Recipe by Nettie Cronish and Cara Rosenbloom, co-authors of Nourish
This recipe incorporates crunchy bread, melted goat cheese, tender grilled vegetables and a smooth garlicky pesto that make this a must-eat dish for sandwich lovers.
Ingredients:
Pesto
50 ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 garlic clove, minced
1.5 litres (6 cups) chopped Tuscan kale
50 ml (1/4 cup) chopped walnuts
30 ml (2 tbsp) fresh lemon juice
2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) sea salt
410 ml (14 oz) can of cannellini beans, no-salt-added
50 ml (1/4 cup) grated Parmesan cheese
50 ml (1/4 cup) fresh basil leaves
Grilled vegetables
1 Japanese eggplant, cut into 6 mm (1/4”) thick slices
1 zucchini, cut into 6 mm (1/4”) thick slices
1 red pepper, cut into 5 cm (2”) strips
30 ml (2 tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
1 ml (1/4 tsp) sea salt
0.5 ml (1/8 tsp) freshly ground pepper
Sandwiches
8 slices whole grain bread or baguette
250 ml (1 cup) baby arugula
130 g (4.5 oz) soft goat cheese
Directions:
- To prepare the pesto, in a large pan, add 15 millilitres (one tablespoon) of olive oil and garlic. Once sizzling, add kale and sauté for five minutes. Remove from heat.
- Add the kale to a food processor bowl, along with the remaining oil, walnuts, lemon juice, beans, Parmesan and basil. Pulse all the ingredients together until the mixture becomes creamy.
- Adjust the salt and lemon juice to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use. Excess quantity can be stored for three days.
- To prepare the grilled vegetables, preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
- Brush the eggplant, zucchini and red pepper with olive oil and season them with salt and pepper.
- Grill until just tender — about eight minutes for the eggplant and zucchini, and ten minutes for the pepper.
- To prepare the sandwiches, start by toasting the bread.
- Spread 15 millilitres (one tablespoon) of pesto on each of the four slices of bread.
- Lay slices of the eggplant, zucchini and red pepper atop the pesto.
- Divide arugula evenly between sandwiches.
- Spread 30 millilitres (two tablespoons) of goat’s cheese over each of the four remaining bread slices. Place cheese, side down, on sandwiches.