The French “tartine” is a savvy sandwich standby: a slice of buttered bread topped with whatever you have on hand.

That could be jams, meats or cheeses. Even better: grilled veggies.

This Grilled Vegetable Tartine takes inspiration from the open-faced tartine served on the lunch menu at the Genessee Royale Bistro in Kansas City.

The Royale tartine is layered with seasonal farmer’s market vegetables and topped with spring greens. Our version starts with whole-wheat bread topped with a layer of tangy Low-Fat Hummus, then piles on grilled red bell pepper, eggplant, zucchini and asparagus.

Shopping tip: Bush’s has a new line of low-sodium canned beans. If your store does not stock the line, buy regular canned beans, then rinse and drain thoroughly to remove excess sodium.

Serving tip: This hummus is lower in fat than many classic recipes, since there is no olive oil. If a thinner consistency is desired, add a little of the liquid drained from the garbanzo beans or use vegetable stock, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the hummus is of desired consistency.

You will not use all the hummus for this sandwich recipe; it is also good served as a dip with vegetables or warm pita bread triangles. If serving leftover hummus as a dip or spread, garnish hummus with minced fresh parsley.

Storage tip: Store remaining hummus tightly covered in the refrigerator and use in four to five days. For longer storage, it can be frozen for up to one month; seal in air-tight containers and freeze. To use, thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then stir well to blend before using. (While you may notice a slight change in the texture, it will still be very good )

GRILLED VEGETABLE TARTINE WITH LOW-FAT HUMMUS

Makes 2 servings

Low-Fat Hummus:

1 (16-ounce) can low-sodium garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

2 cloves garlic, halved

¼ cup plain Greek yogurt

1½ tablespoons tahini

1½ tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

½ teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper

 

Tartine:

½ red bell pepper, seeded and sliced lengthwise into slices about 1 inch thick

¼ small eggplant, sliced crosswise about 3/4 inch thick

½ small zucchini, sliced lengthwise about ¼ to ½ inch thick

6 thin asparagus spears, trimmed

Nonstick cooking spray

2 slices whole-wheat bread, about 3- by 5- by ½-inches, toasted

½ cup arugula or mixed spring greens

For the hummus: Place garbanzo beans and garlic in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process until evenly chopped. Add remaining ingredients and process until blended and smooth, stopping to scrape sides of the bowl as needed. Set aside.

For the tartine: Preheat grill to medium-high or allow coals to burn down to white ash. Spray both sides of vegetables with nonstick spray coating.

Grill vegetables 3 to 4 minutes per side or until just crisp-tender.

Spread one side of each slice of toasted bread with ¼ cup hummus and place each on its own dinner plate, hummus side up. Arrange eggplant slices and zucchini slices on top of bread.

Top with asparagus spears. Slice red pepper pieces into narrow strips and place on top of asparagus. Top with arugula.

Per serving with hummus: 177 calories (15 percent from fat), 3 grams total fat (trace saturated fat), trace cholesterol, 33 grams carbohydrates, 8 grams protein, 332 milligrams sodium, 8 grams dietary fiber.

Per serving of hummus (11 servings; 2 tablespoons each): 66 calories (22 percent from fat), 2 grams total fat (trace saturated fat), trace cholesterol, 11 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 108 milligrams sodium, 2 grams dietary fiber.