IF you're anything like me, sometimes when you get home from work the last thing you want to do is make dinner.
If you have a panini press, or even just a heavy skillet, you can whip up some delicious hot sandwiches that make a great meal (add a salad or a cup of soup on the side if you like).
The new countertop grills like Cuisinart's Griddler, the one I have, are really useful machines - you can use them to make panini, quesadillas, to grill a steak or hamburger, to make pancakes and on and on. If you don't have one you can simply grill the sandwiches in a heavy skillet and place another heavy pan on top while each side is grilling to approximate the weight of the panini press.
PANINI MARGHERITA
All the flavours of a classic pizza margherita.
2 large plum tomatoes, sliced into 16 ¼" thick slices
8 slices rustic French or Italian bread (Save-On's Calabrese loaf is ideal)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
12 large fresh basil leaves Extra virgin olive oil
Brush all eight slices of bread lightly with olive oil; place four tomato slices on each of four bread slices and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the tomatoes and arrange basil leaves over the cheese. Top with the remaining four slices of bread. Brush both sides of sandwich with olive oil; place in hot panini press and cook until golden brown and cheese is starting to ooze out the sides. If you're cooking in a skillet, place sandwich in the pan and top with a sheet of foil, then a heavy pan to weight down the sandwich. Cook until golden brown on the bottom, then flip sandwich over and cook the other side, using the foil and pan on top again. Makes four sandwiches .
HAM AND BRIE PANINI
8 slices of sourdough bread
16 thin slices of Black Forest ham
1 medium round of Brie (approx 6" in diameter), cut into ¼" slices
2 plum tomato, cut into thin slices
3 Tbsp mayonnaise mixed with 2 tsp Dijon mustard Soft butter
Assemble each sandwich as follows: one slice bread generously spread with mayonnaise/mustard mixture; four slices ham; sliced tomato; sliced Brie. Top with second slice of bread spread with mayo/ mustard.
Spread a light coating of butter on each side of the panini and grill as per directions above. Makes four sandwiches.
COBB SALAD PANINI
Cobb Salads are really popular in the U.S., and for good reason. They feature a heavenly combination of flavours, and this sandwich is a good representation.
1 rectangular loaf rosemary focaccia bread, divided into 4 equal pieces
Mayonnaise
½ lb thinly sliced turkey breast (go for the quality roasted variety, not the processed stuff)
8 slices cooked bacon (I use the ready-cooked kind to save time when making sandwiches)
1 avocado, thinly sliced
2 large plum tomatoes, cut into thin slices
4 oz Gorgonzola cheese, cut into thin slices or crumbled
8 small romaine lettuce leaves Extra virgin olive oil
Slice each piece of the focaccia bread in half, spread with mayonnaise to taste and then layer the ingredients as follows: three to four slices of turkey, two slices of bacon, ¼ of the avocado, tomato slices and ¼ of the Gorgonzola. Top with the second slice of bread, which has been spread with mayonnaise. Brush both sides of the sandwich with olive oil and grill as directed above; remove sandwich from grill and carefully remove the bottom slice of bread (not the side with the cheese) and insert two lettuce leaves. Replace the bread. Makes four sandwiches.
PANINI ITALIANO
8 slices crusty Italian bread
½ pound thinly sliced Italian salami (I love Calabrese, which is a mild version of spicy Sopressata)
4 oz Fontina cheese, cut into thin slices
4 large pieces of roasted red pepper, cut into thin strips (find these in the pickle section of the supermarket)
3 Tbsp mayonnaise mixed with 1 Tbsp purchased basil pesto
Extra virgin olive oil
For each sandwich, spread two slices of bread with the mayonnaise/pesto mixture, then layer ingredients as follows on one slice: ¼ of the salami, ¼ of the cheese, and an even layer of red pepper strips. Top with the second slice of bread; brush both sides of the sandwich with olive oil and grill as directed above. Makes four sandwiches.
