postcard recipe from the coast

on the magic of beach sandwiches

I imagine that finding the holy grail feels a lot like a day at the beach. Search your memory of a late summer afternoon—the sun shines without the presence of clouds—you’re battling the choking, sweaty humidity and seek refuge in the deliciously cold sea. Your hair’s twisted into salty soft waves as you make your way through the thick, too warm sand, and there it is—just beyond the dunes, a cooler. You find cover under a pinwheel umbrella and pop open the lid. There in a pool of slushie’d ice, snacks, and bottled margaritas, is your reward: a beach sandwich.

Wrapped in parchment paper or a paper towel, this reward has many forms: freshly sliced deli meats, a variety of condiments smeared on white bread, bright bibb lettuce, and succulent heirloom tomato slices. Maybe if you’re lucky, a slice of cheese will cushion the other ingredients. It’s vahalla, heaven, the only nourishment required for a day on the coast.

When it comes to beach vacations, my family magically becomes a group of morning people. I remember being a kid, camping out in the living room on pull-out couches when my Dad would grunt, walking through the condo, rubbing his bald head before throwing open the curtains. We would cry out our protests, begging for him to let us sleep in just a little bit longer. Nope. It was time to get up. It was 7 a.m. and we were already ‘wasting the day away.’

My siblings and I would eat our soggy Cheerios on the balcony, pinched pink and wind burned from the day before, and spy the lone colorful umbrella, boogie boards, fold out chairs, and our coolers front and center, the best spot on the beach.

Dad would rise with the sun and select the venue he thought was best. From the moment we stepped out of the rental until dinner time, we were expected to find a beach activity or lie out at the pool.

There are many things I love about the beach, snorkeling, finding a critter or sand dollar, collecting shells only to let them go at the end of the day, letting my skin turn a golden brown while I read the latest Emily Henry novel, but one of the special parts of a beach day is that treasure I talked about earlier. I recently learned that not everyone knows how to make the perfect beach day sammie, or even appreciates it.

The secret to the perfect beach day is not one sandwich, but two.

Think about it. You spend your morning finding the best spot for each ingredient, pressing them between two fresh slices of bread, and then you don’t even get to enjoy it! It’s mouth-watering. It’s calling out to you like a siren at sea, only you’re not the girl in a swimsuit putting on tanning oil—your heart has turned into the lonely sea captain yearning for just a taste of what was promised. It’s torture to let it sit in that cooler past the 10 o’clock hour.

So once your sunscreen has settled, and you’re thirsting for your first beer—you indulge in said sandwich.

One bite turns into two, and then it’s gone, your fingers are stained with tomato drippings and Dorito cheese dust. Hours later, your stomach rumbles and you regret the instant gratification from the morning hour—therefore—a second sandwich is necessary. Required.

This is one of my favorite summer sandwiches. While my family was making breakfast and slathering on their SPF 70 lotions, I was in the kitchen grilling veggies. Like I said, we Stewarts are early risers when it comes to vacation time—not a moment can be wasted.

This sandwich is a breakaway from the typical deli sandwich you might also find in your school lunchbox. I like to mix the pesto and goat cheese to make a nice schmear. I typically use veggies that I have on hand or are in season; so here you go—your postcard recipe from the coast.

Veggie and Pesto on Ciabatta

• Grilled veggies (I prefer bell peppers, zucchini, carrots, and caramelized onions)

• Pesto

• Goat Cheese

• Toasted bread of your choosing (I love the Trader Joe’s Tuscan Loaf)

• If you’re a carnivore like me, sometimes, I add a couple of slices of bacon for some protein.

I believe . . . this beauty is a sunray venus clam (if iNaturalist is to be believed)

Also—Beach Reads:

Here are some of my favorites! Sea-loving poetry, a romantic series of vacations, a little funny-sad-romantic-outrageously weird memoir, and an even weirder novel about a temp who does everything from secretary work to supporting the crew of a pirate ship!