Make easy sandwiches for Lenten lunches, suppers

It’s Friday, you’ve just gotten home from work, and you’re too tired to do a quick reverse and hit the fast food spot (as if you could get a meatless meal that tastes like anything). Well, open a can of tuna or a package of Krab and put together a quick sandwich meal.

I buy 8 ounce packages of fake crab and keep them in the freezer. It’s so easy to whip out on or two packages for hot or cold sandwiches. Alternately, you can use regular frozen or canned crab in these recipes.

These ideas are good, too, for lunches on weekend days when you have been pushing around the vacuum and rearranging dust with one of those electrostatic dusters. You’re cross and tired. So what kind of supermom can stop long enough to fuss? Well, you don’t have to be a supermom or Whirling Dervish to feed yourself and your voracious family.

If your family balks at sandwiches for supper (I’m lucky; my guys were always so hungry, they’d eat anything) consider making hot sandwiches. You’d be surprised how many kids (husbands, too) like the change from the ordinary that an unusual supper provides.

Most of the ingredients for these recipes you probably already have on hand. You may want to make a shoppinist for future quick but appealing sandwich meals.

For sandwiches on Monday or Tuesdays, you can make the fillings over the weekend and refrigerate them until you need them. Then you can quickly make up a hot supper sandwich. For a sandwich meal on the traditionally meatless Wednesday or Friday, prepare the ingredients over the weekend. Hard boil the eggs, chop the celery, onions, or peppers, and store them in plastic bags ready to be added to your fillings just before assembling and heating your sandwiches. In fact, since you’ve made it so easy, get the kids to put the supper sandwiches together.

Hot Pita Bean Sandwiches

Make the filling in advance and refrigerate until needed, up to 1 week.

Filling:

3 cups canned white beans

1/2 cup chopped green onion

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (or 3 tablespoons dried)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh or dried mint leaves

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons lemon juice

Salt and black pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to make sandwiches.

Assemble sandwiches:

4 large pita breads (1 per person)

Filling

2 large tomatoes, diced

4 large lettuce leaves

4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Split the pita breads and line each with a lettuce leaf. Heat the bean filling in the microwave. Divide filling evenly among pita breads. Top with diced tomatoes and crumbled cheese. Serves 4.

Hot Pita Fish Sandwiches

Chop the tomatoes, cucumbers and onions in advance, and store separately in baggies

1 1/2 pounds fried fish (When I fry fish for a meal, I fry an extra 1 1/2 pounds to use for the next night)

4 large pita breads (1 per person)

1 large tomatoes, diced

1 cucumber, thinly sliced

1 green onion, chopped

1/2 cup plain yogurt of sour cream

8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

Reheat fish in oven; place on a baking sheet and heat at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the prepared vegetables with the yogurt or sour cream and feta cheese; split the pita breads. When fish is crisped, place equal amounts in each pita. Top with vegetable mixture. Serves 4.

Creamed Shrimp on Toast

Good also with Krab

Make the sauce in advance and refrigerate for up to 3 days

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

3/4 cup whole milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 can (4 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained

1/3 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

12 ounces cooked shelled shrimp or Krab, coarsely chopped

8 slices toast

4 hard cooked eggs, shelled and sliced

Make a thick white sauce; melt butter. Remove from heat; stir in flour. Gradually stir in the milk. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Stir in lemon juice. Set aside or refrigerate until ready to be used.

Heat the sauce, stirring constantly; do not boil. Remove from heat. To hot sauce add the shrimp, cheese, and mushrooms. Place toast slices in single layer on a baking sheet. Divide sauce mixture evenly among the toast slices. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. To serve, top toast with egg slices. Serves 4.

Tuna Melts

2 cans (7 ounces each) tuna, drained and broken into small chunks

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/4 cup sliced green onion

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup salsa

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 French bread, cut into 4 equal sections

8 slices (1 ounce each) processed Cheddar cheese

Combine tuna, celery, green onions. In a separate bowl, combine the mayonnaise, salsa and curry powder. Fold into tuna mixture.

Split the French bread sections. Toast. (I use a toaster oven.) On a baking sheet arrange the bread sections, cut side up. Divide the tuna mixture among the eight pieces of bread; top each with a cheese slice.

Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until heated through and cheese melts.

Makes 4 servings for a main meal; 6 to 8 for lunch or snack.

Hot Crab Sandwiches

I use Krab (fake crab)

2 packages (8 ounces each) frozen snow crab or Krab, thawed

1 1/2 packages of cream cheese (low fat is O.K.)

1 tablespoon chopped green onion

2 teaspoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Tabasco to taste

1 French bread, cut into 4 equal sections

8 large tomato slices

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 diced avocado for garnish

Beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in onion, lemon juice and Tabasco. Fold in the crab. Stir together the mayonnaise and cheddar cheese. Set aside.

Combine Split the French bread sections. Toast. (I use a toaster oven.) On a baking sheet arrange the bread sections, cut side up. Divide the crab mixture among the 8 pieces of bread. Top each with a slice of tomato. And a dollop of mayonnaise mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until heated through. To serve, garnish each with diced avocado. Makes 4 servings for a main meal; 6-8 for lunch or snack.