beach sandwiches
pssst they're vegan
We moved out of our house to renovate, and wound up renting a house that’s a quick walk away from a really gorgeous little beach. We’ve been going nonstop since we got here last weekend. The boys are obsessed — Mattis and Calum bring shovels to dig holes and find crabs, Cashel crawls around and eats sand by the handful, and I get to sit and oversee without having to actively parent. It’s a win-win-win.
They love it down there so much that I keep finding myself not wanting to leave the beach to go up to the house for dinner. There is nothing worse than interrupting a happy child who is playing well independently. Nothing!
Enter: beach sandwiches.
Sandwiches are the ultimate beach meal. And while I love a good soft sliced bread, I have a strong opinion here: sliced sandwich bread is not the best vessel for a beach sandwich. The best bread for a beach sandwich is one with a semi-hard, smooth exterior, such as ciabatta or focaccia.
This way, one can accidentally touch their sandwich with a sandy hand, realize their error, and correct it by simply brushing the sand off. You can’t correct that error with a soft white or wheat — the sand instantly sinks down into the bread and the sandwich is lost to gritty sandwich doom, destined to become seagull snacks.
And while I frankly love a mayo-heavy turkey sandwich (turkey, mayo, cheddar, pepper jelly, ruffles chips — just do it and thank me later) that’s been heated up by the sun, I’m now feeding children, who I’d love to avoid giving a food-borne illness.
So I came up with a gorgeous, freakishly-delicious-for-how-simple-it-is veggie sandwich that can safely hang out on the beach (or lake, or boat, or pool, or wherever else you find yourself needing a meal in the outdoors) for hours.
Even if you’re not taking it out into the great outdoors, this is a simple, beautiful summer meal that’s easy to whip up on a busy weeknight.
First, we’re going to make a quick lemon-pickled red onion to add lots of bright flavor and acidity without making the bread soggy. Next we’ll make a delicious protein-filled spread by blending avocado with white beans and lemon juice. The lemon juice will keep the avocado from browning, and the spread won’t get funky in the hot summer sun like cheese might.
The combination of crisp, crunchy vegetable toppings in this recipe is pretty classic, but feel free to add or swap in thin slices of whatever crunchy vegetables you have on hand, like kohlrabi, radishes, or beets. The key is to avoid any veggie that will make your bread soggy, so, while I’m absolutely obsessed with fresh summer tomatoes, they’re not the best option for a beach sandwich. If instead you’ll be eating your sandwiches right after you make them, go for it! You could also throw some sliced turkey or prosciutto on there if you’re a meat-loving crew.
It’s so fun to make one big sandwich and divvy it up like we’ll be doing here (it also makes for easy transport). That said, you can also make this using individual ciabatta rolls or any sliced bread.
beach sandwiches
Serves 4 to 6
Cook time: 20 minutes
Tools:
Jar or Tupperware container
Serrated knife
Parchment paper (for wrapping the loaf in if you’ll be transporting it)
Ingredients:
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
3 large lemons
1 teaspoon sugar
Kosher salt
2 avocados, pitted
1 (15-ounce) can any white bean, drained and rinsed
1 garlic clove
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 big ciabatta or focaccia loaf, halved through the middle
3 cups crisp lettuce leaves, such as Little Gem, Romaine, butter
1 English cucumber, zebra-peeled and thinly sliced
3 cups sprouts (about 4 ounces)
2 cups shredded carrots (buy a 10-ounce bag of shredded carrots)
First, make the lemon-pickled red onions. Thinly slice 1 medium red onion and place the slices in a jar or Tupperware container. Add the juice of 2 lemons, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Get your sink water as hot as it will go, then fill the rest of the jar (to cover the onions) with hot water. Shake to combine and set aside.
Now make the avocado-bean spread: In a food processor or blender, combine the 2 pitted avocados, 1 drained and rinsed can of white beans, the juice from 1 lemon, 1 garlic clove, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Blend until smooth.
Slice 1 big ciabatta or focaccia loaf in half through the middle (so that there’s a big top half and big bottom half) using a serrated knife. Spread the cut sides with the avocado-bean mixture.
Now we’re going to layer on the veggies. If you will be eating right away, as you add each layer, sprinkle a tiny bit of kosher salt onto each veggie layer. Properly seasoning each vegetable will make it an even more delicious sandwich. HOWEVER, if you’re not eating the sandwich within 30 minutes, skip this step so that the vegetables don’t sweat and make the sandwich soggy.
