Grilled Veggie Sliders with Goat Cheese Spread and Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette.
On pretzel bread!!
No no, it doesn’t get any better.
Seriously. I do not know how to smash MORE flavor between two buns. Besides adding bacon. Which I sort of want to do. (You should do it. Because Monday.)
Hey hey!
Look down there at these downright ADORABLE little pretzel buns. I used this recipe. I was totally in the mood to bake.
Don’t you just want to eat them up? The good news is: you’re allowed.
Here’s the thing. Do you know how strongly I feel about grilled veg and goat cheese? In my heart of hearts (no, really, this is getting deep) (even though I just wrote “dip” instead of deep.) I believe that it goes together like chocolate and peanut butter. Bacon and eggs. Avocado and toast. Brie and baguettes.
It just GOES together. Right? I would actually even eat a gigantic pan of grilled (or roasted) vegetables as long as I knew they were sitting on a blanket of goat cheese or covered in a sprinkling.
On these little buns o’ love we have:
caramelized red onions and bells peppers
soft and juicy garlicky portobellos
a creamy goat cheese spread with roasted garlic and tons of fresh herbs
avocado, because it’s 2015
AND!
a roasted red pepper vinaigrette raining down over the entire thing.
Really. It’s a veggie-loather’s (or lover’s, I guess) dream come true.
Since I’m all about the football food, I wanted to make a sandwich that wasn’t beef or chicken or pork since I have a million of those. I wanted a sweet and savory, veggie filled, cheese covered slider because mini food means you get to eat more. (!!!!!!)
And I knew for SURE that I wanted pretzel sliders (we can usually find super large buns and bread, but not mini rolls) – THAT would make eating a vegetable sandwich about 431 times better.
Oh. Um.
I also need to tell you a secret.
We may have dipped the leftover pretzel rolls in the leftover green chile queso. Uh. Hello best idea ever. THAT’s where the leftovers went.
We also took the pretzel rolls and leftover caramelized peppers and onions and added smoked sausage. (And more of the queso, but that’s besides the point.) (Also, birthday boy palooza needs to end now and I need four days worth of kale.) (Finally, halp me.)
So now, we have veggie-loaded football food! Besides, like, a plate of crudite.
You can make ’em a bit ahead of time and wrap them in parchment and warm them for the game. They will make you all sorts of friends. And I won’t even tell on you if you want to add some queso too…
Grilled Veggie Sliders with Goat Cheese Spread and Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- pretzel buns or slider buns of your choice
- 1 red onion, sliced into bun-size pieces
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 orange bell pepper, sliced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 4 large portobello caps, stems removed and quartered
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 avocados, sliced
- a few basil leaves for topping
whipped goat cheese spread
- 8 ounces goat cheese, at room temperature
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 head roasted garlic, cloves squeezed out
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
- pinch of salt and pepper
roasted red pepper vinaigrette
- 1/2 cup roasted red peppers, I used sun-dried peppers
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tablespoon honey
- 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- pinch of salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the grill to the highest setting. Take two sheets of aluminum foil (or use a grill pan!), using one for the peppers and onions and using the other for the portobello pieces. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil over each packet and 1 tablespoon vinegar over each. Cover the peppers and onions with the salt, pepper, paprika and brown sugar. Add the minced garlic to the portobellos (we will season after). Fold up all four sides of the packet so they are easily transportable to the grill.
- Place each packet on the grill grates and grill until the veggies start to char and become caramely, tossing occasionally. Grilled the portobellos until soft and juicy, tossing a few times as well. Once finished, remove the packets and let them cool slightly. Season the mushrooms with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Build your sliders by spreading the goat cheese on the bottom, topping with a mix of veggies, sliced avocado and the vinaigrette.
whipped goat cheese spread
- Add all ingredients to a food processor and blend until combined. I scrape down the sides a few times and if needed, add another drizzle of olive oil.
roasted red pepper vinaigrette
- Note: I used sun-dried peppers for these photos so my dressing was a bit chunkier. A roasted red pepper version will be a little smoother. If using canned roasted reds, make sure to press a big of water out of them with a towel.
- Add the peppers, vinegar, honey and garlic to a food processor and blend. Stream in the olive oil until emulsified and combined. Add the salt and pepper and blend again. Tasted and season more if desired.
