Toasted bread slathered with nutty romesco sauce and layered with roasted cauliflower, fresh veggies & herbs makes the perfect vegetarian sandwich.

vegan / dinner

I have to admit something to you. This food blog job isn’t always as glamorous as you may think it is. It’s a job, like any job, with fun parts (cooking! eating!) and less fun parts that involve sitting behind a computer monitor, editing, writing, emailing, etc. It’s not a sad life by any stretch, but it’s also not glitz and glory – it’s work. Except… when some of the opportunities that come my way are totally out of left field – and I find myself going to California for a day touring an absolutely beautiful almond orchard instead of touring Adobe Lightroom.

A few weeks ago I went to visit Chamisal Creek, a family farm that’s part of the co-op of farmers that make up Blue Diamond Almond Growers. It was a (surprisingly!) sunny day and the orchard was in full bloom. We ate Almond Breeze blueberry muffins, learned about the process of growing almonds, and enjoyed a beautiful farm-to-table lunch.

The romesco sandwiches they served at the lunch inspired this recipe. My version here is made vegetarian by using roasted cauliflower as the “meat” of the sandwich – to me cauliflower and romesco go together like peanut butter almond butter and jelly.

For me, it was really impactful to see that these orchards are pretty small family farms. The almonds that go into Almond Breeze aren’t grown at a giant mega-farm or anything like that, they’re grown exclusively by independent farms in the Blue Diamond Growers co-op. This farm, owned by Michael Dougherty and his family, is a 700-acre farm that grows 12 varieties of almonds and also produces wine, olive oil, and peaches. By being a part of the co-op, the farmers get much-needed support, and in turn Blue Diamond gets high quality almonds. Almond Breeze is the only almond milk brand that actually has the orchards within its own organization.

Here are some pics from our dreamy visit!:

Driving to the orchard, I was surprised how much the almond trees looked like cherry blossoms:

The tour ended with this sweet vegan pear tart, which is on my list to make soon!

5.0 from 5 reviews

Romesco Cauliflower Sandwiches

  PrintPrep time 10 minsCook time 30 minsTotal time 40 mins These easy cauliflower sandwiches are a hearty, healthy lunch or weeknight dinner! I like to serve them with a simple green salad.Author: Jeanine DonofrioRecipe type: Main dishServes: 4Ingredients

• 1 small head of cauliflower*
• 8 slices of ciabatta or sourdough bread
• Handful of salad greens
• Several pieces of thinly sliced red onion
• 2 tomatoes, sliced and seasoned with sea salt and pepper
• ¼ cup fresh parsley
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Almond Milk Romesco Sauce (makes extra)

• 1 tomato, halved and cored
• 1 roasted red pepper, fresh or from a jar
• ¼ cup toasted almonds
• 2 garlic cloves
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons Almond Breeze Almondmilk Original Unsweetened
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Slice the cauliflower into ½-inch slabs and place onto the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and pinches of salt and pepper and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until tender in the middle and golden around the edges.

Make the Romesco Sauce: In a blender, combine the tomato, roasted red pepper, almonds, garlic, olive oil, almond milk, red wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Assemble the sandwiches with the romesco sauce, salad greens, red onions, tomato slices and roasted cauliflower and a few sprigs of parsley.

Notes*depending on the size of your cauliflower, you may have more roasted cauliflower than you need to fill these sandwiches. Just enjoy it on the side or save it for tomorrow's sandwich.3.4.3177
Special thanks to Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Almondmilk for sending me on this trip. All opinions and photos are my own.

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