The Panini Sandwich

"Panini," in Italian, means "sandwiches." Plural form. More than one. 

Imagine how tickled I was when my mother told me she had seen menus in the US offering a: 

"Panini Sandwich"! 

A sandwiches sandwich? My favorite kind!

My husband bought three long baguettes at the bakery 

- yes, we bought French bread in Italy, we are just SO international, aren't we? - 

and decided to make sandwiches for himself and the boys.

Let's see, what do we have in the refridgerator? 

A few tomatoes, a little mayo, a layer of ham . . .

Add on some sliced provolone . . .

Some more mayo and a few pickles for a finishing touch . . .

. . . and, presto, lunch is served!

Comfort Food

It's raining, it's raining...thank goodness, it's finally raining! We have gone without rain for too long here, they have even been rationing water supplies. But, tonight it's pouring down rain, a regular thunderstorm!

The perfect evening for Chicken and Broth, an American classic that I have Italianized by serving the broth with pastina as a first course and then the chicken and the vegetables seasoned with a bit of salt and olive oil as a second course.

Here's how I prepare it...

I use a pressure cooker to speed things up. Place a whole chicken, two peeled whole onions, 3 or 4 peeled whole carrots, 2 stalks of celery and 1 whole unpeeled potato in the crock pot. Cover with water and add 2 bouillon cubes. Close pressure cooker lid. Cook for 20 minutes at minimum from the time the first steam is released from the cooker.

Cook your favorite kind of pastina in another pot. Drain and serve in bowls with chicken broth.