With Boursin cheese, roasted red peppers, arugula, and other delicious fix-ins, this veggie cheese sandwich is a vegetarian delight that’s sure to please omnivores too! It’s incredibly easy to make, especially if you prep the components in advance. Plus, it’s packable and suitable for lunch at home, work, or school.
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Since I work from home (and did so even before the pandemic), I almost always make lunch at home. Often, I just heat up leftovers from testing recipes (a great perk of the job)! But on weeks when I don’t make Veg World recipes, I struggle with coming up with lunch ideas that are easy and fast but still taste good.
Lately, I’ve been craving a good veggie cheese sandwich and not the soggy, lame option that you might get at a restaurant that only has one vegetarian option on the menu. Mediocre vegetable sandwiches that somehow always have portobello mushrooms, I’m looking at you!! I digress.
No, I wanted the kind of sandwich that’s jam packed with flavor and texture. I was determined to use vegetables as the main ingredients too. Trust me, I enjoy a good hoagie with meat just as much as anyone, but vegetable sandwiches can be just as appealing as classic, meat-heavy sandwiches. I promise!
This delectable sandwich, made with a mix of cooked and raw veggies snuggled between layers of creamy Boursin cheese on bread, is the product of my experimentation. I’m smitten with the result, and I think you should totally try it ASAP. You won’t be disappointed! Oh, and you can definitely make it if you don’t work from home. It’s a packable vegetarian sandwich.
How to Make Veggie Cheese Sandwiches
- Prep the components: roasted red peppers, arugula tossed in balsamic glaze and olive oil, sliced red onions, and sliced cucumbers. Toast the bread.
- Spread Boursin cheese on each bread slice. Don’t skimp on it!
- Add the sandwich fillings.
- Cut in half and dig in!!
As always, the full recipe card is at the bottom of the post. Don’t forget to read through the Expert Tips in the next section to learn how to make the best vegetable and Boursin cheese sandwich.
Expert Tips
- The bread: I personally like thin slices of bread for my sandwiches because I think they’re easier to eat. I used a sprouted sourdough bread from Trader Joe’s when I first made this sandwich and it was great! As far as packaged breads go, it’s a good option. It’s high in protein and packs 2 grams of fiber per slice. Other types of sourdough, multigrain, rye, or pumpernickel breads would all be great options. Dave’s Killer Bread and Ezekiel Bread are two of my favorite bread brands that are relatively healthy choices.
- The cheese: If you aren’t familiar with Boursin cheese, it’s a creamy cheese spread with herbs. I used the Garlic and Fine Herbs flavor for my veggie cheese sandwich, but you can use any of their flavors. The Shallot and Chive flavor is really good! Otherwise, you can sub any creamy cheese for Boursin if desired. Goat, mascarpone, brie, and ricotta would all work. You can mix in fresh herbs, salt, pepper, and garlic. Just remember that they have different flavors than Boursin. For a vegan option, sub my Caramelized Onion White Bean Dip or hummus.
- The veggies: Feel free to mix up the vegetables that you use. I highly recommend using a mix of cooked and raw vegetables to have a good variety of textures. You could use thinly sliced and cooked zucchini or eggplant and sub another leafy green like spinach for the arugula. Adding juicy tomatoes when they’re in season would also be delicious.
- Additions: If you want more protein, consider adding a fried egg or two to the sandwich. I did this once and it was great! If you don’t need the sandwich to be vegetarian, bacon, turkey, or chicken would also be yummy.
- Prep ahead tips: To cut down on prep time, slice the red onions and cucumbers and make the roasted red peppers in advance and keep them in the fridge. When it’s time to make your epic veggie cheese sandwich, you’ll just need to toast the bread, spread the cheese, and toss the arugula.
Serving Ideas
Vegetable and cheese sandwiches make a great vegetarian meal on their own, but you can serve them with a soup or side too. Some good soups to pair with this recipe include the Vegan Cauliflower Parsnip Soup and Fennel and Leek Soup with Potatoes. The sandwiches would also go well with my Vegan Potato Salad, Baked Shoestring Fries, or Loaded Sweet Potato Fries.
More Healthy Sandwich Recipes
Love this Boursin cheese and vegetable sandwich? Check out the Mini Cucumber Sandwiches, Halloumi Sandwiches with Veggies and Pesto, and Eggplant Gyro Sandwich while you’re here!
I’d love to hear how you like this recipe! Rate/review using the stars on the recipe card or in the comments, and follow the Veg World on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Looking for something totally different? Browse the recipe library.
📖 Recipe
Veggie Cheese Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil - divided
- 1 clove garlic - minced
- 2 slices sprouted sourdough bread - can sub any bread of choice
- 4 tablespoons Boursin cheese - I use the Garlic and Fine Herbs flavor
- 2 tablespoons sliced red onion
- 2 tablespoons peeled and sliced cucumber
- 1 cup baby arugula
- 1 tablespoon balsamic reduction - aka balsamic glaze
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Slice the bell pepper in half and remove the stem and seeds. Place the halves cut side down on a lined baking sheet. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the skin is blistered and blackened.
- Remove the peppers from the oven and peel off the skin with your fingers. If the pepper is too hot to handle, run it under cold water as you remove the skin. Slice the pepper into thin strips and toss with 1 teaspoon olive oil and the minced garlic. You can roast the pepper up to a few days in advance and keep it in the fridge until you want to make the sandwich. I like to roast a few peppers so I can make several sandwiches.
- While the peppers are roasting, prep the other ingredients. Slice the onion and cucumbers. Toss the arugula with the balsamic reduction and the other 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Toast the bread to your liking.
- When it's time to make the sandwich, divide the Boursin cheese between the two slices of bread and spread. Top one slice with the cucumber slices, roasted peppers, red onions, and arugula. Place the other slice of bread on top, cut in half, and enjoy!
Notes
- To save prep time, make the roasted red peppers in advance and slice the onions and cucumbers. Store them in an airtight container in the fridge until it’s time to assemble the sandwich. I like to make 3 roasted red peppers and slice an entire red onion and cucumber so that I have enough to make several sandwiches.
- The sandwich is best eaten right away, but you can definitely pack it in a container to bring for lunch at work or school. It tastes good warm or cold.
- I like to use sprouted sourdough wheat bread from Trader Joe’s for this recipe. (FYI – the nutrition facts were calculated using this bread). Other options include Dave’s Killer Bread, Ezekiel Bread, rye, multigrain, or pumpernickel.
- I buy balsamic reduction (aka glaze) at the grocery store, but you can also make it yourself. If you don’t have reduction on hand, sub a smaller amount of balsamic vinegar.
- Sub any creamy cheese for the Boursin, but remember that the flavor will be different. For a vegan option, sub my Caramelized Onion White Bean Dip or hummus.
Nutrition
Enjoy your ‘wich! – Lizzie
Laura
I am so excited about this! Thank you for posting it. I bet it’ll be fabulous!
Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN
Glad to hear it! It’s delicious…one of my favorite things to make for lunch. Hope you enjoy!
Laura
I had this for dinner today. It was fabulous! I’d definitely recommend making extra roasted red bell peppers, so you have enough to stretch over several meals.
Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN
That’s great! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed it! Thanks for your 5-star review.