Meatless Mondays

Brent and I have been very into documentaries lately.  You name it: eat more vitamins, don't use plastic water bottles, juice fasts, etc... One idea that really stuck with me made economical, nutritional and environmental sense: Stop eating so much meat.  The meatless Monday was born!


Here's the EASY vegetarian sandwich we had tonight:
The BMTB: Basil-Mozzarella-Tomato-Balsamic


Ingredients:
(makes 2 servings)


1 fresh tomato                      $0.50
1/2 fresh mozzarella ball     $4.00 (so 1/2 would be $2.00...save the rest to put on a mini-pizza!)
6-8 leaves fresh basil           a la basil plant sitting in my kitchen ( Farmer's Market!)
1/2 cup Balsamic vinegar    pantry
2 ciabatta rolls                      $1.25
Extra virgin olive oil              pantry
salt and pepper                    pantry
cooking spray                       pantry


1. Simmer the balsamic in a small pot for a few minutes until it begins to reduce.  Don't simmer too long because it will burn (trust me on this one...)
2. Split the ciabatta rolls and brush the reduced balsamic on the bottom half.  Top in this order:
        1. 2 slices tomato
        2. 2 1/4-1/2 inch slices of mozzarella
        3. salt and pepper
        4. 3-4 basil leaves
        lightly brush the top of the ciabatta bread with extra virgin olive oil
3. Heat up a skillet (or grill pan if you got one) and spray with cooking spray
4. Place the sandwich in the skillet, top with a heavier skillet to flatten.  Grill for 3 minutes, spray the top of the sandwich with cooking spray, flip and grill for 3 more minutes.  Done!

You're looking at about $1.88/sandwich if you already have balsamic vinegar and basil.  Also, the entire sandwich is about 450 calories, (because of the delicious bread... which is really what makes a good sandwich anyways right?) so enjoy with fruit or veggies.   Lovin' meatless Mondays :)