A Sandwich to Remember, A Friend to Share With

My dear friend Jenny came to visit me on the farm 2 weeks ago. We’ve talked about it for a long time, and finally it happened. She’s an excellent vegetarian cook and we can talk for hours about new combinations and food ideas. Jenny enjoys cuisines from all around the world. Living in an urban setting offers her the opportunity to explore a bit more than here in Orange County. Together we chose ingredients grown here on the farm and created a beautiful sandwich.

Jenny and I met several years ago on the Weight Watchers online message boards, so we share both our love of food (yes, at times it IS an unhealthy relationship – and it would probably be a little better if I didn’t insist on making things like THIS ) and a desire (struggle?) to maintain a healthy lifestyle. When we met in real life, it was as if we’d known each other for decades, but since I’ve got about 15 years on her (ugh), that isn’t possible. Still, I think we balance each other well, despite the differences in our lives and upbringings.

For example, when I had reached my goal weight about 3 years ago and needed a new wardrobe, Jenny spent the weekend with me and we shopped Woodbury Commons for days. She’s a fashionista and has excellent taste, so I trusted her completely and walked away with a wonderful and versatile wardrobe. Miss Jenny is usually “dressed to the nines”. This visit, she was more concerned with comfort over function, and I’m so proud of her for being sensible. She joked at one point that no two things on her body matched… When she returned home to Boston and told her coworkers about her trip, one actually compared it to Zsa Zsa and Green Acres!

My experiences are truly unique in that I can pretty much go find whatever it is that strikes my fancy and make dinner. Vegetables are just-picked, at their peak of deliciousness. I know what it’s like to shop supermarkets because in winter I, too, am stuck shopping for my fresh fruits and veggies there. Knowing how disappointing it can be that things are never up to snuff in terms of quality.

…”tasting how fresh and amazing things can be”…

I don’t THINK I take it for granted. When someone new comes to the farm and spends time wandering, seeing where and how all the veggies grow. They taste how fresh and amazing things can be when they are harvested just prior to consumption, it makes me realize just what a food snob I really am. I don’t eat a tomato out of season, I try to keep my herb planters growing most of the year, and I don’t eat corn on the cob if it wasn’t grown on our farm. I’m glad I had the chance to share our farm with Jenny. I’m hoping more people will come out to our farm Open Houses this year and next so they can tour the farm and see for themselves just how magical a place it really is.

I apologized many times over the course of the weekend, because I still had my usual workload to take care of and couldn’t spend as much time as I’d like just relaxing with her and cooking up a storm. She is FULL of ideas and we had some great conversations, about life AND food. Jenny was also a huge help at our markets that weekend. I wish the commute from Boston to OC was just a tad shorter. Hopefully some of you got a chance to speak with her and snag some cool foodie gossip.

Once markets finish, you can bet I’ll be hopping on Amtrak and spending some quality time with this wonderful lady. consequently I have this sandwich to remind me of our time together.

The Jenny Special

Course: Sandwich

Servings: 1

Author: The Farm Girl

Ingredients

per person
1 flatbread
Fresh Arugula
1 sm-medium vine-ripened Tomato
2-3 T soft Goat Cheese
2-3 T caramelized Shallots
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions

Grill the flatbread to warm and toast.
Remove to plate.
Spread with goat cheese, then arrange arugula leaves on top.
Scatter caramelized shallots over arugula, then top with thinly sliced tomato.
Sprinkle with coarse salt and ground pepper.

This was great as an open-faced sandwich, furthermore it works in a pita or closed with another flatbread. It would be a beautiful appetizer when sliced into smaller planks.

If you want to get to know Jenny a little better, check her out here: https://colorhungry.wordpress.com/