PLT
Photo: James Wojcik
You should have a pretty good idea from the name what this is- a good sandwich made even better. Thinly sliced Pancetta – Italian bacon that is cured but not smoked and rolled into a cylinder – gets cooked crisp and layered with jammy slow-roasted tomatoes and spicy arugula on the toast of your choice. The slow-roasted tomatoes need to be planned ahead for, but once you make them they’ll be good for a few days, and even less-than-stellar winter tomatoes will be delicious when their flavor is concentrated.
PREP TIME: 10 minutes
TOTAL TIME: 1 hours 40 minutes
SERVINGS: Makes 4 sandwiches
INGREDIENTS
24 - 1/2 inch thick slices of plum tomato
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta
2 ounces arugula
8 slices country white bread (we used Panelle from Citarella)
4 tablespoons mayonnaise
PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 350°. Place tomatoes on a jelly roll pan lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat, cut side up. Drizzle tomatoes with olive oil (about 1 tablespoon), rubbing each one with your fingers to coat well. Sprinkle evenly with salt (about ¼ teaspoon). Place tomatoes in the oven and reduce heat to 300°. Cook for about 1 ½ hours, or until the tomatoes have shriveled and started to brown on the edges. Watch carefully towards the end of the cooking time to ensure they don’t burn. Remove from oven and leave on baking sheet to cool.
Turn oven up to 400°. Place sliced pancetta on a jelly roll pan. Bake 10 minutes, or until crisp, flipping after 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, toast bread slices. Spread each slice with ½ tablespoon mayonnaise.
Top 4 slices with a small handful arugula, a few pieces of pancetta, and 6 slices of roasted tomatoes. Top with remaining slices of bread. Serve.