Blue state special

Simple, substantive sandwiches make for satisfying election night fare

Roasted egglant sandwich with meaty eggplant, parmesan, onions, and olives piled onto sliced crusty bread. (Food styling/Karoline Boehm Goodnick; Photo by Wendy Maeda/Globe Staff)

Politics is a sport that consists mainly of talking. But on Election Day, it looks like a real contest, a game. We the electorate are both players and spectators: We bring it in the voting booth, then retire to the stands to watch what we have wrought. And, as with football, baseball, and for all I know croquet, we eat, usually a lot.

Why? Well, the stakes are high, the adrenaline is flowing. Apparently, deep in our instinctual selves lies a basic repertory of response to stress: There is fight, flight, or another barbecue chip. And a tasty dip wouldn't hurt, says the mammalian brain.

As an Election Night mainstay, the sandwich is ideal - it leaves one hand free for expostulation, calling down curses, and beseeching the gods. (You can even wave the sandwich itself as a bready banner - a move chancy with pizza, disastrous with pasta.) But nothing effete, no cucumber triangles, no trimming of crusts, no garnishes of edible flowers; this is a night of raw passions. (In fact, raw is not a bad way to go for steak. Even if you're not up for tartare, our steak sandwich at least gives you the option of rare.)

These sandwiches are warm and the flavors robust - "substantive" in political parlance. Choose from sloppy Joes, made with pork and plenty of paprika; roasted eggplant and Parmesan; and steak, which we garnish with sweet onion and blue cheese. We've even included some change agents, old favorites like BLT with a twist.

Early in the evening, offer a dip that seems like you worked hard on it but is actually an easy concoction of pureed cannellini with olives and a little olive oil; hang on to the recipe - with beans as the main ingredient, it's pretty well recession-proof. Follow with a creamy (but creamless) cauliflower soup with a little butternut squash, which turns pale orange. For dessert, layer ice cream, brownies, and whipped cream into brownie sundaes - they work as either celebration or consolation.

All of this should get you through the night, if not the next administration. And after the balloons are all popped, the bunting torn, the speeches finished, where do we go as a nation?

Meet you at the wet bar.