• Servings: 1
• Pancetta 4 thin slices
• Your favorite white sandwich bread
• Garlic mayonnaise*
• Homemade pesto
• Fresh arugula (the spicier the better)
• Ricotta salata cheese
• Juicy summer tomatoes
• Salt & pepper to taste

1. Cook the pancetta in the oven at 400 degrees until cooked to your preference (we like it crispy).
2. Set aside on paper towels to drain.
3. Butter the bread slices and grill them on only one side (you can use a cast-iron skillet to achieve a similar effect).
4. Spread garlic mayonnaise on the grilled side of one slice of bread, and spread pesto on the grilled side of the other slice of bread.
5. Pile arugula onto the mayo side, put lots of juicy slices of tomato on top, and season them with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Be aware that your pancetta and your pesto might both be quite salty, so you might not need any salt.
7. Make sure to cover all the surface area with tomatoes.
8. Shave slices of ricotta salata with a cheese plane or a vegetable peeler.
9. Cover the tomatoes nicely with shavings of the cheese.
10. Then top the sandwich with the pesto side of the other piece of bread.
11. Slice on the diagonal and serve.
12. We serve ours with homemade cucumber pickles on the side and we always suggest our homemade Moroccan Iced Tea to chase it down.
13. *We take Hellman's mayo and mix in pureed raw garlic, mustard seeds and cayenne pepper.
14. The important thing is to have a really delicious spread not ordinary mayo.

I found this recipe on a site I recently discovered, Southernfoodways.com, and was intrigued. It is described as a 'luxurious BLT, exotic and beautifully delicious,' and was inspired by actress Sophia Loren. It comes from Hich Elbetri, Chef-Owner of SANDWHICH, Chapel Hill, NC.