I heart predictable things.
My panini maker is more than predictable.
There’s usually a 100% chance that whatever comes off of that thing is going to be goldenbutterycrispy goodness. And this red pepper goat cheese panini is no exception.
On one slice of bread, creamy, crumbly goat cheese. I can’t get enough. And if you don’t love goat cheese, first of all, who are you? And second of all, there are millions(?) of other very delicious cheeses in the world that would work, so just get creative.
On the other slice of bread, salty, chunky kalamata olive tapenade. Totally did not make that. But I love having a jar of it in my fridge.
And on top of that, we have my favorite part of this panini: red peppers. Mine were actually grilled right on the panini press! And they got nice and soft and a little charred on the outside. Sweetness.
Toss in a handful of fresh spinach for something green, pop that thing on the panini press, gawk at its goldenbutterycrispy crust, and devour your beautiful Mediterranean sandwich.
PrintRed Pepper & Goat Cheese Panini
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
Description
This red pepper and goat cheese panini has a layer of olive tapenade topped with roasted red pepper and soft, creamy goat cheese. Grilled perfection!
Ingredients
- 4 thick slices sourdough bread
- 1 red bell pepper (or jarred roasted red peppers)
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup olive tapenade (jarred, found with the olives at the grocery store)
- 1/2 cup goat cheese
- handful fresh spinach
Instructions
- If using fresh peppers, cut the bell peppers in half, and then cut each half into thirds (cutting the long way). Toss them with olive oil, salt and pepper, and grill them in a skillet or on the griddle, high heat, until soft and slightly charred.
- (Optional: spread the outsides of the bread with butter.) Spread two slices of bread with olive tapenade (3-4 tablespoons each) and two slices of bread with goat cheese (3-4 tablespoons each). Top the tapenade pieces with the roasted peppers and a handful of spinach. Place the goat cheese slices on top.
- Grill on a panini press, high heat, for about 10 minutes, checking periodically to make sure it doesn’t burn. You can also grill in a skillet or on a griddle. Flatten the sandwiches with a heavy frying pan while in the skillet to get the panini effect.
- Prep Time: 25 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Category: Lunch
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: red pepper and goat cheese panini, red pepper and goat cheese sandwich, red pepper panini
In other news, I’m mourning the end of summer.
To ease my sorrows, I’m building a very last minute summer bucket list including a drive-in movie and ice cream at Lake Calhoun. I have 7 days left. Help?
Easy and delicious?! My kind of meal. Going on my list this week.
Try this panini with basil instead of the tampenade and roast your own red pepper. It is yummy!
I have to say that looks amazing! It’s now 9:43pm in Baltimore and I’m about to see if I have everything to make this… lol
This is so, so good. Trader Joe sells a wonderful sour dough — ultra sour, artisinal loaves that are also inexpensive because. . .well, Trader Joe. As good as what I bake myself. I don’t have a panini press, but my ancient George Foreman grill works quite well. Thanks so much for sharing so much deliciousness with us, Lindsey — food plus photography!