This is the sandwich to end all sandwiches. With crispy, cool, sweet apples, salty prosciutto, tangy goat cheese, and simply dressed peppery arugula, this light and healthy meal will hit all of your taste buds and leave you feeling satisfied. It’s the perfect combination of flavors.
Plus, it’s super quick and easy to make- you’ll have it done in 5 minutes start to finish. 10 tops, especially if you get distracted and start munching on the arugula and apples partway through, as I did. Here’s the story behind this recipe. On our drive last week from Massachusetts to Austin, we were lucky to be able to stop and see friends and family along the way. And also lucky enough to be fed a home-cooked, healthy meal every night! (This did not, however, stop us from getting Chick-fil-A and Whataburger for a couple of lunches. We’ve been trying to keep it very light and healthy ever since our road trip to detox a bit- this sandwich was perfect for that!) On the last night of our trip, we stayed with my good friends Natalie and Eric in Greensboro, Alabama and had homemade pesto on catfish made fresh with basil from their garden, as well as home grown roasted tomatoes and summer squash. Words cannot describe how delicious and fresh homegrown food tastes. I cannot WAIT to have my own garden. While we were there, our hosts were nice enough to get us a housewarming/moving-to-Texas present: an AWESOME new cookbook. You know me and my cookbooks. I was so excited, especially in light of eating all this delicious, homegrown produce. It’s called Root to Leaf by Steve Satterfield and I am obsessed. I want to make everything single thing, cover to cover. The book is set up in a very organized, very helpful way (not to mention it has some of the most beautiful food photography I’ve ever seen!). It’s about cooking vegetables throughout the year- it’s divided into four sections, one for each season. Within each season, it’s further divided into individual types of produce (for instance, in the summer section, there is a subsection for corn, and another for summer squash and zucchini). I cannot recommend it enough for anyone who subscribes to a CSA, goes to the farmers market on the regular, or grows their own seasonal produce. (Buy it here!) Back to the sandwich. In the fig section of Root to Leaf, there was a delicious looking sandwich with fig, country ham, and goat cheese. Another thing I love about this cookbook? Even though it’s vegetable-based, it’s not vegetarian. I wanted so badly to make this sandwich using fresh figs, but alas, there were none at the store. So I adapted the recipe and used apples as a substitute. (Feel free to use figs, or even pears, as a substitute for apples in the recipe below!)
Just toast up some bread (I recommend sourdough or a thick, rustic bread) and layer soft goat cheese (chevré), sliced apples, and a few slices of prosciutto (or ham). Mix some arugula with a simple dressing of lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Top the sandwich off with the dressed arugula (and eat the remainder on the side- it’s scrumptious just on its own!). Here’s a helpful hint: while the bread is still warm from the toaster, dollop a bit of goat cheese on it and allow it to sit for a minute or two (this is a good time to slice the apples and/or dress the arugula). While chevré goat cheese is a soft cheese, it can be difficult to spread evenly sometimes. This way, the heat of the bread will soften it a bit, making it much easier to spread.
So there you have it! The most delicious sandwich I’ve had in a while, made from the most interesting cookbook I’ve seen in a while. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did! Recipe below :-)
