Love and Olive Oil

Moroccan Carrot and Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Green Olive Tapenade

Moroccan Carrot and Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Green Olive Tapenade

As unique a combination of ingredients as I’ve ever seen put into a sandwich. But you know what? It works.

Just a word of warning – go EASY on the olive tapenade. A thin thin layer on one slice of the bread is all you need. We made the unfortunate mistake of piling on far too much of the tapenade. One bite and both of us could barely stand how salty it was. Like, I’d rather be drinking a glass of sea water salty.

But even underneath all that salt, we saw the potential. And lucky for us this recipe makes way more than two sandwiches.

Take 2.

With a much higher proportion of goat cheese and carrots to tapenade, you have yourself a fabulous sandwich. A little sweet, a little salty, and much more hearty and satisfying than you’d think. We had enough carrots that I ate these for three meals straight. And thoroughly enjoyed it. Not that I’m biased towards anything smothered in goat cheese, because I’m not. Really.

Moroccan Carrot and Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Green Olive Tapenade

Makes 6 sandwiches. Recipe from Epicurious.

Did you make this recipe?

Ingredients:

For carrots
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 lb medium carrots (8)

For tapenade
1 1/4 cups green olives (6 to 7 oz) such as Cerignola or picholine, pitted
3 tablespoons drained bottled capers, rinsed
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 flat anchovy fillet, chopped
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

For sandwiches
12 slices good-quality pumpernickel sandwich bread
6 oz soft mild goat cheese (3/4 cup) at room temperature

Directions:

Prepare carrots:
Whisk together sugar, lemon juice, spices, salt, and oil in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved.

Halve carrots crosswise on a long diagonal, then, starting from diagonal ends, cut into 1/16-inch-thick slices using slicer. Cook carrots in a 4- to 5-quart pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 45 seconds. Drain well in a colander and immediately toss with dressing. Cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally, then marinate, covered and chilled, at least 4 hours.

Make tapenade and assemble sandwiches:
Pulse olives with capers, parsley, anchovy, zest, lemon juice, and pepper in a food processor until coarsely chopped, then scrape down side of bowl with a rubber spatula. Pulsing motor, add oil in a slow stream and continue to pulse until mixture is finely chopped (do not pulse to a paste).

Spread tapenade on 6 slices of bread and goat cheese on remaining 6 slices, then make sandwiches with carrots.

Do ahead: Carrots can marinate up to 2 days. Tapenade can be made 1 week ahead and chilled, covered.

All images and text © / Love & Olive Oil

Did you make this recipe?

Let us know what you think!
Leave a Comment below or share a photo and tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #loveandoliveoil.

There may be affiliate links in this post. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

21 Comments

  1. I savour, cause I discovered exactly what I used to be looking for.
    You’ve ended my four day long hunt! God Bless you man.
    Have a nice day. Bye

  2. Thanks for this post! This has become one of my new faves! Just letting you know I posted about it on my blog and linked to you! Thanks again!

    Carli
    Velveeta Ain’t Food

  3. I saved this to my favorites on tastespotting. And everytime I see it I stop and stare at it for a minute. Gosh, it just looks amazing. I think I am going to finally make it this weekend. I have some black olives so I hope those work on it?!?

  4. This was by far the BEST sandwich I’ve had in ages. Thank you so much for the recipe!

  5. I’ve made that exact sandwich! I made it on a full ciabtta loaf which I then sliced into individual portions for a party. People loved it and kept talking about how different it was. Great choice!

  6. Sounds wonderful. I’ve had raw grated carrot on a salad sandwich before but this sounds so much better.

  7. I am not a vegetarian but love little bites like this. Thanks for sharing.

  8. These little sandwiches are amazing! The combination of flavors is unique. The carrots are really the secret ingredient. For delicious and sophisticated party food cut them into quarters and remove the crusts. They make a great lunch that any 4 year-old loves.

  9. The recipe! (http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Moroccan-Carrot-and-Goat-Cheese-Sandwiches-with-Green-Olive-Tapenade-106890). :) Basically, I see the word goat cheese and I’m all for giving it a go. :)

  10. Interesting combination. What was your inspiration?

  11. Elle,

    I’m in Raleigh too! I think it’s just supposed to be rain, or at least I hope, I have NOTHING in my pantry right now!

    -Evie

  12. Elle – that’s because it isn’t pumpernickel. :) We had a partial loaf of Ciabatta bread leftover from a previous meal, so we used that instead. Definitely on my agenda to buy (or try to make!) some pumpernickel to try these again. :)

  13. the sandwich looks and reads delicious and if we don’t get another snow storm in Raleigh this weekend, I’ll be out and about for provisions – however, I have to say that is the strangest looking pumpernickel bread I have ever seen and I’ve been eating that since childhood.

  14. Wow, you take the cake for spinning sandwiches on their ear! Forget the old “ham and swiss on rye.” GO CARROTS, GOAT CHEESE AND GREEN OLIVE TAPENADE!

  15. This sandwich sounds delicious. I read your post while I was eating a less than stellar turkey sandwich at my desk at work and wished I could reach into the screen and eat yours instead!

  16. Carrots in a sandwich? Fascinating!

  17. This looks so delicious – and I don’t even like veggies. I love that you have goat cheese on it – that I DO love, and am usually not a fan of hummus!

  18. Looks like a killer, never seen before combo. I must make these sammies!

  19. Wow, this sounds delicious and I especially love that the carrots and tapenade can be made ahead of time – perhaps on a Sunday for a Monday sandwich! Thanks for sharing!

  20. I agree with Evie – It’s hard to come by tasty vegetarian sandwiches that do not involve hummus. And I always seem to have carrots on hand. Looks delicious and bright!

  21. I just started reading you blog and… awesome cupcakes followed by this wich creation…LOVE! I am a vegetarian and am CONSTANTLY looking for fresh sandwich ideas, not to mention I think I just want to keep the carrots handy as a snack in their own right. Adding you to my faves, thanks for all the great ideas!

Did you make this recipe? Leave a Review »