Grilled Nacho Cashew Millet Cheese Sandwich with Roasted Sweet Potato, Pea Pesto. Vegan Recipe

Happy Grilled Cheese Sandwich Month! April is that month.. and I am finally catching on.. Since I made this insane Nacho Mac n Cheese Casserole I had planned to use the cheese sauce in some way in a grilled cheese sandwich. And to add more substance to it, this Cheese has cooked millet hidden in it! 
Everything made from scratch, the bread, the cheese, the bright green Pea pesto, and roasted sweet potatoes.. Now this is my kind of sandwich. Sweet Potatoes and this cheddary cashew millet cheese go so well together. For a super quick sandwich, just grill bread with the cheese sauce! The cheese sauce can be made ahead and kept refrigerated for a few days.

The cheese and other contents of this sandwich are gluten-free and can be used with a gf bread. The cheese is also soy-free and refined oil-free.

It feels like some amount of work. But I make bread every week, and the rest of the stuff is also already made as sides. I make a big batch of roasted sweet potatoes some days to add as a side with any meal, and some herbed cooked millet too. So with already available millet and sweet potato, the sammie comes together easily. Or use sliced up veggies instead of sweet potato, and mashed avocado for pea pesto for a quick fix.



Make this plain, or with Jalapeno peppers. Fill it with other things, like blackened tempeh strips or field roast or with potato chips.. like this Salt and Vinegar Grilled Cheese ;). So many options. There is limited refined oil in the bread and the pesto and it can be easily eliminated to make the entire sandwich oil-free.

For more Burgers, Sandwiches see here.

Steps:

Make the millet and put the sweet potatoes to roast. both will take about 15-20 minutes.
Prep for other fillings if adding. 
Make the Pea pesto.



Use as much as you like on a slice of bread. 



Layer the roasted sweet potatoes. Sprinkle salt and pepper.



Pour a generous amount of cheese sauce.  Cover with another slice and grill.



The cheese sauce thickens when heated and sets as it cools. and the sandwich will stick together if there was a good amount of the cheese in it. 



Serve hot!



Grilled Nacho Cashew Millet Cheese Sandwich with Roasted Sweet Potato, Pea Pesto
Allergen Information: Dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free, corn-free.

Makes 2 sandwiches
Ingredients:

Pea Pesto:
1/2 cup peas(I used frozen, thawed)
1 clove of garlic or a generous pinch of garlic powder
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil (optional)
a bunch of cilantro(1/2 cup)
sea salt to taste
water as needed

Roasted Sweet Potato:
1 Sweet Potato peeled and sliced
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
salt and dried herbs

Cashew Millet Nacho cheese: Gluten-free
1/4 cup Cashew flour(ground raw cashew)
1/4 cup Coconut milk
1/4 cup Cooked Millet (or use cooked quinoa or a Tbsp cashew flour)
1 Tablespoon chopped red pepper or canned pimientos
1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon onion flakes
1/2 teaspoon vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
a generous pinch of black salt(kala namak)
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
a generous pinch of garlic powder, cayenne powder and mustard powder
1 Tablespoon Tapioca starch

Other: Slices of bread: I used Rye Almond Loaf Slices.
Sliced Red Onions

Variations:
add Pickled Jalapeno, pickled onions, meat substitutes, fresh herbs, mashed Avocado.

Method:
Pea Pesto:
Blend all the ingredients. Use a little water if needed to get a spreadable consistency. Adjust salt and spice.

Roasted Sweet Potato:
Brush the Sweet Potato slices on both sides. Place on parchment lined sheet.
Sprinkle salt and dried herbs of choice and bake at 415 degrees F for 18-20 minutes.

Cashew Millet Cheese:
Blend all the ingredients except millet. Taste and adjust salt and spice.
Add millet and blend again to somewhat smooth state. Some unblended millet is fine.
If you are not planning to grill the sandwich at high heat, you can skip the tapioca starch. The starch helps the cheese sauce thicken and get stringy when hot. The cheese then sets as it cools and holds the sandwich together.

Sandwich:
Cook the Millet, and put the sweet potatoes to roast. 
Make the Pea pesto. Prep the cheese ingredients and blend.
Layer a bread slice with pesto, roasted sweet potato and red onions.
Sprinkle salt and pepper.
Layer the cheese sauce generously on top.
Top with another bread slice and grill.
You can add cheese sauce layers to both slices, add some jalapenos, any veggies(raw or roasted of choice and grill for a plain grilled nacho cheese sandwich.


This Sandwich is being shared at Ricki's wellness weekend. Allergy Free Wednesdays, Healthy Vegan Fridays, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays and Shine supper club

Did you know .. via visual.ly