When you have a few picky eaters, as in my 4-5 year olds’ class, you have to find sneakier ways to pump up the nutritional volume. And, since we were planting basil in class last week, we made one of my favorite dishes for picky eaters: the tri-color sandwich or, as you might want to call it for the very picky eater, also in our class, “the pizza sandwich”.
You have three rich colors and flavors inside the ciabatta bread. First, there’s the white: fresh local mozzarella that oozes when you bite in. The red and the green are melded together: tomatoes roasted with olive oil and basil and just enough salt and pepper. Use basil fresh from your kitchen windowsill garden, like we did for an extra touch of home-grown goodness. Feel free, too, to experiment with the bread and use a whole-grain version.
While it sounds simple, and is simple to make, the small attention to the tomatoes makes this something warm and special to serve when guests come over for lunch.
Click on over to Meatless Monday for more delicious suggestions on vegetarian delights, and then click to their sister site, Kids Cook Monday to check out great family recipes, including some special Tribeca Yummy Mummy recipes.
Tri-Color Panini of Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil
makes 2 large ciabatta sandwiches, enough for 4 children
*one ball of local mozzarella (or smoked mozzarella, which is also so delish)
*1 1/2 c. cherry tomatoes
*2 T. extra virgin olive oil
*1 heaping T. fresh basil, finely chopped (plus extra leaves, to taste)
*1/2 t. salt
*2 small cloves garlic
*black pepper, to taste
*two 6-inch ciabatta rolls
Big Person: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Cut the ciabatta rolls in half with a serrated knife
Together: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the tomatoes and garlic onto the baking sheet and drizzle them with the olive oil. Sprinkle on the salt, pepper, and basil. Using your hands, toss everything together so that the tomatoes are completely coated.
Big Person: Roast the tomatoes in the oven for 20-30 minutes, shaking the pan a couple of times along the way. When the tomatoes are beginning to brown, pull them out to cool in the pan.
Together again: Assemble the sandwiches. First, using a pastry brush, dip into the extra olive oil on the parchment paper, around the tomatoes. Use this olive oil to paint the inside of the ciabatta bread, tops and bottoms.
On the flat, bottom layers of ciabatta, have your mini-chef place a single layer of mozzarella slices. Now place a layer of the tomatoes on top of that. Extra basil leaves can go on top of that, or just leave them off for a picky non-leaf eater.
Big Person: Heat a grill pan over medium-low heat. Oil the pan with a little olive oil or other veggie oil to prevent sticking.
Place the sandwiches down on the grill, and then put a heavy pan on top of the sandwiches (we use our largest cast iron skillet for this with great results). Cook 3-5 minutes on each side, till the mozzarella oozes, and the panino has grill marks on both sides.
Wait a couple of minutes before serving the sandwiches.
