This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Arts & Entertainment

Delicious Summer Sandwiches

These tasty recipes will have you out of the kitchen and back into the sunshine in no time!

With summertime in full swing, the heavy dishes we love to eat through the fall and winter are put aside for lighter fare. When temperatures climb high, the last thing we want to do is fire up the oven. 

My solution for a quick and easy summer meal is often a sandwich. 

Not only do I want to avoid my hot stove,  I also find that I have less time to cook and our family has less time for a sit-down meal during the fun summer months. Someone is always rushing off to swim lessons, day camp, or a playdate. 

Find out what's happening in Strongsvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The beauty of the sandwich is that it’s a portable, handheld meal. And everyone likes a sandwich. You can easily make them ahead, wrap them up, and take them to the ball field, park, pool or work. You’ve gotta love the sandwich!

Sandwiches need not merely be a cold cut slapped on bread with a piece of processed cheese (although many of the sandwiches made in our household are just that). With just a few more minutes and ingredients, you can make some out- of-this-world sammies!

Find out what's happening in Strongsvillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Here are two of my favorite summer sandwich recipes.

Fabulous Foccacia Sandwiches adapted from Better Homes and Gardens 20 minute Super Suppers

Ingredients
1 8- to 10-inch Italian flatbread (focaccia)
3 tablespoons light mayonnaise dressing or salad dressing
2 tablespoons shredded fresh basil
1 1/2 cups packaged prewashed spinach
1 1/2 cups sliced or shredded deli-cooked rotisserie chicken
1/2 of a 7-ounce jar roasted red sweet peppers, drained and cut into strips
sliced red onion

Directions
1. Using a long serrated knife, cut the bread in half horizontally. In a small bowl stir together mayonnaise dressing and basil. Spread cut sides of bread halves with mayonnaise mixture.

2. Layer spinach, onions, chicken, and roasted sweet peppers between bread halves. Cut sandwich into quarters.

The beauty of this recipe is that it uses rotisserie chicken, cutting the preparation time significantly.  This is also a great way to use up leftover grilled chicken.

Tomato-Provolone Sandwiches with Pesto Mayo adapted from Cooking Light September 2009

3 tablespoons light mayonnaise
2 tablespoons refrigerated pesto
8 (1 1/2-ounce)sourdough or Italian bread
4 (1/2-ounce) slices provolone cheese
1 cup arugula leaves
8 (1/4-inch-thick) tomato slices
freshly ground black pepper
kosher salt

1. Preheat broiler.

2. Combine mayonnaise and pesto in a bowl, stirring well.

3. Arrange bread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Broil bread 2 minutes or until toasted. Turn bread over; place 1 cheese slice on each of 4 bread slices. Broil 1 minute or until cheese is bubbly. Spread about 2 teaspoons pesto mixture over each cheese-topped bread slice. Arrange 1/4 cup arugula and 2 tomato slices over pesto mixture; sprinkle tomato slices evenly with pepper and salt. Spread about 1 1/2 teaspoons of remaining pesto mixture evenly over one side of each remaining bread slice; place 1 slice, pesto-side down, on top of each sandwich.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)

These tomato-cheese sandwiches are a great meatless meal. Okay, so they do require that you fire up the oven -- but only for a few minutes.  Of course, you can always skip the broiling. However, I prefer toasty bread and melted cheese in this sandwich combination.

You’ll notice that both recipes use the fresh summer flavors of tomato and basil.  They are a magical combination. Tomatoes are at their finest in the summer months. Nothing compares to the flavor of a fresh, ripened-on-the-vine tomato. If you can’t get them from your own garden or a generous neighbor, look for homegrown tomatoes at roadside stands or your local farmers’ market.

Are you ready for a sandwich now?

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Strongsville