Hell Freezes Over

One of my many quirks is an intense aversion to mayonnaise. I've never liked the stuff and I can't eat  anything that I know contains mayonnaise. This distaste has carried over to veganaise as well. I don't even know whay mayonnaise tastes like, because I've never been able to stomach the site of it, let alone put it to my lips. On the one hand, this is probably not a bad thing, because who wants to eat something that so closely resembles cellulite? On the other hand, my issue with this particular spread (plus my dislike of mustard and my refusal to eat lunch meat, even vegan lunch meat) has long kept me from entering into the world of sandwiches. I've never gotten behind them, which can make packing lunch for work a little bit more difficult than it has to be. I was screwing around the Apple store a few weekends ago, waiting for my new bff Collin to activate my new i-phone, and started playing with the Whole Foods application on a demo phone. I will say it was pretty cool, but it also had a great recipe for a vegan muffaletta sandwich. I didn't bother to write down the recipe or anything, but the idea of a sandwich with mushrooms and roasted red peppers haunted my thoughts all day. So, I gave in to the dark side and made a sandwich. After learning that my vegan jambalaya was a bastardization of all things cajun, I abandoned the idea of even calling my version of the sandwich a muffaletta, but it was very much inspired by the idea of one.
Roasted Red Pepper Sandwich

•  2 pieces of sourdough bread
• 1 artichoke heart
• 1 roasted red pepper
• 4 white mushrooms,
• 1/2 a clove of garlic
• handful of lettuce

1. Slice your mushroom and mince the garlic while heating a pan over medium high. Spray with cooking spray and add the garlic, sauteeing for 1 minute.  Add the mushrooms and cook for an additional 4 minutes. You can also add the red pepper to heat it if you plan on serving the sandwich hot.
2. Lightly toast 2 pieces of sourdough bread. While the mushrooms are cooking, cut the artichoke heart in half and smash it into your toast with the back of a spoon. This is your veganaise substitute, and it is MUCH better.
3. Layer a few pieces of lettuce on top of the artichoke, and spoon the mushrooms and garlic over it. Add the red pepper and you are in business.