caprese panini

after all the super sweet blackberry treats last week, it's time for a simple and delicious dinner. especially one that involves fresh tomatoes.

we had a killer storm sunday night. the thunder and lightning startled me out of bed. i went back to sleep and for the most part forgot about it until i came home from work. my tomato plant that's taller than me had fallen completely over on it's side. it was tomato carnage. some were crushed into the dirt. some got stepped on in the midst of trying to get the cage to stand up straight. all in all, it wasn't a good sight. so i grabbed as many of the red ones that were still clinging on as i could. and i've got big plans for them.

including this sandwich.

i used my favorite multitaskter - my foreman grill. i grilled three fresh picked medium tomatoes for two sandwiches. whipped together a great big handful of basil growing next door to the tomatoes, fresh homegrown garlic from one of my coworkers, parmesan, and olive oil. slather the roll with the pesto mixture and add the grilled tomatoes and a nice thick slice of good mozzarella cheese. grill the whole thing in the foreman for another couple minutes until the cheese is oozing out the side of the roll. it's summer - toasted - between bread.

oh and make some of the extra pesto. yea, i know it's missing the pine nuts, but it still tastes great tossed with pasta. and keeps in the fridge for a while.

caprese panini
30 minutes, makes 4

1 cup loosely packed basil
4 garlic cloves
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup olive oil
4 large/6 medium ripe tomatoes
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
4 sandwich rolls
salt, pepper, olive oil

1. in a food processor, pulse the basil, garlic, parmesan cheese, and 1/4 cup olive oil until smooth. season with salt & pepper.
   
2. heat a grill pan (or foreman grill) over medium high heat. slice the tomatoes into 1/4 inch thick slices and grill a couple minutes on each side, until softened. meanwhile slice the rolls in half and spread a thick layer of pesto on the top half of each roll. arrange slices of cheese on the bottom half of the roll.
3. when the tomatoes are soft, spread them out on top of the cheese. put the tops on the sandwiches, brush the tops and bottoms with olive oil (so they don't burn) and press until the cheese is melty, about 5 minutes.