Between the Bread

I am powerless to shiny new food products at Trader Joe's. So when I recently spotted a melange of grilled eggplant and zucchini in the frozen food aisle, I bought a bag without any idea how I'd use it.

One night, an ideal sandwich came together. Happily burdened with leftover pistachio-infused goat cheese from some yummy stuffed dates I made, I dreamed up another Trader Joe's sandwich special.

I heated the grilled eggplant and zucchini, which even from freezer to microwave tasted deliciously chargrilled. Then, I lightly toasted a Trader Joe's whole wheat pita and spread on TJ's black olive tapenade.

After stuffing the pockets with the grilled veggies and spinach, I slathered on some goat cheese and melted it slightly in the oven. The resulting Mediterranean-flavored pocket was warm, hearty, and worth repeating.

A good sandwich can't fix everything, but it certainly helps. Recently, during a tough day at the office, I decided to ditch my lunch from home and treat myself. Glancing at the menu for The Golden West, the warm mushroom sandwich with pine nuts and goat cheese called out to me. The home-baked bread alone would be the perfect comfort food.

Garnished with basil, this shroom sammie is similar to the last sandwich I had at Golden West, but better. It's on the menu this week, too, if you want to taste it for yourself. Oddly, last time I sought out a mood-lifting sandwich, it also featured mushrooms. Just a coincidence, I swear.

If you had told me in high school that some days I'd relish sitting in the sun, eating a wrap filled with nothing but grilled vegetables, I would have looked at you quizzically and returned to my Velveeta Shells & Cheese. I ate vegetables out of obligation, but it wasn't until moving to San Francisco that I realized vegetables could be utterly delicious.

I recently ventured to the aptly named Herbivore, which seemed a good place for someone craving a sandwich but also veggies. The simple char-grilled vegetable wrap with creamy pesto spread hit the spot. The wrap actually had flavor, which isn't always a guarantee, and the grilling brought out a bounty of tastes in the ultra-fresg broccoli, mushrooms, peppers, and more. I'm a bit hesitant to call a wrap a sandwich, but I still think it qualifies; do you?

Sometimes, when I'm in a bad mood, all it takes is a good sandwich to make me feel better. (In extreme cases, I turn to the PMS muffin 'wich.) Often, this sandwich needs to be obtained right away, but sadly, my neighborhood is lacking in sandwich destinations, especially compared to my old place right next door to Estela's.

In search of a mood lifter, I recently turned to the Bean Bag Coffee House, which I've lived within a mile radius of for like five years and never been to. I ordered the grilled portobello mushroom sandwich, expecting it to be mediocre. It was actually quite lovely! The perfectly marinated mushrooms came with tomatoes, caramelized onions, spinach, roasted red peppers, and gorgonzola cheese, all warm and melty.  See even more mouth-watering pics.

Oh how I miss living right next door to Estela's. Now my giant veggie sandwiches are few and far between. Thankfully I got my fix for lunch on Saturday. Andrew got pastrami, which was better after he warmed it in the oven.

I got the smoked gouda veggie sandwich. They gave me the wrong bread; I wanted sliced wheat. But this roll, despite being enormous, was a fresh and fine substitute. As usual, the filling was a rainbow of perfectly ripe produce. Yum.

My mom is quite the jetsetter lately, most recently in New York City for the holiday season. At the seemingly unassuming Nice Matin, she had what looks to be an outstanding grilled-bread sandwich with roasted eggplant and goat cheese.

I love how it's positioned on the plate alongside the side salad of arugula, tomatoes, olives, and fennel with a citrus vinaigrette. Also, she notes, "in the background, butter WITH olive oil." Wow.

Got your own surprising sandwich to share? Email your photos to nancy@betweenthebreadblog.com, along with a description of what's on your sandwich.

Loyal reader Angelica recently sampled a new veggie sandwich at Specialty's and was so overwhelmed by its sheer girth, she had to snap a photo. Her comment: are they trying to kill me?! Apparently so, with cucumber.

But seriously, this looks like a hearty and healthy two-hander, and it's even more colorful than the chain's turkey with cranberry. It could certainly give the veginator a run for its money. Got your own sandwich to share? Email your photos to nancy@betweenthebreadblog.com, along with a description of what's on your sandwich.