Lots of people pooh pooh the George Foreman grill. Not me. I think it's great for roasting vegetables, making shish kebabs and grilling delicate things like fish. But most of all I love it for being a makeshift panini press.
Last night's grilled sandwich was mozzarella, heirloom tomato and pesto. Perfect with a green salad dotted with olives and shreds of parmesan cheese. It's the end of July and tomatoes are just starting to ripen in California. While I cook with canned tomatoes all year round, when tomatoes and fresh and in season I find the less you mess with them the better.
Heirloom tomatoes come in a wide variety of colors and shapes. But whether your tomatoes are heirloom or not, the best things to do with ripe fresh tomatoes is to make a salad out of them, add them to a sandwich or toss them with pasta. Cooking fresh tomatoes does not enhance them. When they are at their most sweet and delicious, eat them as close to raw as possible. That's what makes this sandwich is so terrific!
Grilled Mozzarella Tomato & Pesto Sandwiches
serves 2
Ingredients
4 slices of sourdough bread
6 slices of fresh mozzarella
1-2 Tablespoons pesto
1 medium tomato, sliced (blot slices with paper towel if excessively juicy)
Instructions
Preheat the grill. Spread two slices of bread with pesto. Top the bread with tomato slices. Top the tomato slices with the cheese then put the second slice of bread on top. Spray the top of the sandwich with cooking spray and place on the grill, top side down, so that you can spray the second side. Close the grill and give the sandwich several minutes to grill until crispy on the outside and oozy on the inside.
Enjoy!
