Greek Salad Sandwiches with Hummus

Happy Friday! 

Looking back at this month's post, I've just realized how light my July offerings have been. Almost every recipe involves minimal cooking and work. That's because it's the middle of freakin' July! Who wants to be sweating over the stove, stuffing their head in an oven when it's 90+ degrees out? Who wants to put heavy, complicated food in their bellies when they are (most likely) already hot, sweaty, and uncomfortable? Not this girl, and certainly not her cantankerous hubby. We live on sandwiches, light pastas, summer soups, and grilled chicken in the summer. And fresh vegetables. LOTS of fresh vegetables.

And speaking of fresh vegetables, these sandwiches take advantage of numerous summer bounties. I used tomato and cucumber from my garden, but if you grow lettuce and onions, you can grab those from your own private stash as well. I was really surprised at how much I liked this vegetarian sandwich. Vegetarian sandwiches are always tricky. To me, sandwiches always seemed to be the perfect vehicle for succulent meat paired with melty cheese. Like a cheesesteak. Mmmmmm. Great. Now I want a cheesesteak, and it's 7:00 in the morning. Sheesh. But, like I was saying, veggie sandwiches are hard to pull off. This sandwich, I'm happy to report, works. Between the marinated onions and olives, paired with hummus, you get plenty of flavor and moistness. Pile it high with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber and you've got plenty of filling. And it all works together. I've actually gone back and made these for lunch at the hubby's request since first serving them.

What I love about this sandwich is the possibility to play with it. Start with the bread and the hummus, and you could fill the sandwich with anything else that goes good with hummus. And what doesn't go good with hummus?

Not a whole lot, friends. Not a whole lot.

One idea that's particularly enticing to me would be to fill the sandwiches with roasted veggies like zucchinis, eggplant, yellow squash, and/or carrots. Yum! Grilled chicken would be fantastic as well. And of course, a sprinkle of feta never hurts.

Straight from my garden. Oh yeah! Aren't they beautiful? Garden-fresh produce tastes so amazing compared to the mealy mush you get from the grocery store. 

When I'm not making hummus to photograph for the blog, I put it straight into tupperware. That's how I roll :)

Now for some exciting news! Shortly after the hubby and I got engaged, he was laid off and we started our marriage in a serious budget crisis. Needless to say, we sacrificed our honeymoon in order to save that money for when we needed it. Well, we've decided to really celebrate our 5-year anniversary, and take our honeymoon to Cancun! I'm so excited! We booked our trip yesterday for the end of October. Now, all we have to do is cross our fingers our passports are ready in time (we mailed them off on Monday to be renewed) and pray there's not a hurricane in October. I have a feeling this trip is really going to motivate my workouts! 7 days in a bikini? Gym time required. 

It's going to be awesome sauce. Yep, that's right. Awesome sauce.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ingredients (makes 2 sandwiches):

1/3 cup red onion, thinly sliced

10-11 Kalamata olives, minced

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

2 Ciabatta rolls

1/2 cup Hummus

1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced

1 small tomato, thinly sliced

1 cup romaine lettuce, chopped

2 tbsp feta, crumbled

Directions:

1. Combine onion, olives, oil, and vinegar in a small bowl. Whisk to thoroughly mix. Set aside and allow to marinate while preparing the rest of the sandwiches. 

2. Slice Ciabatta rolls in half. Place facing up in oven under broiler. Broil for 1-2 minutes, or until bread is lightly toasted. Remove from heat.

3. Spread about 1/4 cup hummus on each Ciabatta roll. On top half, spread onion and olive mixture. On bottom half, layer with lettuce, tomato, and cucumber. Top cucumber with 1 tbsp of feta. Sandwich halves together, and serve immediately. 

Printable Recipe

Recipe adapted from Skinnytaste.

Looking for other sandwich recipes? Try these!

Turkey Pesto Avocado Sandwiches

Buffalo Chicken Mozzarella Melts

Grilled Heirloom Tomato Caprese Sandwiches

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Treasure Box Tuesdays

Grilled Heirloom Tomato Caprese Sandwiches

There is something to be said for a simple tomato and cheese sandwich. This bad boy uses farmer's market fresh heirloom tomatoes and melty, fresh mozzarella cheese. Add in some fresh basil and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, and you've got yourself an extremely tasty sandwich!

