Thomas Boulan, Photographer

Tom and I ate dinner together the other night and made ourselves a hot, open-faced sandwich very typical of what he eats on a regular basis. Tom often stir-fries vegetables, and he adores sandwiches; so we combined them into one happy dish.

His sister Anne (whom we consider to be our guardian angel) had recently visited from Kentucky and very much wanted to shop at Zingerman's, since she regularly gets their catalogues. So Tom had taken her to the Bakehouse to buy coffee cakes and other treats, both for gifts and for herself ('cause she's worth it!). And, well, of course he couldn't leave there without buying himself a present too — a loaf of Sicilian Sesame Semolina Bread.

So, for our dinner, we started with one slice each of the bread, lightly toasted so that it wouldn't be too crispy when we tried to cut into it. We then peered into the refrigerator and found a lovely assortment of fresh vegetables, as well as some fabulous maple-flavored bacon. Toss in a little bit of the white cheddar that I'd contributed to the cause, and voila! Dinner.

This was immensely flavorful, easy to make and was a perfect light meal for a summer evening.

Summer Vegetable and Bacon Sandwich

5 slices maple-flavored bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 small red onion, halved, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise, sliced
6 asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups baby spinach leaves
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 slices Zingerman's Sesame Semolina Bread
2 slices white cheddar cheese

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium until starting to turn golden. Add onion, garlic, zucchini and asparagus; cook, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes until vegetables are tender and caramelized. Add spinach, salt and pepper; turn off heat, and let spinach wilt.

Lightly toast the slices of bread.

Place 1 slice of toast onto each of 2 serving plates. Divide vegetable-bacon mixture, pouring it over the toast. Top with cheese and microwave for 30 seconds or so, just until melted.

Serve immediately, with pickles or chips or fruit on the side.

Serves 2.

Mary Bilyeu has won or placed in more than 60 cooking contests and writes about her adventures in the kitchen. She was thrilled to have her post about Scottish Oatmeal Shortbread named as one of the daily "Best of the Blogs" by the prestigious Food News Journal.

Go visit Mary's blog — Food Floozie — on which she enthuses and effuses over all things food-related. Her newest feature is Frugal Floozie Friday, seeking fun and food for $5 or less ... really! Feel free to email her with questions or comments or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.

The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers as they cook along with her ... may you always be happy here.