RECIPE DOCTOR
Club sandwich gets a calorie cutback
By Elaine Magee
Q: I am addicted to a certain diner chain's club sandwich. I'm trying to eat light these days, and I would love it if you could give me a lower-cal, lower-fat version that I can make at home.
A: You bet we can lighten this up for those hot summer nights. Just fry the bacon up in the morning and you can whip up a sandwich that evening without even turning on the stove.
We kept this sandwich light by using Louis Rich turkey bacon instead of pork bacon, extra-lean turkey breast slices, and a light mayonnaise/fat-free sour cream blend instead of spreading regular mayonnaise on the bread. We also switched to 100 percent whole grain or whole-wheat bread, doubled the tomatoes, and used higher-nutrient romaine lettuce.
The big surprise was that my teenage girls LOVED this sandwich, which means I'll be making it again, I'm sure.
Diner's Club Sandwich
- 1 teaspoon light mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons fat-free sour cream
- 3 slices whole-wheat or whole-grain bread, toasted or untoasted depending on preference
- 3 ounces sliced turkey breast (deli-sliced)
- 2 large romaine lettuce leaves
- 1 slice crisp cooked Louis Rich turkey bacon (2 slices of crisp cooked center-cut pork bacon can be substituted)
- 3-4 tomato slices
- Makes 1 big sandwich
Blend light mayonnaise and fat-free sour cream together in a small cup and spread on one side of two of the toasted or untoasted bread slices.
Arrange the turkey breast on one slice of toast. Tear 1 lettuce leaf to fit nicely on the sliced turkey.
Stack another slice of bread on top of this with the mayonnaise facing up. Then break two slices of bacon to fit on top of the second slice of bread. Tear the remaining lettuce leaf to fit on top of the bacon. Place the tomato slices on top of the lettuce.
Place the last piece of bread on top of the sandwich. Cut the sandwich into 4 triangles using a serrated knife then pierce each triangle with a long toothpick so all the layers stay together.
The original recipe had 602 calories, 38 grams of fat, and 6 grams of saturated fat.
Per sandwich: 424 calories, 33 g protein, 52 g carbohydrate, 11.5 g fat (3 g saturated fat, 4.3 g monounsaturated fat, 3 g polyunsaturated fat), 64 mg cholesterol, 7 g fiber, 1600 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 23 percent. Omega-3 fatty acids: 0.4 g. Omega-6 fatty acids: 2.2 g. Weight Watchers points: 4 per half-sandwich.
Elaine Magee is author of "The Recipe Doctor Cookbook" and "The Flax Cookbook." Reach her through www.recipedoctor.com. Personal responses can't be provided. This column is distributed by Knight Ridder News Service.
