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Turkey Picnic Sandwich with Sun-Dried Tomato Spread

By Morgan Bolling

Published on June 17, 2019

Time

1 hour, plus 1 hour cooling and 2 hours resting

Yield

Serves 4

Turkey Picnic Sandwich with Sun-Dried Tomato Spread

Ingredients

Sandwich

1 pound store-bought pizza dough 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil 4 ounces sliced Muenster cheese 8 ounces thinly sliced deli turkey ½ cup fresh parsley leaves 1 ¼ cups jarred roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry

Spread

¾ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and patted dry¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted¼ cup capers, rinsed1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 small garlic clove, minced¼ teaspoon table salt ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Before You Begin

Letting the pizza dough sit a room temperature for 1 hour makes it easier to shape. Toast the almonds in a dry skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes, until fragrant and golden brown. If you don't have a Dutch oven, you can use a baking sheet or skillet loaded with hefty canned goods to press the sandwich.

Instructions

  1. For the sandwich: Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and grease parchment. Place dough on prepared sheet. Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour.
  2. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Keeping dough on sheet, use your hands to shape dough into rough 7-inch square (edges may be rounded; this is OK). Brush top of dough with oil. Bake until light golden brown, 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely on sheet, about 1 hour.
  3. For the spread: Meanwhile, process tomatoes, almonds, capers, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper flakes in food processor until finely chopped, about 20 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Transfer to bowl and stir in oil.
  4. Slice bread in half horizontally. Spread tomato mixture on cut sides of bread, about ½ cup per piece (use all of it). Layer Muenster, turkey, parsley, and red peppers on bread bottom. Cap with bread top and wrap sandwich tightly in double layer of plastic.
  5. Place Dutch oven on top of sandwich and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour. (Pressed sandwich can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Let come to room temperature before serving.) Unwrap sandwich, cut into quarters, and serve. (Sandwich can be kept unrefrigerated for up to 2 hours.)
Turkey Picnic Sandwich with Sun-Dried Tomato Spread
Photography by Keller + Keller. Styling by Catrine Kelty.

Turkey Picnic Sandwich with Sun-Dried Tomato Spread

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Time

1 hour, plus 1 hour cooling and 2 hours resting

Yield

Serves 4

Ingredients

Sandwich

1 pound store-bought pizza dough
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces sliced Muenster cheese
8 ounces thinly sliced deli turkey
½ cup fresh parsley leaves
1 ¼ cups jarred roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry

Spread

¾ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and patted dry
¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted
¼ cup capers, rinsed
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, minced
¼ teaspoon table salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

Sandwich

1 pound store-bought pizza dough
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces sliced Muenster cheese
8 ounces thinly sliced deli turkey
½ cup fresh parsley leaves
1 ¼ cups jarred roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry

Spread

¾ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and patted dry
¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted
¼ cup capers, rinsed
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, minced
¼ teaspoon table salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

Sandwich

1 pound store-bought pizza dough
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces sliced Muenster cheese
8 ounces thinly sliced deli turkey
½ cup fresh parsley leaves
1 ¼ cups jarred roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry

Spread

¾ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and patted dry
¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted
¼ cup capers, rinsed
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, minced
¼ teaspoon table salt
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

To create a flavorful sandwich that could survive some travel and jostling without falling apart, we started with store-bought pizza dough, which baked into a soft but pleasantly chewy loaf that was consistently fresh. A flavorful spread, made by processing sun-dried tomatoes, capers, garlic, and lemon juice, glued the sandwich together. Crowd-pleasing deli turkey and mild Muenster cheese layered onto the split loaf added satisfying bulk. Pressing the sandwich fused the layers together, making it sturdy enough for travel and easier to bite through.

Before You Begin

Letting the pizza dough sit a room temperature for 1 hour makes it easier to shape. Toast the almonds in a dry skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes, until fragrant and golden brown. If you don't have a Dutch oven, you can use a baking sheet or skillet loaded with hefty canned goods to press the sandwich.

Instructions

  1. For the sandwich: Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and grease parchment. Place dough on prepared sheet. Cover loosely with greased plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour.
  2. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Keeping dough on sheet, use your hands to shape dough into rough 7-inch square (edges may be rounded; this is OK). Brush top of dough with oil. Bake until light golden brown, 13 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely on sheet, about 1 hour.
  3. For the spread: Meanwhile, process tomatoes, almonds, capers, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper flakes in food processor until finely chopped, about 20 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Transfer to bowl and stir in oil.
  4. Slice bread in half horizontally. Spread tomato mixture on cut sides of bread, about ½ cup per piece (use all of it). Layer Muenster, turkey, parsley, and red peppers on bread bottom. Cap with bread top and wrap sandwich tightly in double layer of plastic.
  5. Place Dutch oven on top of sandwich and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour. (Pressed sandwich can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Let come to room temperature before serving.) Unwrap sandwich, cut into quarters, and serve. (Sandwich can be kept unrefrigerated for up to 2 hours.)

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