Now aren't they cute???
I'm done, I promise!! Now...where were we?? Oh, Paninis! So over the past two weeks I've made two versions of a panini. I'll start with last weeks- please bare with me...as both of these masterpieces on a plate are my own "creations" and I use that word in quotes bc I am positive I am not the first or only person to make this sandwich...I just didn't lift these off a cooking blog, or even use a recipe when making them. Therefore, I don't have real measurements....but they are so easy you really do not need measurements...just ingredients and assemble and voila'! You have yourself a Panini!!
Spinach, Pesto, Mozzarella & Roasted Red Pepper Panini
Ingredients
bread (ciabatta, Focaccia, sandwich rolls, Everyday Bread, etc)
basil pesto
mozzarella (fresh I find is the best!) but regular works too
baby spinach
sliced roasted red peppers
whatever else you think would taste yummy, some versions I have made in the past included broiled eggplant, zucchini, mushrooms, roasted broccoli, caramelized onions, etc, etc.)
Directions
1. Slice bread/rolls/ etc.
2. Smear pesto on one (or both) sides of sandwich
3. layer a handful of baby spinach, sliced roasted red peppers and a few slices of cheese, top with top half of roll/bread etc.
4. Cook in fancy panini press...or if you are like me, place on grill pan over med/high heat. This is where it starts to get tricky...so pay attention...place a tea kettle filled with water on top of sandwiches...see illustration below as this is an extremely advanced technique but works wonderfully! Smushes the sandwhich down nice and thin while making those panini lines that add so much flavor (haha!) Check after a few minutes, flip sandwich which should be decently pressed at this point and place tea kettle back on top.
5. Once both sides are grilled and insides are nice and ooey gooey take off grill pan, slice and enjoy!
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| taken w/ cell phone camera- fancy...as fancy as this panini press-don't be jealous |
Grilled Pepper & Onion Panini w. Garlic Aioli and Feta
I have been making this sandwich for so long...I know I got it from somewhere but I cannot for the life of me remember where, possibly allrecipes.com but I don't know the name of the sandwich and at this point I'm pretty sure I'm not following the original recipe anyways :)
Ingredients
bread (ciabatta, Focaccia, sandwich rolls, Everyday Bread, etc)
red bell pepper
yellow bell pepper
orange bell pepper
green bell pepper
red or yellow onion
crumbled feta
garlic, minced
lemon juice
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt/Pepper
Directions
1. Slice bell peppers and onions, sprinkle with a little EVOO (hellooooo Rachel Ray!) salt and pepper, mix to cover all the veggies
2. Grill onions and peppers on grill pan over med/high heat until they are at your desired done-ness, like black and charred? great! like them barely cooked nice and crispy? fantastic!! Get distracted and forget about them so they end up black and charred?? no biggie...you meant to do that.
3. While veggies are grilling time to make the garlic aioli... put a few spoonfulls of mayo in a small bowl. Mix in lemon juice and garlic. Taste it, add more of whatever you think will make it better, I tend to like it more garlicy then lemony but whatever floats your boat.
4. Spread garlic aioli on one or both sides of bread, top with mounds of grilled veggies, sprinkle on crumbled feta...top with the other half of bread and smush down a bit so it stays in place.
5. Place sandwich on fancy panini press or grill pan over med/high heat (I use the same pan as I used for grilling the veggies) and top sandwich's with tea kettle filled with water.
6. Flip panini- place tea kettle on again.
7. Once both sides are grilled and panini is pressed nice and thin take off pan, slice and serve!
Enjoy!
xoxo
Andrea
Ooh, I've made the mozzarella/pesto/red pepper one before, but I've never thought of adding spinach to it! Yum! Also, I use a cast iron skillet to flatten my paninis... that joker is heavy!
ReplyDeletexoxo
I need a grill pan!
ReplyDelete