A Big Loaf Blt Recipe

How to make it

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• Arrange the bacon in a single layer in a heavy frying pan and cook, in batches, until it is deep golden brown and very crisp.
• Transfer cooked bacon to absorbent paper (such as a brown grocery bag) to drain.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325 degrees and cut the bread in half lengthwise.
• When the oven is hot, toast the bread until it is hot all the way through and just barely beginning to take on a little color on top.
• Transfer the bread to a large cutting board.
• Remove the stem and blossom ends of the tomatoes and slice them crosswise into 3/8-inch thick slices. (If slices are too thin, the tomatoes will fall apart; if too thick, they will fall out of the sandwich when you take a bite.)
• Set the mayonnaise on the counter, lid off.
• Set the bottom half of the bread on your work surface and use a rubber spatula or other wide spreader to slather mayonnaise generoulsy over the bread. Do not rub it into the bread; rather, put a large amount on one end and make a sweeping motion with your hand to spread it lightly over the surface, so that there are globs of it here and there.
• Add the tomatoes. Start at one end and tile them, so they overlap slightly.
• Season tomatoes generously with the salt.
• Stack bacon on top, using all of it.
• Add lettuce, gently folding each leaf so that it fits on top of the bacon.
• Season lettuce lightly with salt.
• Using the same sweeping motion, cover the inside of the top piece of bread with a generous amount of mayonnaise and set on top of the lettuce.
• Gently press the top piece of bread so that it doesn't fall to the side.
• Using a very sharp bread knife, cut the sandwich into 4, 5 or 6 crosswise slices.
• Set on paper towels, napkins or plates and enjoy.