Sweet Potato Cheesy Panini“Understanding is the Nature of Love”

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

 

I’m writing from New Mexico, my favorite place that I’ve ever visited on this land that we live. My mom and I came here for our annual art festival vacation, this year to the International Folk Art Festival in Santa Fe. It’s a huge festival, with nearly 200 artists from around the world. None of the artists are U.S. citizens, and most of the profits they make from this festival feed their villages back home for a year. A year.

We drooled over textiles from India, rugs from Turkey, paintings from Myanmar, potters from Korea, metal artists from South Africa, beautiful, intricate patterns from Pakistan. The quality of work is supreme, and the artists are kind, soft spoken, humble.

We arrived at this festival the morning after the deadly shootings of police officers in the city I grew up in. We walked among thousands upon thousands of people, all here to take a little bit more culture back to their homes. To learn about the villages these artists came from, to see them working, to bring a little more color into their worlds. To listen, and to respect, and to understand.

To not fear, to not hate, to not judge.

All of us, we connect over art. Over music. Over food. Over dance and movement. These things bring us together. In this country I love, in the land I am from, we can have thousands of people from literally all over the world, together, in peace. It’s possible. We must remember that.

Learning from each other, caring for each other, respecting each other, listening to each other. These are the ways we grow. Peace can happen, I fully believe it. Cultures can come together and share and love. This is the way. Understanding is the way.

Sweet Potato Cheesy Panini

Sweet Potato Panini Love

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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Vegan
Servings 2 people

Ingredients
  

  • 1 sweet potato
  • 2 tbsp. olive oil, divided
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1/8 tsp. pepper
  • 1/2 red onion
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 shallot
  • 1 zucchini
  • 1 cup spinach
  • 4 slices sourdough bread

Cashew Cheese Sauce

  • 1/2 c. cashews, soaked
  • 1/4 white onion
  • 1 garlic
  • 3/4 c. water
  • 1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 avocado
  • 1/4 tsp. sriracha

Instructions
 

  • Place the cashews in a bowl and cover with water. Let sit for 30 minutes.
  • Heat the oven to 450 degrees.
  • Slice the sweet potato into rounds. Toss with a tablespoon of olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet, and bake for 30 minutes, turning once half way through.
  • Slice the onion, shallot, zucchini and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes in a large skillet over medium heat (add oil if you want, but with the juices in the veggies, I don't think you'll need it). Next, add the spinach, and cook a final 5 minutes, until the veggies are tender and the spinach has wilted.
  • Make the cashew sauce: drain the cashews, and place in a high powered blender. Add the white onion, garlic, water, nutritional yeast, avocado and sriracha. Blend on high for a minute or two, until all ingredients are combined.
  • Heat your panini press, and drizzle olive oil on the outsides of your bread slices. Make your sandwiches with the sweet potatoes, the onion mixture, and a few spoonfuls of the cashew cheese sauce, and heat on your press for 5 minutes.

Notes

Note: you'll have plenty of cashew sauce left over to use as a dip or topping to other sandwiches.
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