Recipe: Pear, Parmesan and Prosciutto Panini

We had this for dinner tonight. It was easy, flavorful and balanced- with a little bit of everything- salty, sweet, crunchy. Perfect.

Pear, Parmesan and Prosciutto Panini

(adapted from Cooking Light, Annual Recipes 2005)

1 firm, ripe pear, peeled, cored and sliced thin

white sugar to sprinkle (a few teaspoons)

slices of crusty bread

a few teaspoons balsamic vinegar

trimmed arugula
fresh parmigiano-reggiano cheese, shaved thinly
slices of very thin prosciutto (about 4 ounces)

1. Heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pear to pan, and sprinkle with sugar. Cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden.

2. Brush cut sides of bread with vinegar. Arrange pear slices, arugula, cheese and prosciutto evenly over bottom half of bread, cover with top half of bread.

3. Using the same skillet, add sandwich to pan. Place a cast-iron or heavy skillet on top of stuffed sandwich, press gently to flatten. Cook 4 minutes on each side or until bread is tasted.

Hints:

- You can of course use a panini press. I don't have one so I used a ridged grill pan and put a sauce pan on top of it to flatten.

- I put 2 slices of prosciutto on each sandwich.