Eggplant, Prosciutto, Red Pepper Pressed Sandwich
Ciabatta bread, layered with prosciutto, grilled eggplant, roasted red pepper, mozzarella and basil pesto - a yummy dish for a picnic!
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 Ciabatta loaf (10"-12")
- 1 large Eggplant
- ~1/2 c. Basil pesto (prepared or homemade)
- ~8 oz. Roasted red pepper (prepared or homemade)
- 8-10 slices Mozzarella
- 8-10 slices Prosciutto
- Handful Basil leaves, optional
- Olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt/pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Slice the bread lengthwise and spread pesto on both sides - be sure to go to edges. (Depending on size of your bread, you may need more or less pesto than noted above.)
- Slice eggplant lengthwise or in rounds. Brush both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with Kosher or sea salt. Grill over medium/low heat until soft and sightly charred. OR, broil until soft (but keep an eye on them, so they don't burn). Remove from heat and set aside until ready to assemble.
- Line a baking tray with 2 large pieces plastic wrap (wide enough to fully cover the bread once it's filled).
- Cover bottom layer of bread with prosciutto. Then red pepper (sprinkle with salt & pepper and drizzle olive oil and Balsamic vinegar [if desired]. Then mozzarella (sprinkle with black pepper). Then eggplant (sprinkle with salt and healthy drizzle of olive oil). If using, layer fresh basil leaves on top. Cover with top layer of bread.
- Cover sandwich tightly in plastic wrap. Top with a heavy cutting board or dish, then heavy cans. Refrigerate overnight. Slice when ready to serve.
Notes
For full size slices/portions, this sandwich can easily feed 6-7 people. But if you cut each slice in half (since you might have lots of side dishes on your picnic), you can double the number of servings.
If you decide to be fancy and wrap the sandwiches in parchment, just trim off the sides, so you have neater portions. Those trimmed pieces make nice snacks :)
For something a little different, heat a pan over medium heat with a little olive oil, then place a slice of this sandwich in the pan (or grill it in a grill pan) and sear both sides. Yum.