On the bottom half of the ciabatta, add a layer of lettuce leaves, 1 thinly sliced cucumber, 3 cups sprouts, 2 cups shredded carrots, and the lemon-pickled red onion. Drizzle lightly with extra-virgin olive oil.
Top with the top half of the loaf and cut into 4 or 6 sandwiches. Enjoy!
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Prep ahead/love your leftovers: The longer the pickled red onions sit, the better they’ll be, so, if you have time to make them earlier in the day or even the day before, go ahead and do so and pop them in the fridge! You can also assemble the whole sandwich up to 24 hours before you plan to eat. Store it wrapped in parchment paper or plastic wrap in the fridge until you leave for your excursion. Any leftovers will taste best stored in the fridge (rather than kept outside all day), so only bring as many sandwiches as you plan to eat and store the rest in the fridge for tomorrow.
How should I wrap/transport this? You know how sub shops make your sandwich on a slice of paper, cut it, then tightly wrap it in that same paper (and another big sheet)? You can do the same thing! Unless you plan to eat right away, you can assemble the loaf on a big piece of parchment paper. Slice it, then wrap it up altogether, adding another big layer of parchment if needed to keep it tight and secure. Tape it shut if you need to! Throw that into a big Tupperware container if you have one, or just straight into your beach bag (but be mindful not to totally smoosh it!).
What to cook when you really don’t feel like cooking: Technically there’s no cooking required for this recipe, but if you want to save time and cut down on clean up, swap the white bean-avocado mixture out for hummus. Spritz in some lemon juice to get a similar flavor. You could also skip pickling your onions and just use thinly sliced red onion.
Must have meat: If you’ll be eating your sandos right away — or if you’ll have room to store it in a nice cold cooler — you can layer on a 1/4- to 1/2-pound of sliced turkey, prosciutto, ham, or another cold cut you love. Add it to the bottom half of the loaf then top with the veggies.
My kids won’t eat vegetables 🙄: The most veggie-tasting, veggie-looking toppings here are going to be the sprouts and lettuce so, if needed, leave those off of their sandwiches. The carrots and cucumbers might pass! If not, know that the white bean-avocado spread is packed with protein and other nutrients so even if they just eat the spread-covered bread they’re still getting a great meal!
Sandwiches = summer: Agreed. This is going to be the best option for your beach/picnic/lake/pool day, but here are some other WTC sandwiches to add to your summer lineup: the perfect tuna melt, grilled pickle-brined chicken sandwiches, fried chicken sandwiches, slow-roasted pork butt sandwiches.
Dairy-free: Ciabatta and focaccia loaves are typically dairy-free. If using another type of bread, just double check that it doesn’t contain dairy.
Gluten-free: Use your favorite gf bread. You may only be able to find a sliced sandwich bread and that’s fine!
Red onion: Yellow or white onion or a large (or two medium) shallots
Lemons: A light-colored vinegar (apple cider or white wine vinegar would be ideal). Use 6 tablespoons of it for the pickled onions, and 2 to 3 tablespoons for the spread (start with 2 and add a third if you want more tang).
Sugar: Brown sugar, maple syrup, honey
Avocados: Just leave it out, the white beans are enough!
White beans: Any white bean is perfect! Navy, cannelini, Great Northern, or chickpeas — all will be delicious. You could also use a cup of hummus, blending it with the avocados, lemons, etc.
Garlic: 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Big ciabatta or focaccia loaf: You can make this using ciabatta rolls or any sliced bread. Optional but encouraged: if using a sliced sandwich bread, lightly toast the bread before assembling. My favorite bread for this sandwich is the herb focaccia from Trader Joe’s!
Lettuce: Little Gem, Romaine, butter, green leaf — something crisp is going to hold up best. Spinach would also be good though.
English cucumber: English or Persian cucumbers don’t have seeds so are the best for this since as they’re the most crisp. But you’d be fine using another type of cucumber. You could also swap it out for thin slices of another crunchy vegetable like radishes, kohlrabi, or beets. If you’re eating right away, tomatoes would be a delicious sub or addition — they’re just not the best if you’ll be eating hours from now, again, since we’re trying to avoid soggy bread.
Sprouts: Any type of sprouts are great! Or omit.
Carrots: Thinly sliced jicama, beets, kohlrabi, or radishes
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Editor: Molly Ramsey
Illustrations: Nhung Lê
Made for lunch... for my WFH life. Imagining that I'm on a beach with this sandwich by adding Cape Cod chips + a seltzer 😅
Ok. But what if I wanted to actually make it a salad?