Guest Blogger Ruth Is Here With A Summer Panini Success

Panini Mania for SUMMER 2013!

Okay. So we wanted to do a LOW calorie, delicious, nutritious and did I mention….SIZZLING grilling masterpiece. A gorgeous Panini. With grill lines and golden brown crustiness that crunches and melts in your mouth.

So we took the Ciabatinni Rolls from Trader Joe’s. Then, also from TJ’s, we bought the Sliced Roast Beef, Havarti Carroway cheese, shredded cabbage, organic carrots and zucchini, Cilantro dressing & garlic aioli mustard.

And, wait for it….here’s what we did:

We built this Panini!

First, we sliced the Ciabatinni rolls in half.

Slathered with Garlic Aioli mustard, both sides.

On the left side, we added a couple, few slices of roast beef.

Then we added the slaw (please see below).

Topped off with one layer of thick slices of carroway havarti.

And placed top of roll on top! (Where it belongs, kiddos)

Slaw:

Shredded cabbage from TJ’s

Peeled and grated carrots from TJ’s

Peeled (only partially) and grated zucchini

Salt (Pink Himalayan), Rainbow Pepper (both TJ’s)

Toss and add the Cilantro dressing

NOW, place the paninis in a heated, sprayed grill pan with the grill press (also sprayed) brick on top. You should hear the sizzle! Paninis will get golden brown on top; flip and sizzle to golden brown on bottom. Once all is golden brown and sizzly, cut and serve.

We, of course, added an icy-cold glass of buttery chardonnay and sour cream and onion potato chips! The chips are not nearly as important as the chard!

ENJOY! So yummy, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness. Crunchy, savory. Yum!

First guest blogger - Lorelai and the Cauliflower Cheesy Garlic "Bread" Sticks

So, I have a confession to make.  I love to eat unhealthy food.  Pizza, burgers, tacos—you name it and I’m probably a fan.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t blessed with the crazy metabolism of a supermodel, so I’m always looking for ways to replace those unhealthy foods with better choices.

When I started seeing recipes online for cauliflower crusts for pizza, I was skeptical to say the least.  After enough positive reviews, I decided to give it a shot and thought that “breadsticks” would be a good first try.

Oh.My.God.  Why didn’t I know about this sooner?  They are amazing.  They really taste like breadsticks….maybe even better.

Here is the recipe over at Mom, What’s for Dinner? that I used as the basis of my first attempt. http://whatsfordinner-momwhatsfordinner.blogspot.com/2012/06/cheesy-garlic-cauliflower-bread-sticks.html

What I changed:

·       I used a cheese grater to shred my cauliflower before I cooked it.

·       Then I added a little water and microwaved my grated cauliflower for a few minutes

·       For the topping, I didn’t use any butter.  Who needs the extra fat and calories?

Now I’ve made this recipe twice.  It might have been two nights in a row but I’m not confirming anything.  The first night I made these on a cookie sheet with wax paper.  For the first time ever, I had something stick to wax paper!  I wasn’t able to peel my breadsticks nicely off, which was a bummer, but the chunks I was able to get were awesome.  Next time, I think I’ll try spraying the wax paper first. The second night I used my pizza stone, and the breadsticks came right off.  The middle wasn’t as done as I would have liked, but it was dinnertime so we just went with it.  Still tasted delish!

Hope you give this recipe a try and let me know how yours turn out!

-Lorelai