The Ultimate Veggie Sandwich (with Charred Broccoli)
I’ve now posted this incredible veggie sandwich a couple of times on my Instagram, so I thought it was finally time for it to live permanently on the blog as well. If you haven’t tried it yet, this sandwich is inspired by one I had from Court Street Grocers in New York City last year, which gave me the genius idea to put broccoli in a sandwich. I paired the charred broccoli with caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, butter lettuce, vegan cheese and sourdough bread fried in butter, and it is absolutely perfection. Thank me later!
The Ultimate Veggie Sandwich with Charred Broccoli
Ingredients
2 thick slices fresh sourdough bread
1/3 head of broccoli, sliced into 1/2 inch thick florets
1 sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
olive oil, salt, pepper + garlic powder
1-2 large roasted red peppers (I used jarred ones)
2-3 leaves of lettuce (I used butter lettuce)
2 tbsp pesto (homemade or jarred)
2 tbsp soft cheese of choice (I used vegan ricotta)
butter or vegan butter to cook the bread
Method
Heat some oil in a skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium. Add your onions + a big pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 15 mins until the onions are golden brown + caramelized. Add balsamic, stir, cook for another minute and remove from heat.
To the same pan, add more oil and your broccoli pieces. Season with salt, pepper + garlic powder and cook over medium-high heat for 3-5 mins, until the bottom starts to get crispy + charred. Flip the pieces, then turn the heat to medium + cover the skillet to steam broccoli a bit. Cook for another 3 mins until both sides are deeply browned and broccoli is tender-crisp. Remove from heat.
Butter both sides of your bread and cook in the skillet for about 2 mins per side until golden brown.
Remove bread and spread pesto on one slice. add a big spoonful of caramelized onions, then your roasted red pepper, then your charred broccoli pieces. Add lettuce on top of veggies, then spread the other slice of bread with cheese and place on top. Slice in half + serve!
Makes 1 sandwich