It’s all happening in the garden! Tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, basil, and, of course, the ever-present zucchini.

What to do with nature’s bounty?

When I picked my first tomato, I wanted to make the most of this tempting treat. So I came up with an amazing sandwich:  toasted focaccia bread slathered with pesto, topped with provolone cheese and a slice of my precious tomato.

I’m a firm believer in cooking from scratch – it not only saves big bucks, but it empowers you to choose what goes in your body. So, of course, I made the pesto and focaccia myself.

However, I understand not everyone shares my passion. You can simply purchase the pesto and focaccia and STILL have a great tasting sandwich.

Because I can’t help myself, I’ll share my pesto recipe for you adventurous souls – it’s easy, I promise!

TOASTY TOMATO PESTO SANDWICH

• tomato slice (preferably home grown or from a farmer’s market)
• 2 or 3 Tbsp. pesto (recipe follows below)
• 2 slices provolone (or whatever cheese you prefer)
• focaccia roll (or bread cut into sandwich sized piece)

1. Slice the focaccia in half horizontally and toast it.
2. Lay the cheese on bottom half and zap in the microwave for 15 seconds or so to melt the cheese.
3. Slather on pesto.
4. Add the tomato.
5. Place the top half of the roll.

PESTO – makes 1 cup

• 2  1/2 cups (4 oz) basil, packed
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2  1/2 T lemon juice
• 1/2 cup Romano cheese, shredded
• 1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Put all ingredients in a blender and puree. You’re going to have to start and stop a lot to smoosh things around for awhile.  WARNING:  Do NOT push down with any utensil while machine is running. Been there, done that. Turn machine off before mixing things up! Pretty soon everything will blend on its own.

Now open wide and enjoy the feast!!!