5 Fresh Takes on Sandwich Recipes

CHICAGO -- As the foodservice industry continues to dream up quick, seamless ways consumers can order a sammie, convenience-store sandwiches need to be more than just convenient.

Here are five recipes that offer unique twists on carriers, fillings and flavors, and possibly inspiration for your next limited-time offer.

The key to getting millennial moms in the door might just be healthy, craveable kids meals. Culinary students at Johnson & Wales in Providence, R.I., demo healthy, flavorful recipes to elementary school students through chef Michael Makuch’s culinary nutrition program. The chef, a department chair for Johnson & Wales’ College of Culinary Arts, has compiled the recipes into the cookbook "Families Cook: Nutritious Recipes With a Side of Food Safety" that kids share with their parents. This recipe for a grilled cheese sandwich “hides” a portion of veggies in a kid-friendly favorite.

Click here for the recipe.

Photo courtesy of Johnson & Wales. 

Looking outside the hot-dog bun for portable, international dishes could be another way to spice up the deli. Trapizzino, a cross between pizza and panini, is typically sold as an Italian street food. The sandwich is composed of focaccia, or a similar thick bread that’s stuffed with a filling. At Italian cafe Roman Candle Baking Co. in Portland, Ore., the kitchen creates a filling of tuna mixed with avocados, pickles and eggs. A roasted scallion vinaigrette is brushed on the bread before it’s stuffed with the tuna mixture.

Click here for the recipe.

Photo courtesy of Avocados from Mexico. 

Culinary teams are innovating breakfast sandwiches by swapping out the bread for more creative carriers. Chef Joshua Humphrey from Social Kitchen & Bar in Las Vegas builds a monte cristo with turkey, ham and cheese, but subs crisp mashed potato patties for the usual bread slices. He adds a honey mustard dip for zing.

Click here for the recipe.

Photo courtesy of Idaho Potato Commission.

By mixing familiar and global flavors, even Bubba might try something new. Banh mi sandwiches are typically made by layering pork pate and pickled vegetables on a French baguette. Chef Bill Briwa, a culinary arts professor at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, Calif., changes up the Vietnamese classic by swapping out pork for turkey and creating additional layers of flavor and texture with fried shallots, salad greens and Sriracha mayo.

Click here for the recipe.

Photo courtesy of National Turkey Federation. 

Chicken is the top protein choice for sandwiches, according to Technomic data. Both chefs and consumers enjoy chicken for its versatility, health halo and price point. It also adapts very well to global flavors and grilling, as evidenced in this take on a Mexican torta from Chopbar, a neighborhood restaurant in Oakland, Calif. The chicken is marinated in a mix of assorted chilies and garlic, and the marinade also enhances the mayonnaise spread on the rolls. Traditional queso fresco adds authenticity.

Click here for the recipe.

Photo courtesy of California Milk Advisory Board.