Food, ahhh the focus of the holidays it seems. I can't get away from all the pumpkin, spiced, roasted, mashed, baked deliciousness if I tried. And to be honest, I really don't try. It's the one time of year I feel hungry, through the heat of the summer I'm often content to eat small, light meals and drink lots of water. It's just too dang hot to expend a lot of energy cooking or chomping. Once the cold hits, I love to make warm, comforting food, spending time preparing and cooking, taking advantage of the need to be inside and thoroughly enjoying the social and tasty aspect of the holiday food scene. This year I started a new path in my life, going back to school to become a registered dietitian. This week in my nutrition class we learned about phytochemicals and their benefits, so I challenged myself to make my meals filled with different colors of the rainbow. This vegetable, hummus and cheese sandwich was one of my successes and made for a pretty photo, double win! And it’s light enough to balance some of the more wintery, comfort foods I enjoy. Below are the ingredients I used in my sandwich, in the order I layered them, because I like my hummus and tomato to touch and my avocado and cheese to mingle. I shopped for these items at our local grocery store, they typically have a great quality selection of vegetables available and with our extended summer it seems we have the benefit of plentiful vegetables in the early fall.
2 slices Whole Wheat Multigrain Bread
1.5 Tbsp Sabra Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
2 thick slices heirloom tomato (color choice up to you, I chose a deep purple red)
6 thin slices of English cucumber
¼ medium green bell pepper, sliced into thin slivers (choose orange, red or yellow too, I had green on hand)
1 slice swiss cheese
½ large avocado, sliced or smashed
Spread hummus on one of the slices of bread and the avocado onto the other slice. Layer your cut vegetables and cheese as you like.
It’s as easy as that, summer in a sandwich. And in the fall no less!
*This is a sample post, which is why I am talking about it being fall in February ;)