About Panini
 Italy's
greatest cultural export in the last decade has been the seductively
simple, yet flavour bursting pressed sandwiches known as panini.
Traditionally found in cafes, bars and trattorias from Firenze to
Napoli, Venezia to Turino, the popularity of the Italian panini has
surged across Europe and recently to North American shores.
Panini is simply the Italian name for sandwiches,
however it is almost always used in reference to sandwiches that are
placed in a two-sided cooking press that compresses and grills the
sandwich until hot and toasted.
Unlike an American style sandwich cooker or pie
iron, a Panini Press is not designed to crimp the bread of the
sandwich. Rather, the goal is to uniformly compress the sandwich as
it toasts without the ingredients or
bread being trimmed by the edge of the cooker. The end result of
cooking in a Panini Press is a sandwich
with a surprising depth of flavour and layered composition.
Using expressive and fresh ingredients are key to
the traditional panini sandwich. This starts with quality
artisan bread such as ciabatta rolls, foccacia or baguette - sliced
open and filled with your choice of vegetables, cheese or meats.
Once the sandwich is composed, lightly oil the outside of the bread,
place in the Panini Press,
close the latch and place over medium heat (stovetop, campfire or
barbeque grills - charcoal or gas.) After
about 4 minutes, flip the Panini Press and continue cooking for
another 4 minutes or until the sandwich is
hot and toasted. Cooking time varies with the bread and ingredients
used so just use this as a guideline and after you've made a few
panini you'll develop a feeling for the cooking time.
Panini can vary from the simple prosciutto,
mozzarella & tomato to more complex recipes that involve prep
cooking such as chicken breast with roasted red peppers and pesto
mayonnaise (remember that all uncooked meat
such as chicken must be precooked before using in a sandwich.) The
diversity in ingredients, experimentation and creativity used in
conjunction with such a simple cooking device is what makes using a
Panini Press so fulfilling.
Remember that the idea is not to overwhelm the
sandwich with too many ingredients, but to focus on the balance of
flavours and textures that you want to bring out when the panini is
pressed and toasted.
 Panini
Ideas To Get You Started:
- Ricotta, Roasted Peppers
- Basil, Mozzarella, Tomato, Balsamic Vinegar
- Eggplant Caponata, Roasted Red Peppers, Goat Cheese
- Prosciutto, Goat Cheese, Arugula
- Pesto Mayonnaise, Chicken, Red Pepper
- Ham, Mushrooms, Gruyere
- Tomato, Mozzarella, Coppa Salami
- Ham, Gruyere, Tomato
- Mozzarella, Tomato, Pancetta
- Ham, Emmental Cheese, Basil
- Tuna, Olives, Anchovies
- Roasted Eggplant, Goat Cheese, Basil
- Tuna, Tomato, Olives, Mozzarella
- Gorgonzola, Red Wine Vinegar, Olive Oil, Mixed Greens
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