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Goodbye lazy summer days.

Goodbye backyard barbecues and farmer’s markets.

Goodbye open-toed shoes.

Goodbye iced lattes.

Goodbye sitting outside until midnight.

Goodbye Flavour of the Month:  Simple Italian Sandwiches.

Goodbye, September!

Ciao!

Hot Sorpressata and Fontina Panini

Adapted from Simple Italian Sandwiches by Jennifer Denton and Jason Denton.

Note:  Sorpressata is a type of Italian salami that tends to be quite spicy. Any type of spicy deli meat will work well in this panino. Fontina is an Italian cheese made of cow’s milk. It can be very strong-tasting but compliments the sorpressata nicely. Fontina works well for panini because it melts well.

Now that September is over and it’s time to move on from panini, I wanted to mention a comment I’d received from Mrs B of Eating Suburbia about how to make panini if you don’t have a press. You can make great panini using one of the following two methods:

  1. The old-fashioned way (A):  Heat a large pan and place your panino on the pan. With a large spatula, press on the panino and hold for 3 to 4 minutes. Flip the panino and repeat on the other side. This method is a bit tedious but it works.
  2. The old-fashioned way (B):  Heat a large pan and place your panino on the pan. Cover the panino with another pan or pot that is quite heavy. You can make it heavier by weighing it down with a dish or a tin of food. Let the panino cook for 3 to 4 minutes and then remove the weight. Flip the panino and repeat on the other side.

(Special thanks to Lisa of La Mia Cucina and Michel of shakylegs for also suggesting ways of making panini without a press in my previous post.)

  • 2 ciabatta buns, split in half
  • olive oil (for brushing the tops and bottoms of the bun)
  • a handful of arugula leaves (washed and dried)
  • 8 slices spicy sorpressata, thinly sliced
  • 2 slices Fontina cheese, thinly sliced (you can use more Fontina if you like)
  1. Heat the panini press.
  2. Lay half the arugula on the bottom half of each ciabatta bun.
  3. Top with the sorpressata and Fontina.
  4. Cover with the top half of the ciabatta bun and brush the top and bottom with olive oil.
  5. Heat on the press for 5 to 7 minutes or until the cheese has melted and begins to ooze slightly.
  6. Remove the panini from the press and let cool for a minute. Slice the panini in half and serve.
  7. Enjoy!

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