The Trick is the Bread Wreath - A NO FAIL Recipe

Pop Quiz...


The Chicago Cubs players, The Kansas City Royals players and ME...


What do we have in common???


Answer, we all will be watching our respective contests from the sidelines this year.  As I knew going into the contest (like the Cubs and Royals), I am not destined to be this years "Next Food Blog Star".  I gave it my all, I turned in a post that I was proud of, but the powers to be didn't see fit to keep me in the running.  The fun was in the contest.  I very much loved the challenge.  Thanks to everyone that voted.  I did have the time of my life, and am looking forward to the next contest... I'll show the bastards (and the Royals have a fireball pitcher in the minors that is almost ready to go that will turn everything around... Hope springs eternal).


Of my regulars that have given me support and culinary inspiration from almost day one of my blog, Girlichef and Eats Well With Others  are still in the running. They will certainly continue to have my votes and I look forward to seeing what they do.  Good luck to everyone (but especially Joanne and Heather).





I am working on a big dinner party tonight that you will be hearing about for the next week.  My Boef has been Bourguignoning overnight, and my strawberries are wearing their chocolate overcoats.  But those are posts for another party.  This sandwich is a great post for all you baseball fans planning something special while you team hits and runs their way to victory.


I made mine with pulled pork, but the drama is the presentation.  Would it look any worse with turkey, BLT, Ham and bean sprouts or how about tofu (well... no to the tofu).

The bread is the only tricky part... I used the formula for Moomie buns.  Easy (use a breadmaker and it takes minutes of hands on effort)....

� 1 c water 
� 2 tbsp butter or margarine 
� 1 egg 
� 3 1/4 c. flour 
� 1/4 c. sugar 
� 1 tsp salt 
� 3 tsp instant yeast 

� Place all ingredients in your bread machine. Select dough. Allow to run cycle. 

� Dump out onto lightly floured surface. Divide into 8 pieces. With each piece, slap into a bun shape. Usually 4 or 5 slaps will do it. Place on greased cookie sheets or your bun pans, cover; rise about 30 to 40 minutes. Bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes til golden. Cool on wire racks. 

I did substitute a cup of Whole Wheat Flour for one of the "regular" flour cups.


Instead of making buns, I made a long tube and formed a circle.  I topped with a bit of my "Sodom and Gomorrah" Sesame/Garlic Salt mix.  Sesame Seeds are a natural, but the mix also includes Garlic Flakes and coarse Sea Salt.  When watching the guys eat, I noticed that many would turn their sandwiches upside down so the topping of salt, garlic and sesame would hit their tongue (home to most of your taste buds) with extra flavor first!

Let's speed this post up... 

• Follow the Mommie Bun recipe above (breadmachine on dough setting only)
• form into a circle
• do an egg wash (beaten egg, brushed on the top, makes a beautiful golden brown and delicious color, but also aids in the salt mix sticking
• sprinkle generously the salt mix (while I HIGHLY recommend you use the "Sodom and Gomorrah" Sesame/Garlic Salt mix, just using coarse cut Sea Salt on the top would work terrific.
• allow 30 minutes for the dough to rest and rise a bit
• cut a few slits in the top so steam can escape as it cooks
• do all this on parchment paper
• 14 minutes in the oven and bingo bango bongo...

And now, just make a sandwich... Slice the circle of life carefully...


I added...

• A layer of Spinach Leaves
• A layer of sliced Dill Pickles
• A layer of Pulled Pork
• A layer of sliced Provolone Cheese (after this step, I put the whole sandwich under the broiler for just 2 minutes, long enough for the cheese to melt)
• And finally, A layer of Pickled Red Onions.

Me, I'm a pulled pork kind of guy.  But imagine the day after Thanksgiving and serving this bad boy up with a layer of turkey.  Almost worth making two turkeys for just so you can do a week's worth of leftovers!

You can quote me, I admit it,  God is a better omnipotent being than I am.  (S)He created the Heavens and the Earth in 7 days.

But, in the Cul-de-Sac, I am pretty impressed with what I "created" in my 7 days of Pulled Pork leftovers (I'll get to the sandwich in a minute).

Back on Day One, I made aCottage Pie (some may say, Shepherd's Pie).

Day Two was the "birth" of my now infamous Redneck Cupcakes, pulled pork on the bottom, with a topping of Beer Bread and Provolone cheese!

Day Three I made a spiral stuffed Mushroom Meatloaf(with a bacon wrap.... Pork, wrapped in pork!)

Day Four was appetizer day (but these were so good, we never got to a main course, just ate em up over the stove as we made them), with a pulled porkQuesadilla. 

Day Five... Pizza, Pizza, Pizza!!!  Follow the link for a formula for making your own pizza dough.  I seem to make about 6-8 pizzas every 2 weeks.  just too easy to pull a bit of dough out of the fridge, slap some leftvers on, add cheese and you have a 10 minute lunch.  

Day Six had a Tex-Mex feel withEnchiladas, stuffed with tropical salsa and Spanish rice, while topped with a rich thick cheese sauce (really good)!

Toss in a couple of dishes that used the leftover pulled pork; but I either didn't list on the blog or used as an opportunity to guest post and Bingo Bango Bongo... No numbers, but still a fine use for pulled pork leftovers...

Firehouse Mac "n" Cheese.  A rich thick luxurious 3 cheese macaroni and cheese topped with an amazing caramelized pulled pork!

And finally, breakfast, a fast easy Julia Child style Omelet... So easy that I didn't bother with a post, but just as tasty and just as deserving to be included in this roundup!

I have about a cup left that is sitting in my freezer, waiting for the first nasty- cold- miserable- windy- rainy day of fall so I can make and appreciate a bowl of chili!

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