Food52's Best Brown Bag Lunches Contest

For the past year, Food52.com readers have been voting in weekly showdowns of reader-submitted recipes on a given theme. The winning recipes of each week will end up in Food52's upcoming cookbook, along with bios of the people who submitted them (Food52 explains the process in simple detail here).

Food52 and its co-founders Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs have invited HuffPost Food readers to vote on the contest for week 4 (of the second year, and the second book).

Week 5's showdown is for the best brown bag lunch recipe.

Check the finalists out below, and vote for your favorite here.

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Pan Bagnat: Le French Tuna Salad Sandwich

Photo: Melanie Einzig

Amanda and Merrill's notes on Pan Bagnat: Le French Tuna Salad Sandwich on Food52.com:

Pan Bagnat, literally "bathed bread," is a great solution to the brown bag lunch dilemma, and Waverly's version is pitch-perfect. A decidedly Nicoise tuna salad is pressed between two garlic and oil slicked halves of a baguette and left in the fridge overnight, which allows all of the juices to soak into the bread. We chose to include both of the optional ingredients -- crisp green beans, briny artichoke hearts -- and were glad we did. The resulting sandwich was a glorious riot of colors, flavors and textures. - A&M

View the Pan Bagnat: Le French Tuna Salad Sandwich recipe here.

Vote for this recipe here.

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Yam, Zucchini, and Chickpea Salad

Photo: Melanie Einzig

Amanda and Merrill's notes on Yam, Zucchini, and Chickpea Salad on Food52.com:

This is a dish that could easily be weighed down with starch, but Rivka keeps it fleet of foot by dropping zucchini into the mix of yam and chickpeas and by dressing it all with a zippy lemon and tahini vinaigrette. You can eat it warm or cold, in your packed lunch or as a side dish for roasted chicken. We'd be happy with all of the above. - A&M

View the Yam, Zucchini, and Chickpea Salad recipe here.

Vote for this recipe here.

Comments

[kareemachan]

12:52 PM on 10/12/2010

I'd rather have a muffeletta than this sandwich.

[yesyesyes]

08:40 PM on 10/11/2010

At least we don't have to vote this time

[TaurusRose]

08:36 PM on 10/10/2010

Still, it is not Nicoise if it lacks hardboiled egg and anchovies. These are must-haves.

[kaspian808]

08:01 AM on 10/10/2010

I agree with the comment (fr

[ckinsobe]

10:30 PM on 10/09/2010

I love Pain Bagnat. I remeber when I first went to the French Riviera they were sold right on the beach by vendors on delicious round bread. There were several variations and they were always delicious.

[capsaicin]

02:08 PM on 10/09/2010

I'm sure that salad is very good, but if I am choosing one of these for lunch there is no way I'm not going with that glorious sandwich! Love all the bold flavors, and the refrigerator technique (that only a crusty loaf could withstand) sounds interesting too..

[skatanic666]

03:59 PM on 10/09/2010

I couldn't agree more, it would be a next to impossible task to say no to that sandwich. The technique is very similar to a Muffeletta sandwich like you would get in Louisiana. With the flavors of Salad Nicoise. So awesome. Winner hands down.

[catcancook]

12:41 PM on 10/10/2010

I grew up eating Muffuletta's and they are so delicious.

Here is the recipe.

http://www.gumbopages.com/food/samwiches/muff.html