Paninis

My kids love paninis and I love to make them.

My favorite recipe is to use up whatever I have in the refrigerator.

For these, I used some small loaves of ciabatta which I had leftover. The secret to a good panini or sandwich for that matter, is layering of flavors. First I spread on some dijon mustard on one side and some pesto on the other.

I like to cover both sides with cheese because when it melts it binds the panini together. Here I used muenster and cheddar.

I added some cherry tomatoes I had previously oven roasted.

I just shmushed them down to release their juices.

Next I added some ham and salami.

I happened to have some mortadella on hand so that was added too. I am a big fan of mortadella and use it to flavor all sorts of dishes.

A layer of smokey Westphalian ham.

A bit of turkey.

Some sliced onions.

And lastly, I added some mild pepper slices.

I spread some of my garlic and herb compound butter on both sides. You can certainly use regular butter if you wish. Or you could brush it with olive oil instead.

These are a bit too big for my panini press so I used my stove top griddle pan.

They are pressed down with the griddle lid. You can use a regular frying pan and just put a plate on top and weight it down.

I start them out over high heat to singe the exterior and then lower the heat until they are cooked through and the cheese has melted.

We need smell-a-vision and taste-a-vision......Mmmmmm......major yum!

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