Sandwich Sunday

Today's sandwich already has me salivating again!!!! Since my first "Sandwich Sunday"episode was a little nontraditional, I figured I would do a twist on one of my favorite sandwiches here in Houston.

I love to get the Pizzatola Sandwich at Paulie's on Westheimer. It is a taste bud party of fresh mozzarella, pesto and ripe tomatoes sandwiched between 2 slices of oiled sourdough and grilled. The sandwich has a wonderful combination of flavors but is quite salty and definitely not very low calorie.

I decided to twist it up and not only decrease the calories, but add a little fancy protein for the hubs.

On my trip to Central Market I found some of the best "sandwich bread" I have ever had. It is simply a fresh loaf of 10 grain bread. To.Die.For! I also used a little 2% Italian cheese blend, homemade pesto and the guest of honor...Prosciutto!!!

Proscuitto can be pretty pricy. While standing in line to have it freshly sliced, I ran across this pre-packaged option. It had just as much as I needed and was very reasonable, about $4. If you check out your deli counter you may find different options, some up to $100+ per pound. I haven;t taken the time to ask much about it, but plan to do so on my next visit. Either way I was very satisfied with this purchase.

For the homemade pesto, I started off with a little Garlic Gold, Basil, Parmesan cheese (pre-shredded), S&P, and Pine nuts. By the way, did you know that Pine nuts are $29.99 a pound?! Thank goodness I only needed about a tablespoon. The guy at Central Market gave me a bit more; the amount in the little box cost me $3.50. eeeeh

After, blending all of the ingredients to a fine pulp, I started to assemble one of my favorite recipes....still drooling.

After grilling them on my Cuisinart Griddler, I sliced them in half and served them piping hot.

The outside was perfectly crispy, while the inside had an incredible blend of flavors from the pesto to the cheese to the slightly salty Prosciutto.

Nutrition-wise this sandwich was not too bad at all, especially for the flavor. I cannot express how amazing this was. Rusty and I loved it so much we made a third and split it :)

One Sandwich:

Calories 410

Fat 20g (mostly from the pesto)

Sodium 885mg (mostly from the cheese and Prosciutto)

Fiber 3g

Prosciutto Panini

Pesto (makes ~1/2 cup):

1 cup fresh Basil

3 tbsp Garlic Gold oil

1 tbsp Pine nuts

S&P to taste

3 tbsp Parmesan, grated

Sandwich:

Garlic Gold

2 slices whole grain bread

1 tbsp pesto

1-2 oz Prosciutto

3 tbsp 2% Italian cheese blend

Tomatoes (optional, I forgot to add them but I bet the flavor would have been amazing)

Combine all ingredients for the pesto in a food processor. Pulse until all ingredients are chopped to a fine pulp.

To assemble the sandwich, brush one side of each piece of bread with Garlic Gold. On the other side of one piece, spread pesto evenly. Top pesto with 1 tbsp cheese, Prosciutto, and then the remaining cheese. Top with other piece of bread, oil side out. Put sandwich in a panini press or even in a skillet, heating until cheese is melted and bread is lightly brown. Enjoy!!!!