Under Pressure

Last night was another recipe chosen by Josh. I think I personally prefer hot sandwiches when really flavorful ingredients are involved, like with this one. I was going to make salad to go with it, but as I had salad at lunch yesterday, and the plan was to have more today I instead tossed together some brown rice, chopped broccoli and freshly grated Parmesan. It was really good. It's an Everyday Food recipe, in case you couldn't guess.

Pressed Mozzarella and Tomato Sandwiches
Recipe from Everyday Food; Serves 2
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained, reserving 1 tablespoon oil
1/2 loaf ciabatta bread (about 5 ounces), split horizontally and hollowed out
Romaine lettuce leaves
6 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced
1/2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
Coarse salt and ground pepper

• In a small bowl, whisk together mustard and oil until thick; spread on bread. Layer bottom half of bread with some of the lettuce, then cheese, tomatoes, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper. Top with remaining lettuce and bread.
• Wrap sandwich tightly in plastic; place on a baking sheet. Top with another sheet, and weight down with canned goods or a heavy skillet. Refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to overnight to meld flavors. Cut in half, and serve.

My notes: I should have prepared this sandwich Sunday night and left it to press overnight, but I didn't, so it only pressed for about an hour and a half. I think that my ciabatta could perhaps have been a little softer, because as it is it was pretty crusty, but after sitting in the fridge it was really hard to bite through the exterior. It tasted good, don't get me wrong, but it seems like it could have tasted better and could have been slightly easier to eat.