Grilled chicken sandwich. Photo: Sarah LeTrent

Few of us want to make a complicated lasagna for solo dining -- by day six, you'll never want to see lasagna again! In this series, AOL Food intern Sarah LeTrent taste-tests simple recipes suitable for a "table for one."

For singletons, it's pretty easy to throw together a sandwich at home. Simply consider the bread a canvas and whatever's on hand the paint. Nearly any combo could end up delicious in the hands of the trial and error gods.

As any good sandwich should, this one starts with quality bread (in this case a crusty Kaiser roll bought at the local market for a mere 79 cents.) The motivation behind the toppings were not only the existing contents of the fridge, but a recent trip to Mexico packed with plantains and pollo (chicken). If only we had a paleta around for dessert!

Recipe after the jump.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my top 10 favorite sandwiches in America, and asked you to share your picks. We got more than 50 responses, from shrimp po'boys in New Orleans to cheesesteaks in Philadelphia to Vietnamese bahn mi in Portland to something called the "Sloppy Irishman" in Ohio. I compiled the picks into this list, grouped very loosely by type (Italian next to Italian, seafood with seafood etc). So thanks for all the awesome suggestions! I don't know about you, but I feel a cross-country sandwich road trip coming on...

1. Cheesesteak from Primanti Brothers in Pittsburgh, PA
2. Cheesesteak from Pat's King of Steaks in Philadelphia, PA
3. Steak Chacarero, spicy, at Chacarero in Boston, MA
4. Pambazo at Autentica in Portland, OR
5. Cemita at Cemitas Pueblo in Chicago, IL
6. Midnight Cuban at Paseo in Seattle, WA (two votes)
7. Cuban from Dave's Fresh Pasta in Somerville, MA
8. Milano from The Italian Store in Arlington, VA
9. The Otto at Fraboni's in Madison, WI (two votes)
10. Porchetta sandwich from Porchetta in New York, NY
11. Italian Beef, wet, at Al's Beef in Chicago, IL
12. Godmother from Bay Cities Italian Deli and Bakery in Santa Monica, CA
13. Veal and Pepper at California Sandwiches in Toronto, ON
14. The Special at Gandel's Liquors in Washington, DC
15. Muffaletta at Napoleon House in New Orleans, LA
16. Oyster or Shrimp (or Oyster and Shrimp) Po-Boy at Domilese's Po-Boys in New Orleans, LA
17. Shrimp Po-Boy at The Galley, Metairie, LA
18. Ipswich Clam Burger at Bigelow's in Rockville Centre, NY
19. Lobster Roll at The Red Barn in Ghent, NY (two votes, not counting mine)
20. Grilled Grouper at Harbor Docks in Destin, FL
21. Tuna Niçoise at the Bread Peddler in Olympia, WA
22. Jambon Beurre from Farmstead Lunch in Providence, RI
23. Monte Cristo from Milton's in Del Mar, CA
24. Monte Cristo from the HMS Bounty in Los Angeles, CA
25. Pork Bun from Momofuku Ssam Bar in New York, NY
26. Baoguette Bahn Mi at Baoguette in New York, NY
27. Saigon Bacon Banh Mi at Best Baguette in Portland, OR
28. BLT on Rye at Zingerman's Delicatessen in Ann Arbor, MI
29. BLB at Meat Cheese Bread in Portland, OR
30. The Fat Darrell, various locations around Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ
31. Sloppy Irishman at The Irish Pub in Massillon, OH
32. Parmageddon at Melt Bar and Grilled in Lakewood, OH
33. Beef on Weck at All Star Sandwich Bar, Cambridge, MA
34. Maid Rite at various locations in Wisconsin and Iowa
35. Roast Pork at DiNic's in Philadelphia, PA
36. Pork Shoulder at Smoky Jon's in Madison, WI
37. Pork and Fries at Earl's Sandwiches in Arlington, VA
38. Pork and Beef BBQ at LC's BBQ in Kansas City, MO
39. Burnt Ends at Blue Ribbon BBQ in Newton, MA
40. Garlic and Thyme Roasted Pork at Watershed in Decatur, GA
41. Fried Chicken Sandwich at Bakesale Betty in Oakland, CA
42. Coney Dog with cheese and onions at Skyline Chili in Cincinnati, OH
43. Patty Melt at Mic Duck's, Chicago, IL
44. Crown Burger at Crown Burgers in Salt Lake City, UT
45. Reuben Sliders at Kenny and Zuke's in Portland, OR
46. Pastrami on Rye at Katz's Delicatessen in New York, NY (four votes)
47. Jewish Hoagie at Koch's Deli in Philadelphia, PA
48. Corned Beef Special at Hymie's Deli in Philadelphia, PA
49. The Natte at Hungarian Deli in New York, NY
50. Market Fried Egg sandwich at Gateway Market in Des Moines, IA
51. Grilled Vegetable at Village Baker in Bend, OR
52. Five Easy Pieces at Littlejohn's in Charlottesville, VA
53. Chicken Salad Sandwich at Tomato Jam Cafe in Asheville, NC
54. Fern's Problem Solver at Hi Rise in Cambridge, MA

Becoming a food blogger, the hardest thing to do is take pictures before you eat. You make or order something delicious, and then spend a few minutes trying to get a good picture while your mouth salivates (and before anything goes cold!). But at least that's a fairly quick and straightforward process. Imagine scanning in your food!

