SARASOTA'S GRILLED SMOKED SALMON BLT WITH AVOCADO

Sarasota's Grilled Smoked Salmon BLT With Avocado image

Now I've looked, but there are about 1,000 recipes out there for BLT's with smoked salmon, but none that matched mine, so here it is. Now this combines a fresh aioli, arugula which is a must to me, and a mix of a tomato and onion salsa topped with chopped bacon and avacado, provolone cheese and of course the salmon; all on a chibatta and lightly grilled. Seems like a lot of work, but not really, all in baby steps and worth it.

Provided by SarasotaCook

Time 35m

Yield 8 small sandwiches, 8 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 15

Ingredients

8 slices bacon, thick sliced diced and sauteed
1 large avocado, diced
5 plum tomatoes, lightly seeded and diced
1 small onion, diced fine
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups arugula
8 (12 ounce) packages smoked salmon (they all vary per brand, but you need about 10 oz for the sandwich)
1 loaf ciabatta, cut in half lengthwise
8 slices provolone cheese (right from the deli)
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup diced basil
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Steps:

Aioli -- Mix the mayo, basil and lemon zest. Chill until ready to assemble the sandwich. (This can be made ahead).
Bacon -- Saute the bacon in a small pan on medium heat until crispy and brown. Set to the side on a paper plate with a paper towel so it can drain.
Prepare Vegetables -- Dice up the avocado and toss with the bacon, and set to the side.
Tomato Salsa -- I dice the tomatoes and the onions fairly fine. Drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon red wine vinegar and toss.
Stuff and Grill -- I like to use chibatta bread cut lengthwise and lightly scooped out, so you have a little room in the sandwich for the fillings. Lightly toasted on the grill or grill pan or in the oven for just a minute to give it crust so it doesn't soak up all the sauce.
Spread the aioli on the bottom half, top with half the cheese slices, arugula, then the tomato and onion salsa, salmon, avocado and bacon mix, the other half of the cheese and the top bread layer also slathered with the aioli.
Grill -- You can grill inside or outside. I like to put my cast iron on top as it grills just to give it a little weight to it as it cooks. It just takes 4-5 minutes per side to get golden brown and the cheese melts. Cut in slices and enjoy!

Nutrition Facts : Calories 802.1, Fat 47.9, SaturatedFat 13.7, Cholesterol 125.3, Sodium 3584.9, Carbohydrate 13.1, Fiber 2.8, Sugar 3.8, Protein 77.2