How to transform a normal sandwich into a "gourmet" panino?

Panino with smoked turkey swiss cheese fresh arugula and grape tomatoes

Let's begin by saying that there are no laws but only golden rules. A golden rule is always to use the principles of common sense and good taste. The perfect match is what you like. I don't want to give you the recipe for the absolute panino, but I’ll try to explain what makes a panino successful.

 

·        Buy the bread the same day from a bakery ant not wrapped in plastic on a shelf.

·        Be sure the bread is fresh by squeezing it; it should bounce back at the touch.

·        Before you begin assembling the panino, taste the bread determine what ingredients will taste good and fit in nicely in that bread.

·       Decide who the star of the panino is going to be before buying ingredients.  Is the star the bread? The filling? The olive oil? The condiments? The entire panino?

·        Use only good quality cold cuts that have been just sliced that day, no cold cuts in plastic covers for our panini.

·        Use good quality, ripe, and fresh vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, arugula, spring onions, caramelized onions, etc.

·        Make your own dressing with a good quality olive oil.

·       Experiment by using other types of dressing such as freshly made hummus, balsamic and olive oil dressing, garlic and saffron mayo, a light pesto, lemon and garlic, and more. Stay away from dressing in jars or bottles.

·       Make sure that you have enough ingredients that compliment the bread, but not so much that you cannot balance and eat with 2 hands.

·        Make mini sandwiches using various ingredients to test until you achieve what you love best.

·       Once you have achieved success, have a panini party and invite your favorite people.  Pair it with a good beer or wine.

 

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Pork and Black Bean Stew

Pork Chorizo Black Bean Stew

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 large onion, minced
1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
4 cloves garlic, minced
Large pinch red pepper flakes
1 large can black beans, drained, rinsed, and divided
1/4 cup water
3 chorizo sausages cut into 1/2 inch thick pieces
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2-3 bay leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat 2 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat, stir in onion, and cook a few minutes until the onion softens and turns translucent. Remove the onion, and transfer into a large saucepan.

Browning the pork tenderloin and garlic

Add the remaining oil into the skillet, and place over medium-high heat. Add cubed pork, and cook until well browned.  Season with salt and pepper; add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauté for a minute, just until golden.  Transfer to the large saucepan with the cooked onions.

Chorizo

Pour 3/4 of the black beans along with 1/4 cup water into a food processor, and pulse a few times until crushed, but not creamy. Pour bean puree and remaining whole beans into saucepan along with pork and onions.  Add the chorizo, chicken stock and bay leaves. Bring everything to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes.  Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.

  

Adding the black beans

This is a tasty winter comfort dish from Brazil.  I have enjoyed it many times at my Brazilian sister-in-law’s house, now I decided to make it and teach others how to make and enjoy it in my cooking classes.  Serve it with an aromatic jasmine rice, Delicious! 

Tip:  If you do not like Chorizo, you can substitute with Italian sausage.

 

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Gluten-Free Brazilian Cheese Puffs

Gluten-Free Brazilian Cheese Puffs (Pao de Queijo)

4 tablespoons Canola oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons water
1 2/3 cup tapioca flour          
1 large egg, beaten
6 tablespoons Greek yogurt
1/2 cup freshly grated Romano cheese, more for topping

Directions:

Preheat  oven to 450F.  Lightly spray a baking dish.

In the microwave or in a small pot on the stove-top, combine oil, salt, and water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat, and transfer to a food processor. Slowly add the tapioca flour, and pulse several times until it becomes a stiff dough. Cool slightly.

Gluten-Free dough - Using Tapioca Flour and Greek Yogurt

 

Add to the food processor, the egg, yogurt, and cheese, and mix well until dough is softer. Lightly coat your hands with oil and form dough into 12-16 small balls. Spinkle some extra cheese on each puff and place on a baking sheet in the oven. Lower the temperature to 350F, and bake until balls are puffy and golden, about 18-20 minutes, depending on the size of the dough.  

 

Pao De Quejo - Baked until golden

 

A few years ago, I tasted for the first time, Pão de Queijo, a traditional and delicious Brazilian treat, a tiny cheesy puff morsel from heaven.  From that first taste on, I was hooked.  My sister-in-law, who is Brazilian, brought these delicious treats to every family party. When I received the recipe, I made them and was discouraged by a lumpy dough outcome. I recently was asked to make these treats for my Brazilian cooking class, so I decided to use my culinary instinct and test the recipe using a food processor. The result was a soft and silky dough without the manual labor. 

 

My adaptation from the traditional recipe is using Greek yogurt instead of milk, Romano cheese instead of Parmesan cheese, and a food processor instead of mixing my hand.  Now that I have the technique down, there’s endless opportunity for variations for this recipe  Using a strong dry cheese is important, because these treats take on the flavor of whatever is added to the dough. Once baked, the dough is slightly gooey inside, with a burst of cheesy goodness flavor. 

 

Here are some variations:

Finely chopped rosemary or thyme

Finely grated gruyere cheese or extra sharp cheddar

 

Tip: These tasty cheesy treats can be baked on a baking sheet about an inch apart, or in a mini-muffin pan.  Be sure to lightly spray either pan.  

