We had a mini heat wave here in Los Angeles this week – yep, that’s right,  in the middle of November.

So I wanted something light and refreshing to eat. Something like a salmon sandwich.

When I first heard the term “salmon sandwich” from a catering colleague several years back, my response was “ salmon – on a sandwich? Really? I’ve never heard of that.”

“I love them” she responded.

And as I thought about it, I remembered my fellow volunteer, Ron, at the post-Katrina Common Ground camp, where we were both kitchen volunteers in those first few months after the flood.

Ron had come down from Canada to join the work, and had never been to New Orleans. One afternoon, we needed a break, so I offered to take him on a drive around the city. We stopped on our way back to the camp, to pick up a shrimp po’boy, that ubiquitous New Orleans treat.

Ron shook his head in disbelief at the thought of it. “Fried fish – between two slices of bread? Who would ever have thought of that?”

There you go – different strokes. And so often, other folks’ strokes are so tasty, you adopt them as your own.

Salmon Sandwich

I spread my salmon sandwich with Ravigote sauce, which as I mentioned in a previous post, gets its name from the French word “ravigoter” which means to refresh or invigorate – just what I needed for this hot autumn meal. BTW, this sandwich is a good use for those thinner ends of a salmon filet.

• 1 6 inch or so length of French baguette, depending on how hungry you are
• @ 6-7 ounces of salmon*
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1-2 tablespoons of butter
• @ 2 tablespoons of Ravigote sauce
• Vine ripened tomatoes, sliced and a handful of mixed baby greens to “dress,” as is said in New Orleans, the sandwich.

* I sprinkled mine with freshly ground black pepper and Lawry’s  garlic salt with parsley.

1. Heat the oil in a medium saute pan. Sprinkle the salmon with the freshly ground pepper and granulated garlic. When the oil is hot, add the salmon to the pan, and cook about 2 minutes on each side.
2. Split the bread horizontally, and spread with the butter. While the salmon is cooking, toast the buttered baguette under a broiler, until the bread just begins to slightly brown on the edges.
3. Remove the bread from the broiler, spread it with the Ravigote sauce, then place the salmon on it. Finish with the tomato slices and baby greens.

Enjoy!