Ma(tt)y's Tortas

Here is what you should make for dinner tonight. It's super fast and easy and delicious.

These tortas are inspired by Manny's Tortas in Minneapolis, which my fetus has been craving for the past week. Years ago, Matt introduced me to this little hole-in-the-wall joint (ok, by the looks of his new website, Manny has recently expanded a bit beyond traditional "hole-in-the-wall" status) in the Mercado Central mini-mall on Lake Street. Our favorite has always been and will always be Manny's vegetarian sandwich, despite the fact that we are no longer vegetarian (although I inadvertently eat mostly vegetarian anyway). Manny's bread is toasty and buttery, and these sandwiches are so amazing that I'm sure that even the pickiest of meat-eaters would fall in love. I crave it every time we visit my homeland, and now you will, too.

My thrown-together, experimental version received quite a positive review from my husband tonight. He's a tough critic. So I'm using Manny as an inspiration and nicknaming my version after my homeboy.

Ma(tt)y's Tortas

Whole-wheat burger buns (Manny uses some kind of amazing French-type or submarine sandwich bread...I wanted to go a little healthier)
Earth Balance spread
Cheese (I used shredded Mex blend...cheddar works)
Sour cream (Manny uses "chipotle mayo")
Refried beans (I used veg black RB's)
Onion, thinly sliced (none on mine, please)
Tomato, thinly sliced
Avocado, thinly sliced or mashed
Jalapenos (of the briny, jarred, sliced variety)
Lettuce (I used romaine)

Slice up all of your veggies (avocado last - put it in a little bowl, toss it with a little drizzle of lime juice, and leave the stone in there with it to prevent browning!).

Butter the buns (grilled cheese style) and place them, face-down, in a pan. Toast them to your liking. Meanwhile, heat your beans in a pot or in the microwave - make sure they're VERY hot. When your buns are done, remove from the pan. Immediately cover the bottom bun with a thick layer each of cheese and then beans (the beans will melt the cheese - if you're using thickly sliced cheese, you can also throw the bottom bun + cheese under the broiler for a minute or two). Spread some sour cream on the top bun.

Throw on the rest of your ingredients on top of the beans. I mashed the avocado on there and then stuck the jalapenos on top of that so everything would stay together, and then top it all with the tomato, onion, and lettuce.

Manny's tortas can't be beat - I don't know what his secret is - but these pleased both myself and my husband (I was worried - Manny's is pretty much his favorite sandwich and one of his all-time favorite meals EVER). I served them with tortilla chips and a little homemade tomato salsa that I made in the blender (make to taste: tomato, fresh jalapeno, onion, a bit of garlic, lime, cilantro, salt - blend). Delicious, and the fetus approved of my offering...hopefully we can both move on to a new craving now. And, fetus, it would be GREAT if you could try craving something that I can get in my own zip code.