Big-Ass Picnic Sandwich

Make a 14-inch round loaf of bread:

Take two cups water, one warm (115F) and the other hot. To the warm, add some yeast and a couple spoonfuls of honey. To the hot, add a big handful of cracked wheat. Meanwhile grind up some flax seeds in the coffee mill until fine. Do the same with a handful of oatmeal. When the cracked wheat is soft and the yeast has bloomed, dump them into a big bowl. Add the oat and flax meals, about 2 tb sea salt, some olive oil, and enough white flour, rye flour and whole wheat flour to make a moist but kneadable dough. Knead 10 minutes, refrigerate overnight.

Line a 14-inch deep dish pizza pan with parchment and smear with olive oil. Dust with cornmeal. Press dough into pan. Let rise until double. Brush with a beaten egg and sprinkle with sea salt and seeds: flax, poppy and sesame. Bake 25-30 minutes at 400F, until interior reaches about 200F.

Marinate boneless skinless chicken breasts in store-bought light Italian dressing overnight. Yes, I make my own vinaigrettes all the time, but there's nothing quite like store-bought bottled Italian dressing. You'll need three breasts for the sammich.

Grill the breasts over charcoal along with 4 red bell peppers. Char the peppers and cover in plastic wrap. Remove skins and seeds when cool enough to handle. Chill the roasted peppers and breasts.

Split the loaf of bread horizontally. Toast under the broiler until golden brown and halves are beginning to cup (all the better to hold more fillings). Mix a little Italian dressing with some homemade pesto to thin it a bit, and slather on the toasted surfaces. Layer on pieces of presliced cheeses: muenster, mozzarella, fontina, and provolone, making sure the provolone is on top because of its superb browning qualities. Go right up to the bread edges to protect them from burning. Broil each half until the cheese is brown and bubbly.

Layer the fillings onto the bottom: julienned sundried tomatoes, roasted bell peppers, julienned peppadews, thinly sliced chicken breasts (use the Ultimate Grandma Zucker Tomato Slicing Knife (TM)), half an English cucumber, about 2 cups finely sliced inner kale leaves. Top with the upper half of the bread. Wrap tightly and chill a few hours. Slice into wedges. Drizzle with a little extra Italian dressing.