There's a website called Scanwiches.com where, you guessed it, scanned images of sandwiches tickle the tastebuds. Cappy ham with fresh mozzarella, lettuce, and mayo on a roll. Chicken cutlets with bacon, munster cheese, and mayo on a roll. Grilled pork, Vietnamese salami, sliced pork roll, pickled carrots, cilantro, and cucumber on a baguette. Basically, a whole slew of delicious-looking sandwiches.

I just wonder how they keep their scanners from becoming a mess. An extra pane of glass? Saran wrap? Heavy duty cleaner and a wet rag? Whatever the case, it looks darned tasty.

[via BuzzFeed]

It's funny. A Philly Cheesesteak, or variety thereof, is a popular part of our fast-food culture ... but do you ever try to whip it up at home? It's one of the easiest and quickest meals you can make -- save maybe some cold cuts on a slice of bread.

A cheesesteak is simply sliced beef, onions, peppers, and possibly mushrooms sauteed and slathered in cheese. The only spices and additional flavors are salt, pepper, and garlic. Slice everything quite thin, saute, season, and pile on a piece of bread. That's it!

The easiest way to accomplish this is to quickly slice up half moons of onions and strips of pepper and saute them while you quickly slice the beef (as thin as you possibly can -- meaning that you should have a decently sharp knife, serated won't cut it!). The veggies should be done quickly, since they're thinly cut. When they're soft, take them out of the pan, quickly saute the beef, and then add the veggies back in with the cheese. When it's all a melted mass, it's ready for the bread. Viola!

I don't know if she's ever gotten any screen time stateside, but one of Food Network Canada's big names is Anna Olson. For a while she focused on Sugar, which allowed me to bring you that amazingly tasty Chocolate Mint Truffle Cake. Now she has a new show called Fresh, and while I was skimming through her "April's Shower" video I saw one hell of a tasty and creative way to feed mid-day guests -- a sandwich torte.

Yes, the beet soup in teacups was cute, and the ice cream cake from the episode looked tasty, but it was the Luncheon Sandwich Torte that caught my eye. Instead of making finger sandwiches and stacking them in a pile for your guests to feed on, you can morph the sandwiches into a torte. Hers was made with soft whole wheat and white bread, and was comprised of three layers: chicken salad, egg salad, and a pesto cream cheese. So it's not only creative, but unique and tasty as well. Now I just need to find some mid-day guests to have a reason to make this torte of goodness.

Have you ever gotten crafty with your finger sandwiches?

When I was a kid, I had a very strict and immobile belief on the idea of grilled cheese -- it was always cheddar melted between slices of white bread with a can of Campbell's tomato soup. It had to be Campbell's, the can was not to be diluted with water (blasphemy!), and it would only be consumed with the sandwich. No tomato soup without the sandwich, and no grilled cheese without the soup.

These days, I'm a smidge more open-minded. I kill for grilled cheese with tomato, and sometime I even sass up my old mainstay with something like the tuscan bean soup above. But some of the old sentiment lingers. I can't imagine the thought of tomato soup without the sandwich, unless we're talking tuscan bean, minestrone, or something similar. Likewise, unless I add other ingredients to the cheese and bread, it seems lonely without the soup.

But what about you? Do you have strict grilled cheese beliefs or habits? Share below!

Quick tip: To cut cooking time for grilled cheese without a panini press, heat a large and small cast iron skillet. Put the sandwich in the larger pan, and then pick up the smaller skillet and press it down on top of the sandwich.

For your lunchtime pleasure, I'm presenting a series of my favorite bento boxes. Bento are Japanese home-prepared meals served in special boxes, usually eaten for lunch at work or school. These days, bento enthusiasts from all over the world share their creations on Flickr.

Check out Wendy Copley's cute preschooler bento - peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut into teddy bear and heart shapes, a load of sliced strawberries, cupcake liners filled with sliced string cheese and goldfish crackers, plus a tiny plastic cartoon character (hope the kid knows not to eat it!). Goes to show that bento-making doesn't have to be super-elaborate.

On Wednesday 1,500 cooks in Iran unveiled an attempt to smash Italy's Guinness Record for the world's largest ostrich sandwich. The event took place in Tehran's Mellet Park. At 4,920 feet, the humongous hero, which contained 1,543 pounds each of ostrich and chicken meat, easily beats the Italian record of 4,521 feet, set last May.

There's only one problem though. The sandwich was devoured in minutes by a hungry crowd before Guinness officials had a chance to measure it. The organizers are hoping that Guinness will accept video footage to authenticate the record.

It's a shame that something which took two days to prepare was gobbled up in mere minutes. The hero contained a mixture of ostrich and chicken meat with mustard and spices. The gigantic sandwich made from gigantic flightless birds was the brainchild of Tehran's city council along and a group of ostrich farmers. Ostrich meat is renowned for its flavor and is high in protein and low in cholesterol. Iran is the world's third-largest ostrich breeder behind South Africa and China.

