Project Panini!

Well hello again, my foodie friends! Now that the weather has been (slowly) inching toward spring, I've noticed that I've had panini on the brain! Technically, "panini" is the Italian plural of "panino", which means "small bread", but most people think of panini as any kind of delicious grilled sandwich with a multitude of fillings. One of my favorite quick meals to make and quite possibly the most versatile, the panini is my go-to sammie when I want to eat something with a lot of different layers, namely: chewy, crunchy, cheesy. There are just so many ways to make a tasty panini on your own -- the possibilities are endless! Now that the weather is getting a bit warmer, I'm not baking as much, so the panini is perfect since it only calls for my trusty grill pan! Recently I purchased a big bag of Red Delicious apples, and decided that I needed to put those to work -- and so the Chicken Cheddar Apple Panini was born!

I started with a nice big Portuguese roll and slathered both sides with a quick homemade honey mustard -- a 2:3 ratio of honey to dijon mustard; I just eyeballed it :) Next, I used my mandoline to slice up my apples, tossed them with a scant amount of lemon juice to prevent oxidation, then moved on to slicing up some mild cheddar cheese. While all this was happening, I grilled up some chicken tenderloins using only a bit of salt and pepper. I wanted the taste focus to be on the cheddar/apple/honey mustard trio, so I held back on any heavy seasoning with the chicken this time around. When both sides of the chicken had those really nice grill marks (about 4 - 5 minutes per side) I took them off the heat, sliced each piece down the middle, and set them off to the side. Next up was the panini assembly! Arugla seemed to be the best choice of greens for this panini, sturdy enough to hold up during the grilling process with just the right amount of bite, so down they went, followed by the chicken, then cheese, apples, then more cheese. Closed up the sandwich, brushed both sides of the roll with a bit of olive oil, then it was back to the grill pan. It was at this point when I realized I really need to pick up one of those bacon press dealies -- because the only weight I had to press down the panini as it grilled was a stoneware casserole dishes! Hey, it worked all the same -- I just had one more dish to clean :) Grilled the panini over a medium-high heat until I could see the cheese melting, probably about 4 minutes, then voila! I served it with a side of balsamic roasted vegetables including red pepper, onion, cauliflower, zucchini, broccoli and carrots. A nice glass of Cabernet Sauvignon was the finishing touch. The result? Of course I took a picture!




For a panini that just appreared out of nowhere -- this is definitely one I'm keeping in my recipe arsenal! The honey mustard blended beautifully with the mellow cheddar cheese and the crunchy sweetness of the apples, and the satisfying Crunch! of each bite as the perfectly grilled roll gave way to the amazing medley of flavor just made me savor every moment of this panini. My boyfriend said it was better than any panini he's ordered at his favorite sandwich place, and that's saying a lot -- this is a man who LOVES his sandwiches! :) All in all, I was pretty happy with this first phase of Project Panini. I'm hoping to incorporate even more fresh fruit and veggies into future panini now that the warmer weather is just around the corner. Maybe something with cucumber, tomato, feta and a creamy dill spread; possibly served with a fresh garden salad and a nice white sangria -- oh, I can almost taste summer now!! That reminds me, I really need to read up on some new sangria recipes too ... Until then, thanks for following along with my foodie ramblings! I hope you'll be inspired to invent your own recipes too! :)