Sometimes I set out at dinner time having no clue what I'm making. This sandwich happened at one of those times. Since I've started frequenting the farmer's market, I find myself staring down a variety of produce in the fridge. What am I going to make with what I have? When my eyes skipped over these maters' and the ball of fresh mozzarella sitting next to it, an idea began to form. An added bonus? I have more basil than I know what to do with. And what goes best with tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil? The answer to that question is obvious- balsamic vinegar. I decided to grill the tomatoes and bread, and make a stacked sandwich. Boom! Dinner decided.

Aren't these tomatoes gorgeous? Heirloom tomatoes are some of my favorites. So juicy and flavorful, and that texture! Summer is gooooood.

A couple tips for making these sandwiches- I sliced my tomatoes before I grilled them. This turned out ok because I cut the tomatoes so thick. I don't recommend an amateur does this. If the tomatoes are overcooked, they become mushy and slide through the grates on the grill. No good! I think grilling the tomatoes whole or cut into halves is the way to go though, and then slicing after the trip to the grill. Also, these tomatoes are so juicy that you want to eat your sandwiches immediately. Grilling the bread makes it nice and crispy, but given the opportunity (say, 15 minutes for photos) these sandwiches will become soggy. Also no good. 

A side note about that basil- as I was harvesting a gigantic bowl yesterday, I happened to start thinking about how much I've received from the herb garden. If you cook a lot, like me, you're probably buying fresh herbs often. Expensively. After yesterday's harvest, I've frozen a total of 8 bags of pesto this summer. Each bag holds an estimated $6 worth of fresh basil. That's $48 I've saved already! Not to mention all the times I've ran outside and grabbed a handful of basil leaves to add to a recipe. Even the smallest container of fresh basil at the grocery store is $3! Basil grows like crazy and is fairly low maintenance. In fact, all my herbs grow easily with little to no attention. An herb garden is a great way to dive into gardening without taking on the headache of growing vegetables. I highly recommend trying to grow your own herbs. 

The hubby and I actually have big plans for the weekend! We are heading up to Cincinnati for another weekend with his cousin. On Saturday, we're all headed to King's Island, which is a huge amusement park in these parts. Last time the hubby and I visited the park, we had a serious struggle over what to do. Due to my headaches, I don't really like to ride coasters. They rattle my brain around. The hubby, on the other hand, is my polar opposite in that department. Needless to say, our previous trip was spent mostly on kiddie rides and staying in the water park. This time, the hubby and his cousin can ride coasters to their hearts content, and the cousin's wife and I will stay quietly in the water park. This arrangement is much more up my alley, so I'm looking forward to a fun weekend. I've got some errands to run to prepare for the weekend, so I guess I better get going!

Happy Thursday friends!

Ingredients (makes 2 sandwiches):

2 ciabatta rolls, cut into sandwich halves

3 heirloom tomatoes, cut into halves

1 (8 oz) ball of fresh mozzarella, thickly sliced (you'll have leftovers)

Handful of large basil leaves

Balsamic vinegar

Directions:

1. Heat gas grill to high heat.

2. When grill is hot, turn top and bottom burners to low. Turn middle burner to medium.

3. Place tomatoes on grill, cut side down. Grill for 3 minutes. Turn tomatoes over and grill for 1 more minute. Remove from heat and set aside. Place ciabatta rolls on grill. Grill for 1 minute. Flip, and grill for 1 minute. Remove from heat.

4. Assemble sandwiches. Slice tomatoes. Place a tomato slice on a half of roll. Place a slice of mozzarella on top. Place a couple basil leaves on top of cheese. Place another slice of tomato on top of basil, and repeat process. Drizzle balsamic vinegar over last layer of basil. Sandwich other half of roll on top, and serve immediately.

Printable Recipe

Looking for other sandwich and/or bread recipes? Try these!

