Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Cucumber Tea Sandwich with Sun Dried Tomato Pesto - 52 Catering Dishes


The illusive hunt...

In my journey towards becoming a caterer, I am challenged by needing to provide dishes that I simply have never thought of before.  One of my regular clients always asks for something for vegetarians that pop in at her lunches.  the other day she asked for a vegetarian tea sandwich.

This is what I came up with.

The Sun Dried Tomato Pesto is FANTASTIC!  The tomatoes are slow roasted to a sweetness that blends with the nutty, salty and herbal ingredients to become a real treat.

There is also a layer of Cream Cheese Spread that has a hint of Ranch Dressing (yep, straight from a bottle of Hidden Valley).

The Cucumbers add a crunch and the Sandwich more than met the request!

So, file this away.  Someday you too may get a request for something Vegetarian to bring to a pass the plate event.

Enjoy


OK... Here's what I did...


Cucumber
Tea Sandwich with
Sun Dried Tomato Pesto


Ingredients
  • For the Sun Dried Tomato Pest
  • 6 Ounces Sun Dried Tomatoes packed in Olive Oil
  • 1 Cup Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
  • 6 Ounces Walnuts
  • 1 Cup Spinach
  • For the Cream Cheese Spread
  • 1 Brick (4 Ounces) Cream Cheese (softened to room temperature)
  • 1/4 Cup Ranch Dressing
  • For the Sandwich
  • 2 Large Cucumbers, peeled, scored (for scalloped edges), sliced thin
  • Mini Cocktail Rye Bread slices (Can do this open faced or even as a topping for a whole wheat cracker)
Cooking Directions
  1. First make up the pesto... In a food processor, add the Sun Dried Tomatoes, Parmesan Cheese, Walnuts and Spinach. Process until mixed and pulverized. Add additional Oil if needed to reach spreading consistency.
  2. Next, make up the Cream Cheese Spread... in a stand mixer bowl, add the softened cream cheese and Ranch dressing and mix until smooth.
  3. Assemble the sandwiches, one side with the pesto spread, the other with the cream cheese. Cucumber between... And ENJOY!

******************************************************

This recipe has been added to my growing list of "52 Church PotLuck Dishes"!

A list of something NEW worthy of being shown off at a neighborhood BYODish (Bring Your Own Dish) Party, a Family special occasion dinner, Any Big Holiday Gathering or of course that glorious day when you bring a dish to share with your Church family...

Ages ago, literally almost a half century ago I was listening to our pastor talking about a PotLuck Dinner. It happened to be scheduled around a church work day when we were expected to weed, polish and do general cleaning and maintenance around the church (you know, back in the day when there were no no-wax floors and church pews smelled of Old English furniture polish). I am of course paraphrasing, but as I recall the pastor said,

"A potluck, like a church requires work. At a potluck everyone is expected to contribute.. At a church no one should come empty handed and no one should leave unfed".
I will confess that in my youth I brought more store bought plastic spoons and forks than I ever brought covered dishes and crock pots of fresh made love and caring delights. But now that I have become a hobbyist cook, I occasionally am reminded of those days and people from my youth. I reminded and I do wish that I could drop a dish of some new creation on those old tables at my fondly remembered Liberty Baptist Church.  Tables covered with newspapers and loaded with God's bounty prepared with love and caring... Enjoy

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