I had a sandwich like this at a little random restaurant while wine tasting this weekend, and it was so good that I had to recreate it immediately!
My friends and I went to Amador County for some wine tasting (some pics on yesterday’s weekend recap post), and we wound up getting a little lost. The wineries we stopped at didn’t have maps, I don’t carry a map in my car, and none of us had cell signals.
Wow. That kind of thing doesn’t really happen much anymore! We had one teeny quasi-map from a winery that we thought could help us out, so decided to pull over and take a look. I pulled into a little parking lot we happened to pass (which was a rare sight where we were), and pulled up in front of a restaurant. As soon as we parked, one of my friends turned to us and asked, “Sooo have you guys eaten today?”
Obviously, we decided to walk into the restaurant and have a bite to eat! I was pretty surprised to find a handful of veg-friendly options on the menu. Though I did fail to notice there was pesto on the roasted vegetable sandwich I ordered, which turned out to be more of a pesto-mayo combo.
Oh, well. It happens sometimes. And my sandwich was ahhhmazing. Simple combo of roasted portobello, zucchini, and red pepper on delicious focaccia. Loved it!
So I made it for dinner last night. Easy, delicious, and the perfect meal to start welcoming fall. You can use whatever veggies you have in your fridge, or that are fresh at your local farmer’s market. Easy to switch up!
pesto:
yields a LOT – I sense a pesto lasagna/pizza/pasta in my future
1 bunch basil
10 cloves roasted garlic (or just use 2 raw cloves)
1/3 C avocado oil
1/2 C walnuts
2 slices Daiya provolone
salt & pepper
Blend everything in a food processor until smooth and creamy!
sandwich:
serves 2
1 small yam, peeled and sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch thick pieces
1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise
1 portobello mushroom
2 T avocado oil
2 pieces roasted red pepper (you can roast your own – I just used jarred)
2 T vegan mayo (I used Wildwood’s Zesty Garlic Aioli and it was incredible)
2 T pesto
4 slices bread of choice
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay sliced vegetables on a foil-lined baking sheet. Brush with oil, top with some salt and pepper – or mix it up and use your seasoning of choice! Flip over, brush with the rest of the oil and season more. Roast for about 25-30 minutes, until all your veggies are tender and starting to brown.
Meanwhile, you can make the pesto recipe above (or any other vegan pesto!) Combine 2 T of the pesto with the mayo and set aside. Toast your bread.
When the veggies are ready, spread the mayo evenly on each side of the bread, top with the roasted veggies, and you’re done.
Don’t worry, my friends and I made it home. That little restaurant also had cell reception, whew! So we figured out where we were – ummm WAY FAR from where we were supposed to be. Glad I know how to make this sandwich now, because there’s very little chance I’ll ever see that restaurant again.
Nutrition facts (my best estimate – calculating how much of my pesto recipe I used was way hard):
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