Cuban Cristo Recipes

CUBANO SANDWICH

Steps:

• Preheat a sandwich press to medium heat.
• Drizzle the onion and pepper with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Put the onion and pepper on the sandwich press, close and cook until tender and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Slice into strips.
• Brush the outside of the bottom half of the bread with some of the melted butter. Brush the inside of both halves with a generous amount of the Mojo Mustard. On the bottom half of the bread, layer the sliced deli ham and top with the carnitas. Top with the gherkins, grilled onion and peppers and finally the cheese. Top with the top half of the bread and brush with more butter. Slice in half widthwise.
• Place both halves in the sandwich press, close, press down and cook until the bread is crispy and the cheese is melted, 5 to 7 minutes. Cut in half to make 4 sandwiches.
• Mix together the mustard, honey, chili paste, oregano, cumin, orange zest and juice, lime zest and juice, garlic and some salt and pepper in a bowl.
• Set the slow cooker to high. Put the pork cubes in the slow cooker and season all over with the chipotle powder and some salt. Turn any pieces with the fat cap upright. Nestle in the garlic, cinnamon sticks and yellow onion. Pour the orange soda, vegetable oil and orange juice and zest over the pork. Cover and cook on high until super tender, about 4 hours.
• Preheat the oven to broil.
• Transfer the pork chunks to a baking sheet fat-side up. Let the liquid in the slow cooker settle so the fat is on the surface. Scoop off about 1/4 cup of the fat and drizzle over the pork chunks. Broil until the meat is crispy and the fat is bubbly, 1 to 2 minutes.

CUBAN-STYLE CRISTIANOS Y MOROS (CONGRI)

Steps:

• Soak the beans for at least 4 hours.
• In a large stock pot add the drained beans, the onion, 4 garlic cloves, bay leaves, 1/2 bell pepper, cumin and oregano. Bring to a boil and skim off foam.
• Reduce the heat, cover and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, for one hour or until beans are tender. Add water to keep the beans from drying out. Remove the onion, garlic, bay leaves, and bell pepper and discard.
• SOFRITO: Brown the bacon in a frying pan over medium heat. Drain the bacon. Pour off the fat from the pan except for 1 teaspoon.
• Add olive oil and remaining sofrito ingredients, cooking over medium heat until just beginning to brown, about 3 minutes. Stir the sofrito into the beans, along with the SEASONINGS. Continue simmmering until beans are very soft, about 20 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste before serving. Serve with hot cooked white rice.

CUBANO SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Butter inside of each roll; spread with mustard. Divide ham, pork, and cheese among bottom halves of rolls. Top with pickles, more mustard to taste, and top halves of rolls. Press down firmly on sandwiches.
• Heat a grill pan and another heavy pan over medium. With a paper towel, lightly coat grill pan with butter. In batches, place sandwiches on grill pan and weight with second pan. Cook until bread is crisp on the outside, about 3 minutes per side; transfer grill pan to oven and bake sandwiches until cheese has melted, about 5 minutes. To serve, cut sandwiches in half.

MONTE CRISTO SANDWICH - THE REAL ONE

Steps:

• Heat 5 inches of oil in a deep-fryer to 365 degrees F (180 degrees C). While oil is heating, make the batter: In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and water. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper; whisk into the egg mixture until smooth. Set aside in the refrigerator.
• Assemble sandwiches by placing one slice of turkey on one slice of bread, a slice of ham on another, then sandwich them with the Swiss cheese in the middle. Cut sandwiches into quarters, and secure with toothpicks.
• Dip each sandwich quarter in the batter so that all sides are coated. Deep fry in the hot oil until golden brown on all sides. Remove toothpicks and arrange on a serving tray. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

MONTE CUBANO

Steps:

• Spread 1 slice of bread with mustard and top with pickles, meats, and cheese. Mince and mash garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt, then mix with mayonnaise. Spread on remaining slice of bread and assemble sandwich.
• Beat together egg, milk, and 1/8 teaspoon each of salt and pepper, then soak sandwich in egg mixture.
• Melt butter in a heavy medium skillet over medium-low heat. Cook sandwich, uncovered, until underside is well browned, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook remaining side, covered, until well browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 1 minute.

SUNNY'S MONTE CRISTO

Steps:

• Preheat a griddle. Lay 4 slices of challah on a work surface. Spread each evenly with a generous amount of the Cranberry Spread. Top with a slice of Gruyere, then with a slice of ham, and cover with another slice of Gruyere. In a small bowl, add the mayonnaise and mustard and stir to combine. Spread the mayonnaise mixture on the remaining 4 slices of challah and lay, mayonnaise side down, on the Gruyere. One side of the sandwich will be lined with the Cranberry Spread and the other side with the mayonnaise and mustard mixture.
• In a wide bowl, add the eggs, heavy cream, chili powder, and salt and pepper, to taste, and whisk well. On a griddle over medium heat, melt the butter. Carefully dip each sandwich in the egg mixture, coating all sides. Transfer to the griddle and cook until the batter is set, bread is golden, and the cheese oozes, about 4 to 6 minutes on each side. Transfer to serving plates, dust with powdered sugar, and serve immediately.
• In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add the cranberries, orange juice, sugar, cinnamon stick, and bay leaf. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Break up the cranberries using a potato masher until it forms a chunky paste. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature. Store leftover spread, covered, in the refrigerator.

CUBAN SLIDERS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Without separating rolls, cut each package of rolls in half horizontally; arrange bottom halves in a greased 13x9-in. baking pan. Layer with ham, cheese and pickles; replace top halves of rolls. , In a microwave, melt butter; stir in onion and mustard. Drizzle over rolls. Bake, covered, 10 minutes. Uncover; bake until golden brown and heated through, 5-10 minutes longer.

MONTE CRISTO PULL-APART SLIDERS RECIPE BY TASTY

Steps:

• Make the raspberry jam: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, cook the raspberries for about 4 minutes, until they start to burst and become very fragrant. Add the sugar and cook, stirring constantly, for 10-15 minutes, until running a spoon through the jam leaves an open trail at the bottom of the pot. Stir in the lemon juice. Remove the pot from the heat and let the jam cool completely. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Make the sliders: Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Line a small baking sheet with foil, leaving enough overhang so the sides can be used as handles. Grease with nonstick spray.
• Slice the sheet of Hawaiian rolls in half horizontally, leaving the individual rolls connected. Place the bottom half in the prepared baking sheet.
• Layer the turkey and ham on top, making sure to fold the meat to fit inside the individual squares of the rolls, then top with the Swiss cheese.
• Spread the raspberry jam over the top half of the rolls and place on top of the cheese layer, pressing down lightly.
• In a small bowl, mix together the egg and melted butter. Liberally brush on top of the rolls.
• Bake the sliders until the cheese is completely melted and the buns are toasted, 25-30 minutes. If the tops begin to brown too quickly, cover loosely with foil.
• Remove the sliders from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a serving platter. Dust lightly with powdered sugar and serve whole so the sliders can be pulled apart.
• Enjoy!