Almost Caprese Panini

Now the purists will balk at this version and rightly so because there is nothing as tasty as a fresh mozzarella, juicy tomato and fragrant basil on a soft focaccia roll. But my husband doesn't like them. He won't touch them - too bland for him. So this version was born... like a compromise between caprese sandwich and a pesto panino. It is delicious and the garlic and Parmesan from the pesto with the warm gooey mozzarella take it to a different level. The portion below makes four sandwiches. Ideally from a 1 1/2 inch ball of mozzarella you can make 8 slices. And I get about 8 slices from a medium roma tomato too.

Ingredients:

8 slices Italian bread

8 slices mozzarella 

1/2 cup (or 4 tablespoons) basil pesto

2 medium roma tomatoes

Butter (optional)

Spread about a tablespoon of pesto on the slice of the bread. Layer 4 slices of tomato next with 2 slices of mozzarella after that. Cover with another slice of bread. Butter the outer side of both the breads, it will give it good color. Place in a panini grill or on a flat frying pan with some flat weight on top. Grill till golden on each side. Slice and enjoy with hot cup of tea or coffee.

Now a days with the weather warming up, we have our evening tea on the patio with some easy snack like this one. Everything tastes better with the warm (but not hot yet) evening sun shining on us. Try it and let me know how you enjoyed tea on the patio or balcony...