So start by switching some of your sandwich intake to delicious vegetarian sandwiches. It’s painless!

While we love a sliced avocado and tomato sandwich using local summer tomatoes, we think that grilled vegetables make the best vegetarian sandwiches. While it’s still prime grilling season, develop some signature veggie sandwich recipes. You can even turn the concept into a veggie sandwich party—a build-your-own sandwich buffet.

Creative flavor layering is at the heart of a great veggie sandwich. Peruse the following groups for inspiration, and offer something from each group.

GROUP 1: HEARTY VEGETABLES, GRILLED OR ROASTED

GROUP 2: RAW VEGETABLES

GROUP 3: SPREADS

 
GROUP 4: CONDIMENTS

 
GROUP 5: FLAVOR ACCENTS

Grilled raddicho, endive and romaine are delicious, on a sandwich or as a side. Photo courtesy Radicchio.com.

 
GROUPS 6 & 7: SIDES & SANDWICH BREADS

Of course, the remaining ingredient to make veggie sandwiches is bread. We won’t add more long lists here, just two bullets:

 
Party on, veggie-style!
  

And cookbook author Hannah Kaminsky, who developed this recipe, is a fan.

“When it comes to the divide between sweet and savory, the line that separates the two is becoming thinner and more difficult to distinguish with every passing year.” says Hannah.

“Palates are opening up, eaters from all walks of life are growing more adventurous, and chefs are gleefully pursuing their wildest culinary dreams. In a world with such a vast array of flavors, there must still be countless winning combinations merely waiting to be discovered.

“In my eyes, tomato cupcakes aren’t such a stretch of the imagination. Tomato soup cakes have been around since the turn of the century as a thrifty way of making something sweet in times of sugar rationing. Originally dubbed “mystery cake” as a way of concealing the secret ingredient, you’d never know there was tomato present in the tender crumb.

“Taking inspiration from these humble origins but with the desire to celebrate the bold, beautiful tomatoes now in season rather than bury them in an avalanche of sugar, it seemed high time to revisit the idea of a tomato cake.”

RECIPE: TOMATO CUPCAKES WITH BALSAMIC FROSTING

“You can truly taste the tomato in these fiery red cupcakes,” says Hannah. “Not only that, but the unassuming beige frosting holds yet another surprise taste sensation: A tangy punch of balsamic vinegar, tempered by the sweetness of the rich and fluffy matrix that contains it.

“Trust me, it’s one of those crazy things that you’ve just got to taste to believe. Although it may sound like an edible acid burn, that small splash is just enough to brighten up the whole dessert.

“While tomatoes are still at their peak, sweet as ever and available in abundance, now is the time to experiment and try something new. Don’t call it a secret ingredient this time around and finally let them shine when the dessert course rolls around.”

For The Tomato Cupcakes

 
For The Balsamic Frosting

Preparation

1. PREHEAT oven to 350°F and line 15-16 cupcake tin wells with papers.

2. COMBINE the blended (but not completely puréed) tomatoes, olive oil, and brown sugar in a medium bowl. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and set aside.

3. WHISK together in a separate large bowl the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices. Make sure that all the dry goods are thoroughly distributed before adding in the wet ingredients. Mix everything together with a wide spatula, stirring just enough to bring the batter together and beat out any pockets of unincorporated dry ingredients. A few remaining lumps are just fine.

4. DISTRIBUTE the batter to the prepared cupcake pans, filling the papers about 3/4 of the way to the top. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the centers pulls out cleanly, with perhaps just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Do not wait for the tops to brown, because the centers will be thoroughly overcooked by then. Let cool completely before frosting.

5. MAKE the frosting: Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat briefly to soften before adding in the confectioner’s sugar, balsamic glaze and vanilla. Begin mixing on low speed until the sugar is mostly incorporated, pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Turn the mixer up to high and slowly drizzle in the milk as needed to bring the whole mixture together. Continue whipping for about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy.

6. FROST the cupcakes and garnish as desired.

 
*NOTE: All of Hannah’s recipes are originally vegan. We converted them to dairy for THE NIBBLE’s readership.

Burgers are the number one item grilled–
although few are quadruple burgers, like this
one. Photo courtesy Grilling.com.

 
It doesn’t stop at the end of summer: Statistics show that 60% of grill owners use their grills year-round.

What are all of these grills cooking up? The most popular foods for cooking are

GRILLING AT THE WHITE HOUSE

Barbecues have been a White House tradition since Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the U.S. Fast forward some 160 years: Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th president, hosted the first barbecue at the White House that featured Texas-style barbecued ribs.

Jimmy (the 39th president) and Rosalyn Carter hosted a “pig pickin’” for about 500 guests including visiting foreign dignitaries. Ronald (the 40th) and Nancy Reagan also were avid barbecuers who entertained with barbecues at their ranch.