 

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Easy Thyme and Shallot Flavored Butter

2 cups heavy cream                                       
1 shallot, finely minced

2 tablespoons fresh thyme, minced
1 small chili pepper, remove seeds and finely minced
Pinch kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

 Directions:

1.      Pour 2 cups heavy cream in a food processor. Put the lid on, and process.  The cream will go through various stages, from soft to silky whipped cream, and later it will become a firmer cream. At the last stage, the butter is yellow and has separated itself from the milk which is now, buttermilk. The process is working.

 

2.      Drain the butter from buttermilk. You can reserve the buttermilk for other uses in frig. While the butter is draining, mince the shallot, thyme, and chili pepper.  

 

3.      Once the butter has drained, transfer it to a bowl, add your chopped ingredients, a pinch of salt and pepper and mix everything up. Transfer the butter mixture to wax paper and roll to form a log.  Wrap tight, on each end, label it if you are going to freeze it.

Thyme Shallot Flavored Butter

 

There is an endless list of ingredients that can be used to make savory and sweet butters. Once you have the process down, the rest is easy.  You can create many flavored butters for breads, seafood, steak, and many other dishes.

 

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Baked Penne and Fontina Cheese

Baked Penne and Fontina Cheese

 

1 pound ziti or your favorite short pasta                          

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided                               
1 cup heavy cream                                                                 
1 cup buttermilk                                           
2 cups shredded Italian Fontina cheese                             
Salt and black pepper to taste
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 – 1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F. Buttered a deep baking dish.

Cook the pasta according to package directions, less 3 minutes of al dente. The pasta is going to continue to cook in the oven, so you don’t want to overcook it. Drain and set aside.

Cut 5 tablespoons of the butter into tablespoon portions. Cut the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter into 1/2 inch cubes.

Warm the cream and buttermilk in a small pan, then cover and set aside to keep warm.

Stir the pasta with the 5 tablespoons of butter in a large bowl. Pour in the warm cream and buttermilk, and fold in the Fontina until it starts to melt. Add the grated nutmeg, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Spread the pasta mixture into the buttered baking dish. Top with breadcrumbs and grated cheese. Top with 3 tablespoons of cubed butter over the top. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until the top is slightly browned. Sprinkle fresh parsley over the top, and serve hot.

 

Fontina

 

Fontina Cheese is an Italian cheese produced in Valle d'Aosta, Italy, surrounded by the Alps. It is a medium hard cheese made from cow's milk. It is a cheese that can be eaten on its own, or paired with melons, apricots, cherries, apples or pears. It is also a cheese that melts easily and used for many baked pasta or vegetable dishes. It has a mild delicate flavor with a delicate nuttiness and a hint of mild honey. When melted the flavor is earthy with a taste of mushrooms.

 

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Spicy Mediterranean Lentil Stew

Spicy Lentils

1 1/2 cups small lentils

5 cups water
Kosher salt to taste
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced  
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
3 medium tomatoes, diced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Freshly ground pepper
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Boil 5 cups of water and add the lentils.  Let simmer for 25-30 minutes or until tender.  Add the salt toward the end of cooking.  Strain well when ready.

 

In a large heavy bottom saucepan, add the olive oil and sauté the onion on medium heat until soft, translucent and just about to turn golden.  Add the bell pepper and sauté for 5-6 minutes; add the tomato and sauté 2-3 minutes.  Lastly, make a little room in the middle of the pan and add the garlic.  Sauté the garlic for 45-60 seconds. 

 

Add all the spices, saute 1-2 minutes, and stir well. Transfer the cooked lentils to the saucepan.  Add the broth and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Taste first, if needed add salt and pepper. Remove from heat and add the fresh cilantro to the stew.  Serve as a side dish or vegetarian entrée with rice, pita bread or crusty bread, or with a little Greek yogurt on top.

lentils

I cook the lentils separate because if I cook the lentils with the spices and vegetables, the vegetables and spices become a little diluted and less flavorful. That’s my way of making this dish extra flavorful… an extra step... it’s worth it!

 

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Baked Vegetable and Ricotta Frittata

Baked Vegetable Frittata

 

2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, minced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 medium zucchini, shredded with large side of cheese grater

1 medium yellow squash, shredded with large side of cheese grater

1 medium red bell pepper, seeded, cut into small dice

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 (10 oz.) package frozen spinach, defrosted, squeezed dry

2 cups frozen peas, defrosted

1 cup frozen corn, defrosted

1 cup broccoli florets, blanched 

8 large eggs, well beaten

1 cup whole ricotta cheese

3 tablespoons fresh basil, minced

2 tablespoons fresh mint, minced

1 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

Grater for Vegetables

 

 

Directions:

1.      Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with foil or parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang on each short side. Coat the surface of the paper with olive oil so that the frittata will not stick.

2.      Warm oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sauté 5-6 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté about 45 seconds. Next, add the zucchini, squash and bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Sauté for 5-7 minutes. Add spinach, peas, corn and broccoli; sauté about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

3.      Whisk eggs, ricotta, basil, mint and Parmesan. Stir in vegetables. Pour into dish and sprinkle more grated cheese on top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let rest about 10 minutes. Using foil or parchment paper, transfer the frittata to a cutting board. Cut the frittata and serve warm or at room temperature.

 

What an incredibly delicious and healthful recipe.  This recipe can be served as an appetizer, entree, tapas warm or cold.

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