Being a chef for more than 20 years, I've cooked a lot of food for a lot of people. I love to cook, farm my own fruits, vegetables and herbs, make my own cheese, can and process jellies, jams,salsas and peppers and hunt and fish the protein I eat. I make beer from scratch and seldom purchase processed food. When my wife and I travel, food is often the focus of our destination and we schedule our journeys around the harvest. I do not eat to live, I live to eat. When friends discover my culinary past they often wonder about the food I consume.

I've been asked innumerable times, "What is your favorite food to cook or eat?" I often shrug this question off as small talk and offer a shallow response such as, "I like all food," "Italian I suppose," "I guess I like to cook anything but desserts." Being asked this question again this past week I decide to decide my favorite food. Thinking this task easy, I begin to scroll through my brain my favorite foods - Coq au vin, delicious; escargot, garlic-butter delight; cioppino, the comforting fisherman's stew; rendang, the Indonesian beef stew voted the most delicious food in the world. Although delicious and a treat for a special occasion, none of these foods am I willing, if stranded on a desert island, to eat every day for the rest of my life.

When I use this edict - what am I willing to eat every day for the rest of my life - as my barometer for my favorite food, only one food meets the criteria - a sandwich. I love sandwiches, eat one or two most every day and often crave the handy culinary treat of meat between bread. Cured meat, artisanal cheese, fresh produce, chewy bread and a spicy sauce make up the sandwich I love. Also, to meet the criteria of the best sandwich ever, everything must be homemade.

The meal I choose to make to satisfy my culinary craving on this Sunday afternoon is a corned beef and Swiss cheese sandwich on homemade orange-carrot bread with spicy sprouts grown in my kitchen window, sliced red onion pulled from the garden and topped with garlic and basil aoli. Follow the recipes below, spend an afternoon cooking and enjoy a delicious meal, with leftovers.

Orange-Carrot Bread (adapted from Jane Brody's Good Food Book)

INGREDIENTS

2 cups orange juice

2 teaspoons sugar

1 package active dry yeast

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup oil

2 teaspoons grated orange rind

2 teaspoons salt

4 1/2 cups unbleached white flour, divided

2 cups finely grated carrots

2 eggs

3 cups whole-wheat stone-ground flour

PROCESS

* Heat the orange juice to lukewarm (105-115deg). Sprinkle in the sugar and yeast, stirring to dissolve them. Set the mixture aside for about 10 minutes or until yeast is bubbly.

* In a large mixing bowl beat the honey, oil, orange rind, salt, and 1 cup of the white flour. Add the yeast mixture, carrots and eggs and mix the ingredients thoroughly.

* Beat in the whole-wheat flour and 3 cups of the white flour. Spread the remaining white flour on a board or work surface, turn out the dough and knead it, working in the flour until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 to 8 minutes.

* Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning the dough to coat all sides with the grease. Cover the bowl lightly with plastic wrap and set the dough in a warm, draft-free place until it has doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hour.

* Punch down the dough and divide in half. Form each half into a loaf (the dough will feel loose and somewhat amorphous) and place the loaves in greased bread pans (9X5X3 inches). Cover the pans loosely with plastic wrap and place them in a warm place for another 30-40 minutes or until the loaves have doubled in bulk.

* Bake the bread in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

INGREDIENTS

2 garlic cloves

1 large egg yolk

4 large basil leaves, chiffonade

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

PROCESS

Mince and mash garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt using a large heavy knife. Whisk together yolk, lemon juice, and mustard in a bowl. Combine oils and add, a few drops at a time, to yolk mixture, whisking constantly, until all oil is incorporated and mixture is emulsified. (If mixture separates, stop adding oil and continue whisking until mixture comes together, then resume adding oil.)

Whisk in garlic paste and season with salt and pepper and add basil. If aoli is too thick, whisk in 1 or 2 drops of water. Chill, covered, until ready to use.

If you wish to comment or offer suggestions, please email me at bprutherford@hotmail.com