George H. Bush, 41st president, held a barbecue for Members of Congress annually on the South Lawn of the White House, a tradition continued by his son, President George W. Bush (43rd). However, that tradition was interrupted on September 12, 2001, the day after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Secret Service agents, who had evacuated the White House a day earlier, cancelled the barbecue. The White House kitchen donated the 700 pounds of beef tenderloin to feed the hundreds of rescue workers who had traveled to Washington.
  

 
Enjoy the juicy yellow-orange orbs while you can. In addition to hand fruit and desserts, add peaches to your savory recipes.

Here‘s one for roasted peach with seared ahi tuna. You can substitute any seafood, poultry, pork, even lamb.

The recipe is from Parke Ulrich, Executive Chef of Waterbar in San Francisco.

This recipe has a special significance for Chef Parke. Each year he participates in the Adopt-A-Tree program from Masumoto Family Farm, which grows the organic Elberta peaches for his dishes. They are harvested in late July or early August. Chef Parke then creates dishes using the peaches in the month of August.

See more about Elberta peaches below.
 
Headed to San Francisco?

Plan a visit to Waterbar. Perched on the water’s edge, with one of the most extraordinary views of the San Francisco Bay, the Bay Bridge, the famed Ferry Building and the Embarcadero skyline, the seafood is as good as the view. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner daily.

 
RECIPE: SEARED AHI TUNA WITH SALT ROASTED PEACH & WHITE BALSAMIC REDUCTION

Ingredients For 4 Servings

Preparation

1. SCORE the bottom of each peach (opposite the stem end) with a small X. Place a ½ inch layer of rock salt in the bottom of a sauté pan. Place the peaches stem end down in the salt.

2. SLOW ROAST the peaches at 300°F until they are tender to the touch (approximately 7 minutes, depending on ripeness). Let cool. Remove the skin and reserve the peaches for plating.

3. POUR vinegar into a non-reactive saucepan. Reduce by ¾ and chill. When the vinegar is cool, the consistency should be like syrup. If it is too thick, thin it out with Champagne vinegar. Reserve for plating.

4. SEASON the tuna with salt and pepper. Let sit for 10 minutes until the tuna starts to sweat. Place finely chopped basil on a sheet tray. Once the tuna is moist, roll the tuna in the chopped basil, crusting it.

5. SEAR the tuna on all sides in a sauté pan on medium-high heat. Be careful not to burn the basil. Cook the tuna to medium rare.

6. TO SERVE, split the peaches in half and remove the pits. Place arugula equally in the base of 4 bowls. Place peach half on top of the arugula nest. Slice the tuna into 8 pieces. Lay tuna over the peach. Drizzle with the balsamic reduction.
 

ABOUT AHI TUNA

Ahi can be a confusing term. It us the Hawaiian word for the bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus), but is also used in restaurants to refer to the related yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares).

Bigeye tuna are amongst the tuna species most threatened by overfishing, so go for the yellowfin if you can distinguish it. Here are the main species of tuna.
 
ABOUT ELBERTA PEACHES

The Elberta variety was once the most popular of peaches in the U.S., a yellow freestone peach with creamy flesh, juicy and ideal for eating, canning and freezing.

Named for the wife of the Georgia peach grower who identified the hybrid in the 19th century, the Elberta began to be phased out after World War II as newer peach varieties were developed and introduced by university experimental agricultural stations. [Source]

These hybrids traveled better than the Elberta and were more durable at supermarkets. Heirloom Elbertas are still grown, and can be found in farmers markets.

Wild peaches originated in China, and have been cultivated there since at least 1000 B.C.E. Here’s the history of peaches.
  

A brioche roll adds a gourmet touch to any type of burger. Photo © Craig Holmes | BSP.

 
LIGHTER BURGER OPTIONS

If you’re hosting a crowd of calorie counters, Chef Leo from Grecian Delights, maker of Skinny Buns, shares his three favorite “lighter burger” recipes:

 
Switch the sweet ketchup for a spicy salsa, avoiding the high fructose corn syrup or other sweetener.

Make your own burger biscuits with refrigerated biscuit dough. This recipe is from Pillsbury, and there’s also a hot and spicy version with jalapeño, Jack cheese and chipotle mayonnaise.

Prep time is 10 minutes, total time is 30 minutes.

Ingredients For 8 Burgers

Preparation

1. HEAT gas or charcoal grill. In medium bowl, mix beef, salt and pepper; shape into 8 patties.

2. PLACE patties on grill over medium heat. Cover grill; cook 10 to 12 minutes, turning once, until meat thermometer inserted in center of patties reads 160°F. Place cheese slices on patties to melt. Keep warm; reduce heat to medium-low.

3. SEPARATE dough into 8 biscuits. Spray both sides with cooking spray. Place biscuits on double thickness of heavy-duty foil. Place foil on grill over indirect heat. Cover grill; cook 4 minutes; turn. Cook 2 to 4 minutes longer or until biscuits are golden brown.

4. SPLIT biscuits in half. Place burgers on one half of each biscuit; top with desired toppings and remaining biscuit half.