This is the first time I’ve tried my hand at open tortilla sandwiches and I must say, I think I did pretty well. Each tortilla was extremely tasty and remarkably filling. Laura and I ate these for dinner last night and about half way through, I said “I’m not sure I’ll be able to finish these.” Which is strange because each of us had only four sitting on our plates. They may not look it, but they’ve got a lot going on.
The Recipe
This recipe has a few parts. The first is the olive and caper spread (which you’ll love), the second is the tortillas and the third is the tortilla topping. Luckily, the recipe calls for store bought wraps to be used as the tortillas, so that’s a big time saver. The spread and the topping doesn’t take too much time, so this is definitely doable as a fairly quick appetizer or lunch.
I pulled both of these recipes from Paulette Mitchell‘s cookbook called Vegetarian Sandwiches. Every time I flip through her book, I find a few more recipes that make my mouth water. It’s certainly become a go-to resource for me.
Ingredients
Makes: 8 Oped Faced Sandwiches
For the Olive Spread
1 6 Ounce Can Black Olives, Rinsed
1 Tablespoon Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
2 Teaspoons Capers, Rinsed
1 Teaspoon Garlic, Minced
Ground Black Pepper
1 Tablespoon Fresh Parsley, Minced
For the Tortillas
2 9-Inch Flour Tortillas
Regular Olive Oil
For the Topping
1 Tablespoon Regular Olive Oil
1/2 Red Bell Pepper, Diced
1/2 Yellow Bell Pepper, Diced
1/2 Green Bell Pepper, Diced
1/2 Zucchini, Peeled & Diced
1/2 Sweet Onion, Chopped
1 Teaspoon Garlic, Minced
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
Regular Table Salt
Ground Black Pepper
3 Ounces Mozzarella Cheese, 1/2 Inch Cubes
2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Chopped
Step-by-Step Instructions
If you think you might enjoy the olive spread for other dishes, go ahead and double or triple up on that part of the recipe. It’s really good and goes perfectly with a huge number of sandwiches, especially breakfast ones. There’s nothing like a nice roll with some olive spread, eggs and cheese. That’s what I’ll be making.
Make the Olive Spread
Add the olives, olive oil, lemon juice, capers, garlic and a pinch or two of ground black pepper to your food processor.
Pulse the processor a few times until everything inside of it is minced. You don’t want to go too far and make something smooth – you simply want a good, course spread.
When finished, scrape everything into a bowl, stir in the parsley and set aside for later use.
Make the Tortillas
Take two 9 inch flour tortillas and cut them in quarters. You should have 8 pieces.
Then, on a baking sheet, brush each side of each quarter with regular olive oil and pierce the pieces with a fork a few times each. This will prevent them from puffing up like pillows. Arrange on the baking sheet and place in the oven with the broiler on. I set my baking sheet so it was about 5 inches away from the top of the oven. Also, I began with the broiler on low and then switched it to high. There’s a huge difference between low and high, so be careful. It only takes about a minute or so to broil each side to perfection. The tortillas should be golden brown when finished. Keep a close eye on them while in the oven. When finished, remove and let cool on your stove top.
Make the Topping
In a medium sized bowl, mix all three types of diced bell peppers, the zucchini, the onion and the garlic.
Then, warm a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the 1 tablespoon of regular olive oil and when ready, the mixture in the bowl. Cook and stir for about 10 minutes. When finished and the vegetables are tender, remove from the heat and scoop everything back into the bowl. From there, you can season to taste with the salt and pepper. Also be sure to add the 1 tablespoon of lemon juice at this point.
Assemble the Open-Faced Sandwiches
Arrange 4 tortillas on each of two plates. Then, divide up the olive spread and apply it to all eight tortillas evenly.
Then, do the same thing with the bell pepper mixture. Divide it up evenly between the 8 tortillas and apply on top of the olive spread. After that, drop a few cubes of mozzarella cheese on each sandwich along with some chopped parsley and you’re done.
The Final Tortillas
Like I said, these guys are very tasty and filling. I’ll be making them again because I felt the effort was worth what I was presented with at the end. Both Laura and I enjoyed these quite a lot.
——
If you’ve enjoyed today’s post and found it helpful, please share it with a friend. Also, if you’d like to continue reading and would like our posts sent directly to your email inbox, simply sign up for our newsletter. We’ll send each and every post directly to you. Thanks!
Leave a Reply