The aroma of these cheese-stuffed crusty panini baking is so rich and enticing it perfumes every corner of the house. They taste amazing warm and they are the perfect go-along with soups and stews.
Next time try this delicious crusty Italian panini recipe.
We usually make them for special occasions because they are just too darn hard to resist.
The first time we baked them and saw what they looked like, we nicknamed them Mount Vesuvius panini. As the rolls bake they form a cone and then hot cheese oozes down the side of the loaves like a lava flow.
Once the panini cools the melted cheese turns deliciously crusty.
We've made them with several different types of cheese-- depending on what we had on hand. We made this one with medium-sharp cheddar and mozzarella but they are exceptional made with Gruyere or a mixture of provolone and mozzarella.
As long as the cheese melts well, you can use any type of cheese.
If you like you can also add additional seasoning to the filling such as garlic oil, Italian seasoning or onion bits . . . . make it your way.
It all begins with a starter that we make the day before we plan on forming the loaves. The next day we use the starter and make the final dough. We let the dough rise until it is nearly double in bulk.
Whenever we make any kind of yeast bread we always note the rising time and to what point the dough needs to rise.
There are so many variables that go into yeast baking -- we always make sure to let the dough rise to the exact recommendation of the recipe.
Our containers have lines on them so we can easily see when the dough has reached the desired bulk. If you don't have a container with marks on it you can use a piece of tape to mark the rise.
The next step is to gently deflate the dough, pat it into a rectangle, lightly mist the dough with water and then sprinkle the grated cheese on top.
The dough is a little messy to work with -- it's soft and some of the cheese spills out but we like the end result, a rustic kind of panini.
The crusty panini are well worth the effort, they turn out beautifully and their taste are unforgettable.
Next we roll up the dough starting with the long side closest to us. { Disclosure: those aren't my hairy fingers}.
Once the dough is rolled up we make sure to pinch the seam so that it seals.
We let the log rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours, till it's puffy but not doubled. Towards the end of the rising time we preheat the oven to 425 °F.
It's important to get the panini into the oven quickly once they are sliced. Cutting the dough deflates them but once we put the loaves into the oven they pick right up again.
Once we slice the log of dough and form the panini we make sure to get them into the oven as quickly as possible.
Cutting the dough deflates it somewhat, but when we quickly put the loaves in the oven we find that the panini pick right up again.
With this recipe you can make the panini into two large loaves or four mini-loaves.
Believe me the mini-loaves are not mini by any means.
When my Honey and I sample the cheese-stuffed crusty panini we split one. We try to exert some kind of self-control when it comes to these rolls. But it's really difficult!!
We wanted to see if we could make more rolls out of a single recipe . . . . the eight panini turned out beautifully. We even sprinkled some sesame seeds on top.
Non si vive di solo pane { One does not live by bread alone}. But I believe our lives without good bread would surely be lacking!!
Cheese-Stuffed Crusty Panini
Ingredients
Starter
- 1 ¼ cups Unbleached Bread Flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon instant yeast
- ½ cup cool water
Dough
- all of the starter
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons to 1 ¼ cups lukewarm water*
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 ½ cups unbleached bread flour
- ½ teaspoon instant yeast
- *Use the greater amount of water in winter when conditions are dry; and the lesser amount in summer, when the weather is humid.
Filling
- 2 ½ cups grated cheese such as cheddar, Gruyere, or a mixture of provolone and mozzarella - whatever you prefer
Instructions
- To make the starter: Mix the 1 ¼ cups flour, salt, yeast, and ½ cup water in a medium-sized bowl. Mix till well combined; the starter will be very dry.Cover and let rest overnight at room temperature; it'll become bubbly.
- To make the dough: Combine the risen starter with the water, salt, flour, and yeast. Knead -- by hand, mixer to make a smooth dough -- about 8 minutes.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 1 ½ to 2 hours, till it's nearly doubled in bulk.
- Gently deflate the dough, and pat and stretch it into a ¾"- thick rectangle, about 9"x 12". Spritz with water, and sprinkle with the grated cheese.
- Starting with a long side, roll it into a log, pinching the seam to sea. Place the log, seam-side down, on a lightly floured or lightly oiled surface.
- Cover it and let it rise for 1 to 1 ½ hours, till it's puffy though not doubled in bulk. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425 F.
- Gently cut the log into four crosswise slices, for mini-breads; or simply cut the dough in half, for two normal-sized loaves. Place them on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, cut side up. Spread them open a bit, if necessary, to more fully expose the cheese. Spritz with warm water, and immediately place them in the preheated oven.
- Bake for 20 minutes (for the mini-loaves), or 35 minutes (for the full-sized loaves), or until the cheese is melted and the loaves are a deep golden brown. Remove them from the oven, and cool on rack.
Notes
- You can easily make 8 panini out of the recipe. Just divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and follow the recipe for the 4 panini.
- Adapted from King Arthur Flour
Nutrition
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