Marsha's Homemade "Papa Kelsey's" Sandwiches

Scott and I really enjoy going to Papa Kelsey's, but the nearest location to our home is about 45 minutes away.  Several times Scott has mentioned that we should try and make homemade sandwiches like theirs so we don't have to drive so far or wait so long to satisfy our cravings.  So, in the last month or two I have been on a quest to recreate our favorite Papa Kelsey's sandwiches at home, and I think I have finally succeeded (and Scott agrees).

The picture is from the Papa Kelsey's website, but the bread recipe came from a cookbook my mother-in-law bought that is full of recipes from her co-workers in Idaho.  The sandwich recipes are just my imagination and from the menu.

Okay, on to the recipe:  First, the bread.

French Bread Hogie Buns

1/2 cup warm water

2 Tbl. yeast

1 tsp. sugar

1/3 cup oil

2 to 3 Tbl. sugar

2 tsp. salt

2 cups hot water

6-7 cups flour

Mix 1/2 cup warm water, yeast, and 1 tsp sugar together and set aside to get frothy.  (If yeast doesn't froth, it might be too old or else the temperature of the water was either too warm or too cold.)

In a large mixer, add yeast mixture to oil, 2-3 Tbl. sugar, salt, and 2 cups hot water.  Mix well.  Add 3 cups of flour and mix (this will be lumpy).  Add 3-4 more cups of flour to make a nice bread dough.  Knead and put in a greased bowl and let rise 20 minutes.  Punch down.  Let rise again for 20 minutes.  Punch down and form into hogie buns.  Place on greased cookie sheet(s) and let raise.  Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown.  Makes approximately 10 hogie buns.

(I think I let it bake for like 15 or 20 minutes and then kept checking it every 5 minutes until it was done.  I don't think it took much more than about 25 minutes, but I can't remember for sure right now, so just watch it and see.)

As far as the sandwiches go, Papa Kelsey's has all different kinds of sandwiches.  At the location we frequent, they also have take-out menus on the front counter that tell you basically EVERYTHING that is in all of the sandwiches, so it's not too difficult to recreate your favorites once you get the proportions right.  So, here are three of our favorites:

Marsha's "Papa Kelsey's" Sandwiches:

Wrangler:

BBQ sauce

chopped white onion

Swiss cheese

pineapple tidbits

sliced roast beef sandwich meat

Pizza Sub:

pizza sauce

mozzarella cheese, in slices

pepperoni slices

Ham and Cheese:

mayo

mustard

white and yellow cheese slices (I use provolone and either cheddar or Colby Jack)

sliced ham sandwich meat

tomato slices (optional, in my opinion)

Directions: Preheat oven AND cookie sheet to 425 degrees.  Take a pre-made hogie bun and slice it open to make a sandwich.  Place your cheese down first, then top the cheese with your sauces (pizza, BBQ, mayo, etc.) to keep the bread from getting soggy.  Top the sauce with your veggies/fruit and end with the meat on the very top.  Do this on both halves of the bread, so watch your proportions.

Place your prepared hogie halves on a piece of tin foil next to each other, meat-side-up. (Do not cover with foil, only place them on top of the foil and do not stack your halves yet.)  Place the tinfoil on the preheated cookie sheet and bake sandwiches for approximately 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melting and the ingredients are getting hot.  Pull sandwiches from the oven, place your halves together to make the final sandwich, wrap the sandwich up in the foil and place directly back in the oven to finish heating through (do not put back on the cookie sheet).  Let sandwiches continue to heat for 5-10 minutes, or until everything is melted, hot and delicious (do not let burn).  Serve.

If you want to be "totally" Papa Kelsey's, you can also serve your sandwich with a pickle spear on the side and a bag of those Lay's potato chips that are basically just salted greasy air, but I never bother.  :)  Enjoy!