Vegetarian Cuban Sandwich Recipes

VEGAN CUBANO SANDWICH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven at 350°F.
• To make the seitan, in a large bowl add vital wheat gluten, nutritional yeast, onion powder, sea salt, celery salt, smoked paprika, garlic powder, dried thyme, dried oregano, dried basil, ground mustard and ground pepper.
• In a separate bowl add your stock, vegetable oil, soy sauce or tamari, apple cider vinegar and tomato paste. Whisk to make sure it's well combined. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a wooden spoon until a dough forms.
• Knead the dough on a clean surface, folding the dough over itself several times so you can feel the gluten forming. Form the dough into a rectangular log about 3.5 x 5-inches. Transfer the dough onto a large piece of heavy duty foil on a baking sheet. Tightly wrap the log and twist the ends. You may need 2 sheets of foil to make sure it's covered completely and there are no tears in the foil.
• Bake for 90 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature before refrigerating overnight. To use, slice thinly with a knife or on a mandolin.
• To make the vegan roast palm 'pork', take the drained hearts of palm and using your hands, pull the hearts of palm into thin shredded pieces about ⅛ to ¼-inch thick. Then add liquid smoke, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce or tamari, brown sugar, granulated garlic powder, chili flakes, smoked paprika and sea salt. Toss to coat all the pieces evenly.
• Heat up a cast iron pan or a non-stick pan over medium heat. You may need to pan fry the hearts of palm mixture in 2 batches. Add some vegetable oil and the hearts of palm mixture. Pan fry for 8 to 10 minutes until slightly charred in places and warmed through. Set aside.
• To assemble your sandwiches, spread 1 tablespoon of vegan mayonnaise on the bottom of the french roll, then add about 80 g of sliced seitan, some vegan roast palm 'pork', pickle slices, 2 slices of vegan cheese and spread some yellow mustard on the top half of the french roll.
• To grill your sandwiches, put 1 teaspoon of vegan butter in a cast iron grill pan set to medium-high heat. Place 2 sandwiches onto the grill pan and weigh down the top. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes on each side until the tops have golden grill marks and the cheese is melted. Add more butter when flipping the sandwiches and turn down the heat slightly if needed. Repeat with the last batch of sandwiches. Slice sandwiches in half and serve immediately!

VEGETARIAN CUBAN SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Using a mesh strainer over a large bowl, drain and rinse jackfruit. Remove any remaining liquid from the jackfruit by pressing firmly and breaking up large chunks. The jackfruit should be as dry as possible before marinating. Pressing with a paper towel may help with this process.
• Place jackfruit in a large bowl and add in dry spices (mint, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper). Rub the spices into the jackfruit thoroughly by hand, continuing to break up and shred any larger chunks.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the orange juice, lime juice, olive oil, orange zest and garlic. Add the liquid mix to the jackfruit.
• Add in cilantro to the marinade and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate to marinate at least 2 hours (or up to 24 hours).
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line and set aside a large baking sheet. Meanwhile,
• Pour prepared jackfruit into a skillet and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep this skillet out for the ham (see below).
• Spread jackfruit in a thin, single layer on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. No need to stir or turn.
• While jackfruit is cooking in the oven, add 1 Tablespoon agave syrup to skillet. Cook ham slices according to package directions. Be sure to coat both sides of 'ham' with agave to give a hint of sweet flavor. Set cooked ham slices aside.
• Preheat panini or grill press to 'high' while assembling the sandwiches.
• Assemble each sandwich in this order, starting from the bottom: add a drizzle of mustard, 1/3 of the sliced pickles and 1/3 of the cooked ham. Pile on 1/3 of the cooked Jackfruit, then add 2 slices cheese. Finish with a drizzle of mustard on the top half of bread, if desired. Repeat steps for remaining two sandwiches.
• Carefully press sandwiches on preheated panini/grill press until bread is lightly toasted and cheese is melted, approximately 5-6 minutes.
• Let stand for a few minutes then cut each sandwich in half. Enjoy!

VEGETARIAN REUBEN SANDWICH

Steps:

• For the sauerkraut: Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add the sauerkraut, apple, and allspice, season with salt and a generous grinding of pepper. Cook until sauerkraut is tender, lightly browned and all the liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes more.
• For the Russian dressing: Mix all the dressing ingredients together, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• For the Sandwich: Preheat broiler to low.
• If using the tempeh: Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook the tempeh, in batches as needed, until crispy golden brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer to paper towels.
• Spread some butter on 1 side of each slice of bread. Place 4 pieces, buttered side down, on a foil-lined baking sheet. Spread some of the Russian dressing on the sides facing up. Evenly lay the pickles, tempeh if using, sauerkraut, and then cheese on top. Place the open faced sandwiched under the broiler and cook until the cheese melts, about 2 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the broiler. Spread the rest of the dressing on the uncovered side of the 4 remaining bread slices, place on top melted cheese, buttered side up to finish the sandwiches. Return to the broiler and toast sandwich, turning once so both sides get nice and golden brown, about 2 minutes total, serve hot.