It's easy to think of sandwich recipes as bland and boring, but really, a sandwich is a blank canvas on which you can paint a masterpiece of colours, flavours and textures. Italy – home of the Renaissance – is no stranger to masterpieces, so it's no surprise that their sandwich game is on point.

It must be said, as home to some of the best melted cheese in the world, Italy does have a bit of a head-start. Helen Graves' Mozzarella in carrozza recipe couldn't be more Italian if it tried, filling a sandwich with mozzarella, Parma ham and basil before frying on both sides and sealing with egg. Manuela Zangara's recipe for classic Sicilian Panelle is just as authentic, and perhaps a little more dignified to eat, as she fills a warm bread roll with chickpea fritters.

Cristina Bowerman's Foie gras sandwich proves that literally anything can go in between two bits of bread, whilst Mauro Uliassi goes all out to take the humble sandwich into fine dining circles with his impressive Crunchy mullet with parsley and anchovy cream and candied rhubarb starter.