Making the best sandwich

G.L. Mezzetta, Inc., America’s number one producer of imported and domestic peppers and olives is challenging sandwich aficionados across the country to submit their recipes for the best sandwich ever. The Grand Prize winner of the First Annual Mezzetta Make That Sandwich Contest will receive $25,000 and a culinary trip and tour to Napa Valley, home of Mezzetta. Three runners-up will get $1,000 each.

“This contest officially marks the end of the boring, bland-wich sandwich,” explains Jeff Mezzetta, president. “Mezzetta products add so much flavor so easily there’s no reason to ever eat another bland sandwich.”

Mezzetta, a specialty foods company founded in 1935 in San Francisco’s North Beach, is considered part of the unique culinary heritage of the Bay Area, much like Dungeness crab and sourdough bread. Founder Giuseppe Luigi Mezzetta, an Italian immigrant, began his business selling imported Italian specialties to North Beach markets. Four generations later, the company is still family owned and operated and still producing great flavor-charged ingredients including their best-selling item—and one of the most popular sandwich toppers ever—the Peperoncini.

Mezzetta has launched the contest to celebrate the introduction of their new Deli-Sliced product line. Deli-Sliced was created to take a prep step out of the process and makes sandwich-building a snap. Tailor-made fixings in the new line include thinly sliced Hot or “Tamed” Jalapeños, Hot or Sweet Banana Wax Peppers, Roasted and Marinated bell Pepper Strips, Hot Cherry Peppers, and of course, Peperoncini.

But Mezzetta urges contestants not to limit their imagination to Deli-Sliced. There’s a huge variety of other great sandwich partners from the company, including olives, relishes, pickles, extra-virgin olive oil, sun-dried tomatoes…the list goes on. Mezzetta produces over 100 different food products that make adding tons of flavor to your meals as easy as opening a jar. Some of their most popular sandwich classics: Mezzetta Chicago-Style Italian Giardiniera, a savory sandwich mix of pickled cauliflower and carrots, is the secret ingredients in Chicago’s famous Italian Beef Sandwiches. And Mezzetta Hot Cherry Peppers (whole) have added zip to many a Philadelphia Cheese Steak.

Contestants can enter Mezzetta Make That Sandwich Contest in any or all of four categories: cold sandwich, hot sandwich, vegetarian, and hero (submarine-style) The Grand Prize winner will be selected from the category finalists. Entries will be judged on appearance, taste, creativity, and use of Mezzetta products. The contest ends soon— ends September 1, (Labor Day) 2008. More information is available at www.mezzetta.com or www.makethatsandwich.com.