Dinner Tonight! : QUICK FIX : Ring, Ring Goes the Bell

School bells are ringing again. I give thanks for that. I do. My kid loves a routine. She grouses about it, but she loves it. Just like her mother. Back-to-school nights, PTA meetings and ice cream socials are back on the schedule.

September being one of the most hectic--and hottest--months of the year, I don’t do much cooking. At our house we eat a lot of end-of-the-summer tomato sandwiches. We like them open-faced, with warm goat cheese, lettuce and crusty French wheat bread. When the goat cheese is heated, it becomes creamier and the sandwiches drip with flavor. Served with corn on the cob and sliced summer fruit, they make a great meal.

Menu

Warm Goat Cheese and Tomato Sandwiches

Corn on the cob

Fresh fruit

Warm Goat Cheese and Tomato Sandwiches

Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 15 minutes * Vegetarian

1/2 pound goat cheese

2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 loaf crusty bread of your choice, thickly sliced

2 cups lettuce, arugula or endive

2 large tomatoes, sliced

1 red onion, sliced

* Heat goat cheese in microwave 40 seconds, then stir.

* Dribble 1/2 teaspoon oil and 1 tablespoon cheese on 1 slice bread. Top with lettuce, tomato and onion. Spoon more goat cheese on top. Repeat to make 3 more sandwiches.

4 servings. Each serving: 404 calories; 623 mg sodium; 28 mg cholesterol; 17 grams fat; 46 grams carbohydrates; 18 grams protein; 0.90 gram fiber.

INGREDIENTS

Shopping List

Bread

1/2 Pound goat cheese

Red onion

2 Tomatoes

Staples

Fresh fruit

Lettuce

Olive oil

Game Plan

30 minutes before: Boil water for corn, clean corn.

20 minutes before: Start cooking the corn.

15 minutes before: Heat goat cheese.

10 minutes before: Slice tomatoes and red onion. Drain corn.

5 minutes before: Cut bread in thick slices and assemble sandwiches.