Buffalo Chicken Mozzarella Melts

Grilled Tomato Basil Bread

Mom's Sloppy Joes with Garlicky Potato Wedges

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday

Buffalo Chicken Mozzarella Melts

Let's talk Subway. Subway is the only fast food restaurant I frequent. It also happens to be the only fast food establishment in the town where I live (a town of ~1200 people). I still go to Subway because #1, I love sandwiches and #2, you can get something other than a greasy hamburger on a weebly bun. My go-to sandwich there, as of the last year or so, is the Buffalo Chicken. This girl is obsessed with buffalo sauce. Obsessed. So why wouldn't I want to recreate the magic at home?

I was making Grilled Chicken Sandwiches for dinner, because I had some leftover grilled chicken breast. Chicken sandwiches are a great option for leftover chicken breast. I've learned through trial and error, you really only need 1 chicken breast to make 2 sandwiches. Maybe it's because the chicken breasts I buy are unusually thick, but I find if I cut the chicken breast in half (thickness-wise), it's perfect for a sandwich. Anyhoo- I was making the sandwiches. My head was in the fridge, scanning for the mayo when my eyes moved over the bottle of buffalo sauce. That's all it took.

My favorite buffalo sauce is the medium sauce from Buffalo Wild Wings. Or "Buffies" as I like to call it. I buy a 3-pack at the restaurant every couple of years or so. They last us a long time! I ended up making the hubby's sammie plain with just mayo, but mine? Mine I added the perfect amount of spice to.

My current go-to technique for sandwiches is putting them under the broiler. There's something about the heating action, and the oozy-gooey cheese that oozes from the sandwich. Heavenly. My favorite bread to use for dinner sammies are Ciabatta rolls. Depending on the thickness of the roll, I'll occasionally scoop some of the bread out of the roll. You know, to even out the bread-to-innards ratio.  I'll spread the bread halves out on a cookie sheet, and top the bottom half with chicken, a tomato slice, and a generous amount of mozzarella . Stick it under the broiler for a few minutes and voila! Super-yummy sandwiches made at home.

I served these alongside some homemade potato salad. The creaminess of the potato salad was a great foil for the heat provided by the buffalo sauce. This is a great meal idea for a weeknight or a quick lunch. They literally take less than 10 minutes to make. Better than Subway, indeed :)

I know I say this every week, but how is it Friday already?? This week flew by. I mean, wasn't it just Sunday and I was in Columbus having a girl's day? Seems like it. The hubby is working days this whole weekend, so I've got lots of time on my hands to be productive. And believe me, my to-do list is lengthy. Lots of running, cooking, baking, cleaning, couponing, picture-taking, and grocery-shopping to do!

And quite possibly, a dinner out with friends on Saturday night. We'll see :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ingredients (makes 2 sandwiches):

2- Ciabatta rolls

1 chicken breast, previously cooked

1/2 cup buffalo sauce

2- tomato slices

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

2- lettuce leafs

Directions:

1. Set oven to broil. 

2. Cut Ciabatta rolls in half. Depending on the thickness of the roll, scoop out desired amount of bread (optional). Arrange bread halves on cookie sheet, with the middle of the roll facing up. Place under broiler until toasted, about 2 minutes. Remove from oven.

3. Do a quick preheat of the chicken. My method- I place the breast on a plate, and cover with a damp paper towel. Microwave for 1 minute. Remove from microwave. Cut chicken breast in half, thickness-wise. Using a basting brush, thoroughly coat chicken breast halves in buffalo sauce. Set aside. 

4. Set "top" of sandwich roll aside. Arrange bottoms of rolls on cookie sheet, middle facing up. Brush buffalo sauce on rolls. Place chicken breast halves on top of the buffalo sauce. Top with a tomato slice and 1/4 cup of cheese. Place under the broiler until cheese is melted and browned. Remove from oven. 

5. Brush buffalo sauce on the top-half of rolls. Place 1 lettuce leaf on each sandwich, and then press the top of the roll onto the sandwich. Cut sandwich in half, if desired. Serve immediately. 

Printable Recipe

If you liked this recipe, you might also enjoy:

Turkey Pesto Avocado Sandwiches

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Feature Fridays