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48 Comments on “Grilled Veggie Sliders with Goat Cheese Spread and Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette.”
I agree that it doesn’t really get much better than roasted veggies with goat cheese…except if it is herbed and garicky goat cheese and a slider pretzel roll and a yummy vinaigrette. Even my carnivore husband would love this slider – yum!
yessss my husband might have caved and gone meatless for a night…
Yum, everything about this sounds absolutely incredible!
Who needs meat when you can have this!!! I’m going in for at least two of these masterpieces fully loaded!!! They look fabulous!
Um, YES! Goat cheese and grilled vegetables are the perfect pair, I totally agree on that point. And I agree with all the rest also, these look absolutely amazing. And those pretzell buns, I want those in my life!
yum! where is the pretzel bread recipe……. need that :)
i used this recipe! http://www.melskitchencafe.com/amazing-soft-pretzel-rolls/
I don’t even know where to begin!!! Everything about this looks spectacular, basically my favorite combination of ingredients with roasted garlic goat cheese added into the mix. Aka, heaven on bread.
This is such a fun and delicious slider idea! And those pretzel buns … absolutely heavenly!
Whoa whoa whoa. This is my idea of food heaven between two buns. Except maybe add bacon. I like that idea, because Monday does need it.
EITHER WAY, got cheese and grilled veggies? GIMME. Pinned!
Perfection. Right from the bun choice to the goat cheese spread to the fillings. I am in awe of your magic brain, girl!!
I’m trying to cut down on my meat consumption and this recipe looks amazingly bonkers good.
Omg I want to spread this goat cheese on everything. You’ve also got the makings of a phenomenal vegetarian pizza.
um, you are absolutely right. doing that!
YES to adding bacon!!! I want five of these! love how effortless the goat cheese spread is to make and how versatile, can be added to anything and thinking it would make a good addition to an easy cheese platter to spread on veggies, fruit, with preserves, crackers, breads, etc.
I love the idea of these, healthy gameday food is hard to come by! Will have to give these a try ;)
Kristina does the Internets
Get in my belly! You basically had me at goat cheese, and then you mentioned bacon, which I agree makes everything better :D
These sliders look amazing! We’re always looking for good meatless meals and these look like they definitely fit the bill!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
Ugh this looks AMAZING. I need this in my face NOW.
Looking delicious as usual.
¡Fantástica receta! Con un resultado delicioso, fácil de elaborar y con unas preciosas fotografías. Muchas gracias por compartirla con todos/as.
/ http://www.mascasaonline.com
If there is goat cheese, I can’t say “no” :-D
These have to be in my future!!! Wow, they look incredible.
I love your site and your cookbook is amazing – one of my faves!!
And your baby is just a cutie pie!!
Why aren’t we lunching together and eating THIS!! So in love!
Goodness those look tasty! A must addition to my Meatless Monday rotation. Thanks for the delicious inspiration.
The whipped goat cheese?!? Definitely yes. So many ingredients, but looks like it’s worth the effort, for sure!
I almost cried when I saw this post. So good. I am all about veggie football food…I recently made oven fried broccoli. It was exactly what you think.
I cannot wait to try this!
I’ve never had pretzel bread, this looks fantastic! I invite you to share at the Thursday Favorite Things blog hop. Hugs!
I am obsessed with your got cheese spread! Anything I can put it on I do!!! This looks delicious.
These look amazing! goats cheese is my fave with ANYTHING. Cannot fault a single ingredient, get in my mouth!
Everything sounds so wonderful, from the pretzel buns (which I will definitely bake, my kids love pretzels) to the roasted pepper vinaigrette. Pinned!
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goat cheese on ALL THE THINGS. this looks amazing. and i’m embarrassed how envious i am of your avos. i get never get them that green or perfectly sliced.
Girl, you had me pretzel bread. Truth.
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This looks so delicious. I don’t know if I’d be able to convince my (self proclaimed) meatatarian fiancé to try these though. Maybe if I slip in a couple of bacon slices, it’d still be mostly veggies so I’d be happy.
Cute! I like the vegetarian take on sliders and the idea of using the grill again before the season ends. Between the goat cheese spread and the grilled portobellos and veggies, these would be hard to turn down.
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These look amazing! Approx how many sliders does this recipe yield?
These look so good! Curious with Katherine above, how many sliders does this meal make??
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