People have been eating bread with toppings since time immemorial, but calling it a sandwich is a comparatively new thing that originated in England during the 18th century. The name sandwich comes from John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, who lived in 1718 – 1792 and held several military and political offices, including First Lord of the Admiralty, Postmaster General, and Secretary of State for the Northern Department (a precursor to the Home Office).
Lord Sandwich was also an avid gambler with a special fondness for cribbage. Allegedly, he would refuse to take a break to eat during long sessions at the card table. Instead, he would order his servants to bring him sliced meat between to pieces of bread, since this was something that the earl could hold in just one hand while playing. The bread acted as protection from getting his fingers greasy, since marking the cards would have been a disaster. Eventually, his fellow gamblers began ordering “the same as Lord Sandwich” which eventually became just “a sandwich”. At first, a sandwich was something ordered only by rich gamblers, but from them, the habit spread and the sandwich became an acceptable late-night snack among the English aristocracy. By the mid-1800s, the term sandwich used and understood throughout Great Britain, even though many people still preferred to simply call it “bread and meat”, “bread and cheese” and so on as had been the norm before the term sandwich came about.
If you’re hankering for a sandwich but want something a bit more nutritious than just bread and meat, give the avocado sandwich below a try. The recipe calls for a whole-grain hoagie roll split lengthwise, but you can substitute that with two slices of whole-grain sandwich bread if you prefer. Two slices of sourdough rye bread is another great choice.
Healthy avocado sandwich (roll) with homemade cilantro salsa
Ingredients (1 sandwich)
- 1 whole-grain hoagie roll, split lengthwise
- 2 teaspoons cilantro salsa (see recipe below)
- 1/2 ripe avocado, thinly sliced
- 1/2 ripe tomato, thinly sliced
- 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 4 slices cucumber
- 1 dash of lemon juice
- Salt to taste
- Ground black pepper to taste
- 2 leaves Romaine lettuce, coarsely shredded
Instructions
- Spread cilantro salsa over the insides of the hoagie roll.
- Layer avocado, tomato, red onion and cucumber on the bottom half of the hoagie roll. Sprinkle with lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Add the shredded lettuce on top.
- Top the sandwich with the top half of the hoagie roll. It’s now ready to eat.
How to make the cilantro salsa
Some people want a lot of salsa, so this is a generous serving. If you prefer a smaller amount of salsa on your sandwich, cut the recipe in half or store left-over salsa in an airtight container in the fridge.
Ingredients for cilantro salsa
- 1⁄4 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
- 1 coarsely chopped garlic clove
- 1/4 jalapeno
- 1/4 medium sized tomato (no seeds)
- 1 tablespoon chopped onion
- 1⁄2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon lime juice
- 1⁄4 teaspoon cumin
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until almost smooth. You want to keep some chunkiness. Taste to see if the salsa needs more salt, and add if desired.