Legend has it that the sandwich was popularized by John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, during the 18th century. As a highly dedicated gambler, the Earl couldn’t be bothered to stop his card games when lunchtime came around, so his servants would bring him a few pieces of meat in between two slices of bread, which allowed the good Earl to eat with one hand while keeping his cards in the other.
Nowadays, your motivations for one-handed eating might involve checking Facebook, or maybe even studying for a midterm. But whatever the reason, sandwiches are still a great lunch option; that’s why your mom kept packing them for you during elementary school. While I stopped eating PB & J when I hit puberty, I love figuring out new and creative ways to pack ingredients between two pieces of bread. This roasted veggie sandwich requires a little bit of preparation, but it’s worth every bite — the flavourful, sweet bell peppers and tender-yet-crisp zucchini slices are given a Greek twist with the addition of feta cheese.
Colourful roasted veggie sandwich
Roasting Ingredients
1 red and 1 yellow pepper
6–8 cloves of garlic, separated but still in their skins
½ tsp olive oil
Other ingredients (per sandwich)
3–4 slices of zucchini
Salt, pepper and coriander, to taste
2 tbsp crumbled feta cheese
5–6 slices of yellow onion
2 tbsp hummus
2 slices of whole wheat bread
METHOD: to roast peppers and garlic
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Slice the peppers in half lengthwise. Remove the seeds and ribs. Line a cookie sheet with foil and place the pepper halves on it, sliced-side down.
Place garlic cloves on a separate sheet of foil. Drizzle with olive oil and wrap the foil around the garlic to make a closed packet.
Roast peppers and garlic for about 50 minutes, or until the skin of the peppers has blackened. Remove peppers and garlic from oven.
Let peppers sit for about five minutes to cool; remove skins (they should easily slip off) and discard. Keep garlic cloves in their skins.
Refrigerate pepper strips and garlic cloves in a sealed container for up to four days, to be used as needed.
To Assemble Sandwich
Spray zucchini slices with a little non-stick spray, or lightly brush with olive oil. Season with salt, pepper and coriander. Grill slices in a George Foreman or press grill for about four minutes, or sear in a frying pan on medium-high heat for two minutes per side.
Toast bread, and spread humus on each slice. Squeeze one to two cloves of roasted garlic onto the bread, discarding skins.
If feta cheese was packaged in liquid, dry it out in a paper towel to avoid soaking the bread.
Layer sandwich with strips of red and yellow pepper, onion, zucchini and feta cheese. Assembled sandwich keeps well in the fridge for a day.
