It’s the first day of summer! You sure had me fooled – I thought summer began weeks ago! It got hot early this year, and it gets hot early every day. So what’re outdoorsy folks like us to do? By 9:30 or 10 it is almost too hot to do anything except hunker down indoors. And by the time we roll out of bed on weekends and have breakfast, the cool part of the day is gone. True, we have an excuse to not do any gardening or dog-walking or stuff like that, but it has to be done.

Well, here at the Bayou Kitchen we have a system worked out. We grab a glass of juice, a cuppa and a quick piece of toast and hustle outside at about 7:30. Then when we are about to expire from the heat, we come in for a late breakfast-early lunch at about 10 or 10:30. Usually the menu features one of a variety of brunchwiches.

Since there is no rush to go back outside for more yard work, we don’t mind making the extra effort in preparing something special that will hold us over until a late afternoon snack of fruit and cheese with crackers. These off-beat meals make weekends special.

Inspired by paninis, the latest craze in toasted sandwiches, I have developed a Wafflewich. The kids like to make this one themselves. It’s crispy and fun to eat, too. Then there is the Bacon and Omelet Brunchwich that features spinach and herbs. Pain Perdu Cordon Bleu, a ham, chicken, and cheese French toast, is really special, as is a Dilly Deli with hard boiled eggs. Cloud Brunchwiches can be prepared the night before, refrigerated and baked the next morning.

If you have a panini iron, (we don’t) you can try all sorts of lovely combinations; tomatoes with prosciutto and cheese, for instance. We like that particular combination, and I simply grill it in a skillet. I heard that covering the bottom of a small heavy pot with foil and setting it on top of the sandwich while it’s frying makes a nice panini but without the grill marks. You’ll need to turn the sandwiches over to grill both sides. That sounds worth trying!

Wafflewich

A waffle-toasted cheese sandwich that’s fun to make and fun to eat!

For each sandwich, you’ll need two slices of sandwich bread, soft butter to spread, and a thin slice of your favorite cheese.

Trim the crusts off the bread to fit in one section of a standard waffle iron. For each wafflewich lightly butter two slices of bread.

Place cheese between the two slices with the butter on the outside. Lay in one section of the waffle iron. Replace the lid. Cook for three minutes. Check; cook at one minute intervals until bread is browned and crispy.

Remove from waffle iron and halve diagonally. Serve with a small salad.

Bacon and Omelet Brunchwich

8 eggs

2 tablespoons water

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup cooked chopped spinach

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped chives

Butter or margarine for cooking the eggs

4 toasted poppy seed rolls

4 tomato slices

8 slices crisp cooked bacon

Beat together the eggs and water. Add salt and pepper to taste, the spinach which has been squeezed dry, and the herbs.

In an omelet pan or heavy skillet, heat the butter until it sizzles. Pour in the egg mixture, tilting the pan and lifting the edges of the omelet as it cooks to allow the uncooked mixture to flow under the edges. Cook until bottom is golden brown and top is set.

Cut omelet into four portions. Arrange each portion on the bottom of as toasted roll or bun. Top with a tomato slice, and two strips of bacon. Cover with tops. Serves 4.

Pain Perdu

Cordon Bleu

(ham, cheese, and chicken French toast)

Make the sandwiches the night before, and dip them just before serving.

12 slices white sandwich bread

Butter or margarine

4 slices thinly sliced ham

4 slices thinly sliced Swiss cheese

Thinly sliced chicken

3 beaten eggs

3 tablespoons milk

Salt and pepper to taste

Confectioners’ sugar for garnish

Cut ham, cheese, and chicken slices to fit the bread. Butter four slices and cover with sliced ham and poultry. Butter four slices of bread on both sides and place on top of meat slices. Cover with cheese. Butter four more slices and place on cheese.

Press together. If desired, cut off crusts. Cut each in half diagonally. If refrigerating overnight, wrap. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.

Combine eggs, milk, salt, and pepper (this can be done the night before, also). Dip sandwiches in egg mixture. Fry on both sides in butter in hot skillet until golden brown. Serves sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar. Serves 4.

Note: To limit fat, you can omit buttering some or all of the bread slices.

Dilly Deli Brunchwich

12 slices rye bread

1/4 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons chili sauce

2 tablespoons minced green onion

1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill weed, or 1 teaspoon dried

8 slices tomato

8 slices cooked bacon

Shredded lettuce

Creole mustard

4 slices of ham or salami

4 hard boiled eggs, sliced

Mix together the mayonnaise, chili sauce, green onion and dill weed. Spread on four slices of bread. Top each slice with two slices of bacon, two slices of tomato, and a thin layer of shredded lettuce.

Spread four slices of bread with mustard. Place on top of sandwiches. Top each with a slice of ham or salami and egg slices. Top with remaining bread slices.

Cut each sandwich into four triangles and secure with toothpicks. Serves 4.

Baked Cloud Brunchwich

8 slices firm bread

Butter

4 slices Swiss cheese

4 slices thin deli-style ham

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

1 teaspoon EACH minced parsley and onion

Marmalade of strawberry jam for topping

Butter all bread. Place four slices, buttered- side down, in a single layer in an 8x8x2-inch baking dish. Top each slice with a slice of cheese, and a slice of ham. Cover with remaining slices of bread, buttered-side up.

Beat together the eggs, ricotta, milk, parsley, and onions. At this point, the bread slices and eggs mixture may be refrigerated overnight.

When ready to bake, pour egg mixture over sandwiches. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until puffy and golden. Serve with marmalade of strawberry jam. Serves 4.

Grilled Tomato and Prosciutto Panini

8 slices crusty country-style bread

Olive oil

3 to 4 firm Roma tomatoes (use 2 unripe Creoles to avoid the Salmonella scare)

Salt and pepper to taste

6 ounces prosciutto

4 slices provolone cheese

4 teaspoons chopped fresh basil

Brush one side of each of the bread slices with olive oil. Sprinkle the tomatoes with salt and pepper. Sauté in olive oil until limp. about two minutes per side.

Lay 4 bread slices, oiled side down on a work surface. Top each with a single layer of tomato slices, a few slices of prosciutto, and a slice of provolone cheese.

Sprinkle each with one teaspoon chopped basil. Top with remaining bread slices, oiled side up. Cook sandwiches in a Panini press until golden and cheese is melted. OR sauté on both sides in a skillet until golden. Press sandwiches with a spatula while they are cooking. Serves 4.