Cheese Focaccia Panini Style Sandwich

This vegetarian sandwich came from Jamie Oliver’s Ultimate Veg Book called Greek- Style Cheese Toastie

I believe, it’s the best panini sandwich I ever made at home. The book shows a recipe for one. So what I’m about to share with you is a recipe for four sandwiches.

Ingredients:

1 large red onion thinly sliced (preferably use a Mandoline)

8 tablespoon of chile vinegar

1 block of feta cheese

24 dried apricots

4 oz halloumi cheese

gluten free focaccia bread (a separate recipe will be available soon)

24 pitted black olives cut in half

8 sprigs of fresh dill chopped finely

12 sprigs of fresh mint chopped finely

olive oil

5 inch piece of English cucumber

8 Tbsp plain Greek yogurt

1 lemon

Directions: This recipe requires five separate parts:

First part: In a bowl, lightly pickle your thinly sliced red onion with four pinches of salt, mixed the salt and red onions with your hands, add the 8 tablespoon of chile vinegar and mix with a fork.

Second part: To stuff the apricots with cubes of feta cheese. Butterfly the apricot and place a similar sized feta cube inside the apricot and fold the apricot close. Do this to all of the apricots.

Third part: Grate the halloumi cheese in a bowl.

Fourth part: Prepare your Tzatziki Dipping Sauce: Cut your cucumber in half and with a teaspoon, scrape out the seeds from the core of the cucumber halves. Grate the cucumber halves and strain out most of the water from the grated cucumber. Add the Greek yogurt, mint, and dill. Squeeze one whole lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Assembly: Preheat in a medium high heat a non stick frying pan, lightly buttered or a panini press, Slice open your gluten free focaccia bread or use any bread of your liking. Place one half of the bread slice down and cover the bread with grated halloumi cheese, add some pickled red onion, then top with six stuffed apricots, add some black olives, then finally top with grated halloumi cheese and sandwich the remaining sliced of bread on top.

If you are using a pan, press the top of the bread with a spatula to press the bread down to melt the halloumi cheese. Flip the bread once you see the bottom of the bread turning brown, toasted (not burned). Flip the bread slowly, and repeat the process to toast the other side of the sandwich. You can add another pat of butter in the pan if you wish.

For panini users: follow the directions of your manufacture’s panini instructions.