Grown-Up Kid Food

Day 1: Sausage and Pepper Mini Sandwiches

Day 2: Sausage and Cheddar Bread Pudding

When I was in grade school, my mom often made me dollar bun sandwiches for lunch. One might have turkey, the other roast beef, but the bread was always spread with butter, never mayonnaise (I didn’t like it when I was little).

The kids in my class got a big kick out of them and wanted them even more than I did. It was fun food, something, sadly, most people tend to outgrow.

Well, I still like kid food and I’m not afraid to admit it (quietly). Sometimes, for instance, I’ll take sausage-and-pepper hoagies and shrink them into little sandwiches by using dinner rolls instead of regular sandwich loaves. They’re more grown-up than peanut butter and jelly yet cute enough for those of us still nostalgic for childhood. Plus they’re perfect for those with small appetites, because you’re not committed to a large sandwich.

With the leftovers, you can make a grown-up yet simple bread pudding. Savory bread puddings are becoming more common, and this combination of ingredients with a bread and custard mixture works well, especially topped with the leftover tomato sauce and paired with a simple salad.

Sausage and Pepper Mini Sandwiches

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 20 minutes

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

2 cups tomato puree

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Salt, pepper

4 Italian sausages plus 4 extra sausages for leftovers

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch strips

1 green bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch strips

2 red onions, cut into 1/2-inch slices

8 crusty dinner rolls

* Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and saute until garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomato puree and oregano and simmer 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

* Brown sausages in separate skillet, about 10 minutes. Add red and green bell peppers and onions, then cook until onions are lightly browned, about 10 minutes.

* Add tomato sauce and cook until vegetables are limp, about 5 minutes. Remove sausages and cut into 1/2-inch slices.

* Heat rolls in oven at 375 degrees until warm and crisp, about 5 minutes. Slice open, but do not cut all the way through. Insert 3 or 4 slices of sausage with some of sauce, peppers and onions.

8 mini sandwiches. Each mini sandwich (without extra sausage mixture for leftovers): 297 calories; 780 mg sodium; 28 mg cholesterol; 11 grams fat; 36 grams carbohydrates; 13 grams protein; 0.55 gram fiber.

Sausage and Cheddar Bread Pudding

Active Work Time 25 minutes * Total Preparation Time: 1 hour

1 onion, chopped

1 tablespoon oil

1/2 cup chopped green onions

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

Freshly ground black pepper

2 1/2 cups leftover sausage-pepper mixture from mini-sandwiches

4 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup loosely packed grated sharp Cheddar cheese

3 crusty dinner rolls

* Saute onion in oil until browned, about 7 minutes. Add green onions, oregano, thyme and pepper to taste. Add sausage mixture and heat through, about 5 minutes.

* Whisk together eggs, milk, salt, pepper to taste and cheese.

* Slice rolls across top into 1/3-inch slices. Line 8-inch square baking dish with layer of rolls. Pour half of egg mixture on top. Add half of sausage mixture. Repeat with layer of remaining rolls, egg mixture and sausage mixture.

* Bake at 350 degrees until set, 30 to 35 minutes.

6 servings. Each serving: 238 calories; 675 mg sodium; 160 mg cholesterol; 11 grams fat; 23 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams protein; 0.55 gram fiber.