Homemade Veggie Burger Sandwich with Sourdough Bread from Boudin

In my previous entry about Boudin I said that you get a 1lb loaf of sourdough bread. Well, here is what I made with some of that bread.

Homemade Veggie Burger Sandwich

There's two sandwiches here, but the size of the bread isn't large. In each sandwich is half of a veggie burger. So these two little sandwiches equal one large sandwich.

Close-up of layers in the sandwich

The bottom most layer is the veggie patty. I used MorningStar Farms Garden Veggie Patties. I bought the whole bulk bag from Costco. Then there's tomatoes, alfalfa sprouts, clover sprouts, some spring mix salad, and the purple stuff on top is radicchio. I consider this semi-healthy because the white bread and processed veggie burger is not the best, but all the raw greens are good. =)

Boudin SF - Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

Usually I eat at Boudin once a month because you get a free 1lb loaf of sourdough bread if you have a frequent buyer card (it's free) and register it online. With the card you get free bread once a month for a year and $5 towards your next purchase after accruing 50 points. One dollar equals one point. So that's like 10% off your meals. That's pretty darn good! For some other frequent buyer cards you have to wait until 200 points to get $10...so that's only 5%.

Soup and Salad Combo:

Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Rustic Tomato Soup

Beets and goat cheese are both good for you and I don't usually get to eat it unless it's homemade. So I really wanted to try this salad out.

 This salad normally comes with spiced nuts but I asked for no nuts due to the spiciness. Not a fan of spicy things in any way. So the salad looks a bit plain because of that.

Goat cheese is an acquired taste. I don't like the big big chunks...but after splitting it into smaller pieces it was perfect. Goat cheese is supposed to be easier to digest than cheese from cow's milk because goat's milk is closest to human milk. Our bodies have a hard time with cow's milk...especially after pasteurization the enzymes that may help with digestion are all destroyed. So give goat's cheese a try...just break it into small pieces and pair it with balsamic vinegar....it seems to take away the strong goat cheese scent. FYI...I will be getting this salad from now on.

I consider this meal semi-healthy because the salad is healthy, but the white bread is not so healthy. The soup itself is semi-healthy to me.

Boudin

http://www.boudinbakery.com/index.cfm

Maggiano's Little Italy - Costa Mesa, CA : Eggplant Parmesan

There are a few basic types of places that a vegetarian can dine at. Italian food is one of them. I haven't been to an Italian place where I couldn't find something to eat yet. Pasta and marinara is something simple and usually available no matter which Italian restaurant you visit. I remember Maggiano's being good...but haven't been back in a while. This is my first pic of food. It was also taken before I figured out the indoor light setting on the camera so the picture is a bit dark.

Eggplant Parmesan

The eggplant is sliced and breaded and then pan fried with provolone cheese layered in between and marinara sauce on top. If you order any classic pasta dish from there, they give you a take home box of any other (or the same) classic pasta dish on the menu. Pretty cool huh? You can eat this and have another full meal for later. I did not remember them having this a few years back. I think it's a great money saving deal! I got the same dish but should have gotten something different. The pan fried eggplant and all that cheese is pretty heavy for me and I couldn't eat a whole lot of it. Waay too much food. Should have had their Four Cheese Ravioli or Spaghetti Marinara. All in all it's pretty darn good.

Maggiano's Little Italy

http://www.maggianos.com/en/Pages/home.aspx

The location of this meal was at:

3333 Bristol Street

Costa Mesa, CA 92626

714-546-9550