Prosciutto Put Off....Or Not

The last time I made a recipe with Prosciutto my mom called me after I posted it and stated that it looked like I made my pasta with raw meat. I explained to her that prosciutto was in actuality raw meat (it is a dry cured ham), but my justification still didn't change her mind on whether or not she thought it looked appetizing. I appreciate her honesty and am all about constructive criticism.....when it doesn't have to do with prosciutto. I would normally stray away from something that doesn't look appetizing, but I will never stray from prosciutto. I couldn't let my mom's comment be a deterrent. Prosciutto is too delicious! So when I came across the following recipe I knew I had to give it a try. We are big panini fans in this household and paninis with prosciutto are my favorite.

Since I received my panini grill I have made several grilled sandwiches and all of my practice is starting to pay off. I am figuring out techniques that result in the best panini possible. Some of the things I have learned:

1. Shredded Cheese melts easier than sliced cheese

2. If you chose a bread that has the crust exposed to the grill pan you will have more trouble melting the cheese and the bread will get much harder. The bread I chose for today's panini is the perfect solution.

3. Putting the setting on Medium allows the ingredients to melt better without burning the bread.

This was by far my most favorite panini yet. The balsamic vinegar sprinkled on the arugula lent for delicious flavor and the bread absorbed the melted cheese for a flawless consistency.


Prosciutto and Fontina Panini
Cooking Light January 1996

Ingredients

1 (5.25-ounce) package focaccia (Italian flatbread) (I used Tuscan Pane from TJ's)
8 very thin slices prosciutto (about 2 ounces)
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded fontina cheese
1 cup trimmed arugula or watercress
2 (1/8-inch-thick) red onion slices, separated into rings (I omitted this from our sandwiches)
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Preparation

Slice each bread round in half horizontally. Divide prosciutto slices between bottom halves of bread, and top each bread half with fontina cheese, arugula, and red onion slices. Drizzle balsamic vinegar over sandwiches, and sprinkle with pepper;


cover with top halves of bread.


Wrap sandwiches tightly in aluminum foil, and bake at 300° for 15 minutes. (I grilled mine on the Panini Grill)

Yeilds 2 Servings