Reimagining leftovers can be tough. But sometimes they open a slew of options. Take meatloaf, for example. You can crumble it up into a spaghetti sauce, use it as meatballs, morph it into sloppy joes, crumble it on pizza, or make a rich and tasty meatloaf melt, like above.

This is jut some toast, a nice slice of meatloaf, a layer of freshly sauteed mushrooms and onions, and some cheese. Once compiled, it was thrown into the toaster until the cheese was nicely melted -- which was enough time for the meatloaf to warm. Old staples don't always have to be predictable!

Have you ever sauced up your leftover meatloaf?

• While it might still be a challenge for the pickier kids out there, deli meat issues opens the door for other tasty ingredients like edamame.
• Chef Thomas Keller went north to the land of Quebec to cook for Quebec City's 400th anniversary.
• Eat tongue in cheek -- literally -- at Niagara Street Cafe.
• Wines to indulge in as summer wraps up: Pacific Rim 2006 Dry Riesling, Flat Rock Cellars 2006 Seriously Twisted, Konrad 2006 Sauvignon Blanc, Luigi Bosca Reserva 2005 Malbec, and Bodegas Carrau Ysern Blend of Regions 2004 Tannat.
• Recipe: Penne with Asparagus, Oyster Mushrooms and Goat's-Milk Cheese.

• If wild, BC sockeye salmon is going to disappear, C restaurant is going to enjoy it while it lasts by adding it back to their menu.
• Recipes for sandwiches on the dock: Japanese-Inspired Chicken Sandwich, Croque Madam, Beef on Baguette with Onions and Horseradish Mustard, and Portobello Mushroom Sandwich.
• Restaurant Reviews: Manpuku Modern Japanese Eatery and Kenzo Ra-Men.
• The Revel Room offers tastes from gingered water to Moroccan Lamb Meatballs.
• Fromagerie Le Détour offers stinky cheesiness ... in the good way.
• Recipe: Spinach, Peaches and Cream Corn, Blue Cheese, and Bacon Salad
  

As a devotee of the "more is more" school of sandwich making, this picture of the "Parmageddon" sandwich makes me drool. Two potato and cheese pierogies (Slavic stuffed dumplings), a greasy tangle of grilled onions, sauerkraut, and a slab of cheddar cheese, squeezed between two thick slices of grilled bread.

The photo comes courtesy of writer-photographer David Lay, who captured this beast at Lakewood, Ohio's Melt Bar and Grilled. Melt specializes in a psychedelic variety of grilled cheese sandwiches - smoked turkey, kraut and gouda; beer battered walleye, tartar sauce, American. The Parmageddon was featured as a reader's favorite in Esquire's "Best Sandwiches in America." Now, if I can just get my Polish grandmother to teach me to make her potato pierogies, I'd be all set.

Meet the contenders for New York's best sandwich: the Moroccan merguez sausage on grilled bread; the cemita poblana with pork butt al pastor; the pressed potato knish; the braised beef-stuffed shao bing; the Benny Mac - a chicken cutlet sandwich with macaroni and cheese and bacon; chili mackerel on a fluffy bun; a cilantro-spiced falafel.

How to save endangered species? Start eating them.

Ad Hoc, Thomas Keller's new restaurant in Napa, features only one meal a night. Bet it's not sloppy Joes.

Eric Asimov breaks away from wine with an article on citrus vodka.

The Minimalist knows snow peas.

The Hudson River Shad Festival will be shad-free, due to dwindling populations. Salmon will substitute.

A recipe for pollo Papantla - chicken simmered with orange juice, vinegar, garlic, chilis and vanilla.

Now you can eat foie gras in the airport, if you really want to.

There are several standard ways I use up leftovers: an omelet the next morning, fried rice, and of course, just re-heating whatever it was, and eating it as is.

Another thing to do is make a sandwich, and if you have leftover lamb and asparagus from Easter Sunday, throwing them together with a little bit of yogurt-turned-tzatziki makes a great pita-bread-based sandwich. Of course, in my house, we didn't actually have lamb (we didn't have a traditional ham either), and asparagus on the table gets eaten before the salad is served.

Without the leftovers to make the pitas, the only other thing to do is -- gasp! -- actually cook the meal! The California Asparagus Commission has put together a recipe (after the jump), along with a whole list of recipes for asparagus on their website.

He would be the Super Duper Colossal sandwich from Chick & Ruth's Delly in Annapolis, Maryland. That's according to Endless Simmer, who has selected sandwiches to match all four the Project Runway finalists. As a huge Project Runway enthusiast, I feel qualified to evaluate these selections, and they're pretty dead on. The only one I disagreed with slightly was Jillian's French Dip sandwich from Philippes in L.A.. I would have paired her with something classier, maybe a pesto panini with grilled vegetables or something.

The post is pretty funny if you're familiar with the show. And it seems that I've recently found myself fascinated by attempts to describe people in terms of food -- as you can probably tell from this and my Obama Roll post. It has me wondering what food I would be. Probably curry chicken salad with grapes. Or maybe I just think that because it's one of my favorite foods. What would you be?