Holy Panini, Grandma!

A few years ago, I decided we needed a Cuisinart Griddler, so I could experiment with making paninis. Paninis are typically made with Italian bread and filled with such meats as ham, salami, corned beef and various cheeses and then pressed on a hot grill or toasted.  Because I like to experiment and Jim has always been an enthusiastic audience when I try new recipes, I tend to put together unusual combinations of ingredients.  You don’t have to use the traditional panini press when making this sandwich.  Any skillet will work as long as you have a slightly smaller heavy skillet to press down on the sandwich as it cooks.

It took me a couple of purchases, followed by returns, to find exactly the kind of griddler I wanted but once correctly chosen, I got busy and we ate a lot of paninis for lunch in the early days. I purchased a ton of deli meats and cheeses at Detwiler’s Market in Sarasota and tried Reuben paninis, roast beef paninis, and smoked ham paninis , each with a twist “a la Carol.” Cook any panini long enough to heat well and melt the cheese.  The bread should appear golden.

Paninis are easy to prepare and limited only by your imagination and taste buds. Following are few of our favorites to try:

Meatless Panini

Italian bread
Fresh spinach
Sliced mozzarella cheese
Fresh mushrooms
Sliced tomato
Pesto
Olive oil

Slice the bread for sandwiches if needed.  Spread pesto on both pieces.  On a cutting board, chop the spinach and mushrooms ( We like Baby Bellas.”) On one piece of bread, layer the spinach, mozzarella, mushrooms, and a slice of tomato. Top with second piece of bread.  Brush the outside of the top piece of bread with olive oil. Lay the sandwich, top-side down on your griddler, grill or skillet and brush the other piece of bread with the olive oil. Press with the top of the griddler or place a heavy pan or skillet on top of the sandwich and cook.  

• Other cheeses work well with this one. Try feta cheese for something a bit different.

Reuben Panini

Italian bread or Rye bread
Thousand Island Dressing
Sauerkraut
Swiss Cheese – sliced
Sliced corned beef
Olive oil

Spread Thousand Island Dressing on 2 pieces of the bread. Layer corned beef, drained sauerkraut and Swiss cheese slices. Top with second piece of bread.  Brush both pieces of bread (on the outside) with olive oil and place in griddler or grill or skillet and press to cook.  Be sure to either spray the griddler or grill with oil or you can use 2 TBSP. of butter.  NOTE:  Do not spray while griddle is hot…it will adhere to griddle and be impossible to remove.

Apple Pork Panini

Focaccia bread or other Italian bread
1 Sliced and cored apple
Leftover Pork roast
Mozzarella cheese, sliced
Olive oil
Pesto

Spread pesto on 2 slices of bread. layer pork, apple slices and cheese. Top with second slice of bread and brush top with olive oil. Place on griddler with top side down and brush olive oil on the other piece of bread. Press and cook.

  When you don’t have a griddler, two different size pans will work.