You've found mmm-yoso!!!, the blog about food. Kirk, Ed (from Yuma) and Cathy are the usual bloggers here. Today, Kirk and Ed (from Yuma) are both away from their computers and unable to blog, so Cathy is writing.
Today's post is about a common food item coincidence discovered while logging, deleting and organizing photos and events to eventually blog about. Yep, I've been staying indoors during these crazy humid days and it's this, football on TV and completing Continuing Education credits online.
I was amazed at how many photos I have of the simple food item of ham and cheese baked into a bread and decided to share the variations I've found in Southern California. Some places I have blogged about before and some places will be posted in the future.
Last October, I wrote about Euro Pane, a bakery restaurant in Pasadena. Ham in chunks and melted cheese, along with onion and carrot baked into a crispy crusted, quality bread ($5) (it's quite large). Simple and wonderful.
Euro Pane Bakery 950 East Colorado Boulevard, Suite 107 Pasadena, CA 91106 (626) 577-1828
Last November, we stopped at the Super H Mart in Diamond Bar. One of the many businesses in the Food Court area, Tous les Jour (a Korean bakery), sold this ham and cheese baked in a soft, cheesy bread ($2.10). I remember liking it, but not the specifics. Website
Here's a cross section of the ham and cheese from Paris Baguette ($2.20) The croissant, crispy, flaky, fluffy, also has a sweet glaze on top. It's disconcerting at first, but since there is very little ham or cheese filling, it makes the majority of the bites (the bread) rather pleasant.
Paris Baguette, inside HMart and Zion Market, San Diego
In June, I traveled to 85C Bakery in Irvine. Twice. This Taiwanese bakery sells a ham filled cheese topped soft bread roll ($2.25) It's very cheesy, tasty and unique.
85C Cafe and Bakery 2700 Alton Parkway, Suite 123 Irvine, CA 92606 (949) 553-8585 US website Open 7 a.m. daily.
Right across the parking lot from 85C is Bon Epi, a Korean bakery, which makes a wonderful ham and cheese croissant. It's one of my top two.
Bon Epi Patisserie and Café 2750 Alton Parkway, Suite 101 Irvine, CA 92606 (949) 251-0070. Open seven days 7 a.m.-midnight Website
Best Donuts and Deli is a Mexican Bakery located two storefronts from Little Sheep Hot Pot. A new Starbucks was built at the corner of the mall and The Mister and I walked in here looking for a treat to have with a coffee.
These trays were next to the counter, ready to be set out. I asked what was in the small rolled breads; the nice lady handed me one – as a sample. Ham and cheese in a perfect ratio with the bread; the ham was chopped, it is a hard white Mexican cheese that isn't too melty-gooey and there were chopped marinated carrots in the mix. It was really a perfect bite. Two for $1.
The bread is a nice, chewy white bread, not anything flaky nor soft. Simple and very good. As you can see, we also got two sweets. A longer post (about the torta sandwiches and donuts here) is forthcoming.
Best Donuts and Deli 4714 Clairmont Mesa BlvdSan Diego 92117 (858) 581-1278
K Sandwich also makes a ham and cheese croissant ($2), and the result is amazingly consistent. These are photos from three different visits.
You can see the croissant dough has a crispy flaky crust layer with a softer bready interior and that pieces of white cheese are rolled inside the ham before baking. It's an easy, quick snack.
K Sandwich corner of Convoy/Linda Vista at Mesa College Drive (7604 Linda Vista 92111) Open at 6 a.m. Mon-Sat, 8 a.m. Sunday.
Santee has four Starbucks stores (if you count the one inside the Vons) and next to the one located in the Albertson's parking lot is Pink Donuts, which sells a ham and cheese filled bread ($1.75).
A very soft, buttery bread surrounds a good amount of ham. The bottom part of the ham has a thin layer of a soft white cheese. Good, because it's fresh, the bread crushes easily. Not bad in a pinch/early morning when I don't want to drive very far).
Pink Donuts 9802 Magnolia (at Mast Boulevard) Santee 92071 (619)258-8807
Yet another donut shop, Peterson's Donut Corner in Escondido, sells a very hammy ham and cheese filled bread ($2). Again, it's just a thin layer of cheese on the bottom part of the bread. It's a good bread dough, only slightly crispy but a good slightly chewy dough. (That's a blueberry frosted cake donut, excellent- 95¢)
Peterson's Donut Corner 903 S. Escondido Boulevard, Escondido 92025 (760) 745-7774
Pangea Bakery Cafe, on Convoy street, sells good sized ham and cheese bread semi-loaves for $2.50. A hunk can easily be shared by two people.
A sofrt bread topped with cheese and layered with a good amount of ham and yellow cheese. When this is fresh (or toaster oven re-warmed), it's an excellent meal.
Pangea Bakery Cafe 4689 Convoy Street, Suite 100 San Diego 92111 (858)560-0688 website
I recently wrote a post about Cream Pan, a Japanese bakery in Tustin. The ham and cheese croissant here is exquisite ($2.50). It isn't very large and that's OK. This is the only place that bakes in Swiss cheese with the ham, and exposes (and slightly crisps) the ham. The flaky croissant makes the prefect ratio to the meat and cheese filling. I never get a photo of the cross section, because we exit the freeway and are in and out of here quickly; the croissant is consumed in the car as I drive away. Trust me, it's good.
Cream Pan 602 El Camino Real Tustin, CA 92780 (714)665-8239 Open 6 a.m.-4 p.m. seven days
I haven't posted on Sidecar Donuts yet, but went here twice in less than two weeks in June. A small popular bakery in Costa Mesa, Sidecar has lines of people out the door and into the parking lot daily. It sells more or less 'regular' (but fancy) donuts and each day also sell one even-more-special item. This day, it was a Monte Cristo Donut ($3.75). Filled with ham, cheese and strawberry jam then fried and topped with powdered sugar, as an egg dipped and fried Monte Cristo sandwich would be. So it's not a bread dough, but still ham and cheese filled and delightful. I thought I'd add it in here, since it almost fits the topic.
Sidecar Donuts and Coffee 270 East 17th Costa Mesa, CA 92627 (949) 887-2910 Website
To conclude this post, and possibly answer your inner comments, of course this can be done at home. Above is a meat and cheese bread The Mister made the other day with a one pound refrigerated dough, Jarlsberg cheese and and hard salami. He baked it on a cookie sheet on the outdoor grill; placing the cookie sheet on the opposite side from the heated burner. Radient heat you know.
I hope everyone had a good weekend and that the week ahead will have normal weather. Thanks for reading.