I found an incredible idea on Lifehacker the other day that has completely changed my relationship with mushy grapes (and, potentially, all mushy fruit--stay tuned). It turns out that grapes can be roasted, and that mushy, almost-too-old-but-I-feel-guilty-about-tossing-them grapes are the perfect candidates for roasting. I've tried this twice now, once with coconut oil, and once with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Both times, I've loved the outcome, and they make our apartment smell incredible. Since I don't eat cheese and haven't had any crackers in the cupboard, I've just been snacking on them.
Then, a couple nights ago, in a flash of insanity and divine inspiration (same thing?) I added some to a toasted avocado sandwich, thinking that roasted grapes are kind of like jelly, and avocado is kind of like peanut butter, so maybe it would work. Well, it did. It was possibly the best sandwich I've ever eaten. (I'm not going to definitively saddle it with the superlative, though, because I've had far too many very good sandwiches.)
This sandwich is so many good things: toasty, fresh, creamy, sweet, and a little spicy. I've always been a huge fan of cranberry sauce on sandwiches, and this has a similar feel. So, here is my recipe for the best, weirdest sandwich I've ever made:
Roasted Grape and Dijon Avocado Sandwich
Ingredients:
2 freshly toasted slices of sandwich bread
1/2 avocado, sliced
1/2 tbsp dijon mustard (or to taste)
1/2 tbsp mayo (or to taste)
1-2 tbsp hummus
2 leaves romaine lettuce, washed and cut to sandwich-sized pieces
1/4 cup alfalfa sprouts
1/4 cup roasted grapes (RECIPE HERE), cut into halves
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions:
Toast your bread, then quickly assemble the sandwich in the following order: Spread the dijon and mayo on one slice of toast, then add the avocado slices, salt and pepper, sprouts, grapes, and romaine. Spread the hummus on the other slice of toast to finish the sandwich.
As an alternative if you have a particularly ripe avocado, first mash the avocado in a bowl together with the dijon and mayo, and spread directly onto the toast. Guacamole can be substituted for whole avocado.
I imagine this recipe would work well as a toasted panino with the addition of provolone, smoked Gouda, or possibly Havarti, but in that case I would leave out the romaine.