A few years ago, I made a decision to focus on cooking and eating more fish and vegetables. This was a bit of a departure for my family, and not always well received. But whenever I serve these delicious vegetable paninis for dinner, there is no grumbling at the table. The veggies for this dish are first marinated in a balsamic vinaigrette, which can also double as a spread for the bread. Once they’re grilled, their caramelized flavor, the tang of the vinegar, the herbaceous quality of basil, and the creaminess of melted mozzarella oozing out of the crusty ciabatta makes for a delicious, though sometimes messy sandwich…hungry yet?
Grilled Vegetable & Mozzarella Paninis
Make plenty of the vinaigrette–the vegetables soak it up and you’ll want to have some leftover. Combine garlic cloves that have been pushed through a press, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, salt and pepper, and then whisk in some good extra virgin olive oil.
Pour the dressing over the sliced vegetables and toss. Let them marinate for a few minutes before grilling.
Be sure to use a hot grill pan to get a nice char on your vegetables and add lots of flavor. I use an All Clad double burner grill pan for this purpose; if you don’t have one, you could use a smaller grill pan, or even a sauté pan. Just work in batches. Brush pan with olive oil and lay slices of veggies on the diagonal to yield nice grill marks.
I always choose a crusty ciabbata for our paninis–it’s just the right platform to hold all the ingredients. One ciabatta loaf will usually yield 2-3 sandwiches. I usually scoop out the doughier side, to reduce the carbs and make a nice vessel to hold all the components. Spread the cut sides of the bread with the vinaigrette before layering on the cheese and veggies. You can also change it up and use different spreads, like an olive tapenade, or a basil pesto, as I did tonight.
To make a quick pesto, whiz together a bunch of fresh basil leaves, some chopped garlic, a handful of pine nuts or walnuts, a bit of salt and ground black pepper, and freshly grated parmesan in a food processor. Slow add extra virgin olive oil until it incorporates the ingredients into a paste and voila, pesto presto!
Layer slices of fresh mozzarella over the spread, basil leaves (if you’re not using pesto), and then the grilled peppers and onions, eggplant and zucchini slices.
Put the composed sandwiches back onto the hot grill pan and use a press, if you have one, (a small skillet if you don’t) to weigh down the paninis as they cook. Flip over when the first side is done and cook until the cheese is oozing out of the bread. Serve them hot and crusty!
Serves 4:
2 small, or 1 large eggplant, sliced lengthwise
2 zucchini, sliced lengthwise
2 red bell peppers, insides cleaned and sliced
2 small red onions, sliced into rings
1-8 ounce fresh mozzarella ball, sliced
2 small, or 1 large ciabatta loaf (s)
Balsamic Vinaigrette:
2 garlic cloves, pressed
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup good extra virgin olive oil
Basil Pesto:
1 large bunch fresh basil leaves, washed and dried
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 handful of pine nuts or walnuts
1/4 freshly grated Parmesan cheese
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4-1/2 cup good extra virgin olive oil