch making routine! I am still experimenting with different ratios of wheat to white flour and trying various other ingredients to mix in, but for now I am enjoying this recipe as it is.
I made this bacon, lettuce and tomato (BLT) sandwich with freshly baked bread, uncured bacon, fresh mozzarella, spring mix, plum tomatoes and a homemade chipotle aoli mayonnaise. It was delicious! I will definitely be adding fresh mozzarella and chipotle mayonnaise to other sandwiches as well since it’s just so good! Fresh mozzarella is such a tasty pairing on a BLT. The mozzarella is a cool, simple flavor that let’s the salty bacon and spicy chipotle mayo work their magic. The extra protein from the mozzarella and the added fiber from the wheat sandwich bread help it keep you full longer, too. I highly recommend trying this chipotle mayo BLT with fresh mozzarella if you are looking for ideas for packed lunches!
PrintSourdough Sandwich Bread in a Bread Maker
Ingredients
- 325 grams water
- 100 grams fed sourdough starter
- 400 grams King Arthur bread flour
- 50 grams whole wheat flour
- 10 grams salt
- 20 grams (~1 tbsp) avocado oil
Instructions
Mix all the ingredients together in a bread maker that allows for a long rise time. Kneed 5-10 minutes, then let it rise (bulk ferment) seven hours. Kneed again and start a second rise time for one more hour. Bake approximately one hour and five minutes. Allow to cool before slicing and serving.
Note: I use a Zojirushi Supreme bread maker that has customizable settings. If you don’t have a bread machine that allows for a long rise time, you could make it on the dough setting and leave it in the machine after the cycle ends for a total of about 6-7 hours, then start a bread baking cycle from the beginning with the dough. If you want to make sourdough sandwich bread without a bread maker, there are plenty to be found! I usually prefer to have around 70-75% water or milk in my recipes, but most recipes I’ve found only call for 50-60% hydration. I definitely recommend more moisture to keep the bread soft and yummy!
Chipotle BLT with Fresh Mozzarella
Ingredients
- 2 slices sandwich bread
- 2–3 slices bacon, cooked until desired crispness
- 2 slices fresh mozzarella cheese
- 5 slices plum tomato
- A handful of spring mix lettuce
Instructions
Begin by making the chipotle aoli mayonaise. In a small bowl, mix 1 TBSP mayonnaise with 1/4 tsp chipotle powder and 1/4 tsp garlic powder and stir until combined. Spread this on the sandwich bread, then layer all of the other ingredients on the sandwich. Serve and enjoy!