Pesto Panini

Let this melty hot sandwich warm you up on those cold, winter days. Paired perfectly with your favorite soup, these paninis are full of flavor: zesty pesto, tangy sun-dried tomato, and gooey aged Swiss. It's not your granny's grilled cheese!

Ingredients:

4 extra sour, sour dough bread slices

Sliced aged Swiss cheese

Sun-dried tomato pieces

Margarine

For the pesto sauce:

1 cup of Fresh basil

2 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup of olive oil

The juice of 1/2 of a small lemon

Griddle pan

Pan press

Food processor

Combine fresh basil, garlic, and lemon juice in food processor. Pulse until chopped. Gradually add olive oil at low speed until  mixture is spreadable. 

Preheat the griddle pan on low.

Spread margarine on one side of each slice of bread. In a preheated griddle pan, place the two slices of bread margarine side down. Using a basting brush, dip the brush into the pesto and spread on each slice of bread. Add desired amount of sun-dried tomato pieces to one slice of bread--cover with two Swiss cheese slices. Allow the bread to heat until the cheese softens.

Place the half containing just the pesto over the half containing the sun-dried tomato and cheese. Turn heat up to medium high and place pan press on top of the sandwich. After a minute or two, use a spatula to carefully lift the sandwich and check the underneath for grill lines. When the lines are a dark golden brown, carefully turn the sandwich over and set press on top of the sandwich. Again, check the underneath for dark golden brown grill lines.