Panini Happy has been nominated for an award - woo hoo! I’m up for Tastiest Blog in the 2009 BlogLuxe Awards over on SocialLuxe.

Vote for me! Just scroll to the Tastiest Blog category and look for Panini Happy.

Or even nominate another favorite blog - nominations are open until June 23. You can vote once per category per day until July 6. Thanks for your support!

I’m excited to be participating in the Adopt-a-Blogger program again this year, hosted by Kristen from Dine & Dish - this time as a mentor!

I’ve been matched with Mindy from Mindy’s Mouthful and we’re already having a great time. Mindy is originally from Southern California by way of Kentucky but for the past year has been living with her husband and adorable little girl (who recently celebrated turning 3 with a pretty pink birthday cake) in Strasbourg, France! I know - what an exciting opportunity!

On Mindy’s Mouthful, Mindy enjoys sharing recipes for cultural foods. Since living in France she has discovered that some foods she used to perceive as difficult to make really can be quite easy. She has a real knack for making these dishes accessible to her readers - like her savory Flammekueche tart and Couscous aux Champignons.

Mindy and Chef E from Cook Appeal host a fun bi-weekly blog event called Monday Mouthful, celebrating French and German cuisine. Next up is Spaetzle, German noodles - you can find a recipe and details on how to participate on this post.

Please take a moment to head over to Mindy’s Mouthful and say hello!

When Foodbuzz presented me with the opportunity to cover the San Diego installment of Taste of the Nation I absolutely jumped at the chance. Spend a gorgeous Sunday afternoon at a sculpture garden in Balboa Park, indulging and imbibing on food and drink from twenty of the city’s finest dining establishments? You need not ask me twice.

“Kid in a candy store” is (almost literally) the best way to describe me snapping up little plate after little plate as I slowly but surely made my way to each restaurant’s table. Candied sesame seeds, sweet pea blini, pickled heirloom carrots, mango mojito, Rocky Mountain oysters (yup, I even gave those a try, courtesy of our local “celebrity” chef, Oceanaire’s Brian Malarkey from Top Chef Season 3) - my taste buds were very happy indeed. It was a real treat to see so many executive chefs taking the time to staff the tables for this event, which benefited Share our Strength.

Without further ado, here’s a little photographic “taste” of Taste of the Nation - San Diego for you. Feast your eyes!

[Read on and Get the Recipe →]

Somewhere around the 45-minute mark, as I was still diligently stirring the slowly caramelizing onions and oregano, my curiosity over whether this loooooong process was truly going to be worth it began to turn into resentment. This was a grilled cheese sandwich, for crying out loud. The simplest of all sandwiches. My husband had long since finished eating his lunch. I was hungry!

It was so worth it. Tom Colicchio, forgive me for ever doubting you.

The recipe was created by the Top Chef king himself, from his new sandwich cookbook, ‘wichcraft: Craft a sandwich into a meal–and a meal into a sandwich (the same one I gave away last week in The Grilled Cheese Pageant). I thought I’d close out National Grilled Cheese month with his Gruyère with Caramelized Onions sandwich on rye bread. I’ve got to tell you - until now, my Bacon, Cheddar & Grilled Tomatoes Panini had been my all-time favorite grilled cheese. I still love that one…but I do believe I love this Gruyère and onions one just a little bit more. And I’ll tell you why.

[Read on and Get the Recipe →]

Welcome, everyone, to The Grilled Cheese Pageant!

In celebration of National Grilled Cheese Month, thirty-six food bloggers and other grilled cheese aficionados are showing off a dazzling array of deliciously inventive sandwiches for your viewing enjoyment. From “Best Evening Gown” to “Country & Western Wear”, we’ve got a bunch of fun pageant categories - keep scrolling, you’re not going to want to miss any of them. And, of course, we’ll be crowning the (randomly selected) Grand Supreme winner of ‘wichcraft: Craft a sandwich into a meal–and a meal into a sandwich, by Top Chef’s Tom Colicchio, at the end of the procession.

Since this is a celebration, not a competition, every contestant will be “going home” with a sash and title (cut me some slack on these, I did my best!).

On with the show!

This is the portion of the pageant where the contestants grace the stage in their fanciest attire. These two contestants brought some truly fancy grilled cheese.

It’s debatable whether adding healthy vegetables into a grilled cheese sandwich will help us to look good in our swimsuits but it’s a nice thought to have as you digest these next four tasty vegetable-laden contestants.

Each of these contestant whipped up their own condiment spreads to complement their grilled cheese sandwiches. Now that’s talent!

As you can see, there are many different interpretations when it comes to one’s notion of a “grilled cheese sandwich”. But, of course, the classic version is comprised simply of cheese and bread. The following contestants are the purists.

The title of Miss Congeniality is bestowed upon contestants who are especially congenial and charismatic. The next three sandwiches all feature bacon - and bacon sure is nice.

For the very youngest pageant competitors there is a crown for “Tiny Miss”. Two of our grilled cheese contenders feature eggs - work with me here - it doesn’t get much younger than that!

A veritable fruit orchard is represented in these next six sandwiches, resulting in irresistible sweet and savory combinations.

With their tomatoes, basil and focaccias, the flavors and colors of Italy inspired these next three contestants. Bravo!

This category - especially popular among the rodeo pageants - celebrates the spirit of the great southwest. And you know what else is popular in the southwest? Chile peppers! You get a little pepper kick in each of the next three sandwiches.

Mozzarella cheese is prized not only for its creamy saltiness but also for its ability to stretch to great lengths. You might say it’s the most athletic of all cheeses. At least that’s what we’re saying in this pageant (a stretch indeed). Bring on the mozz!

These next contestants exemplify the versatility of grilled cheese sandwiches as excellent vehicles for leftovers. Just add cheese and bread and you’ve got a darn good meal.

Last, but most certainly not least, I’d like to recognize our Prince Charming sandwich of the pageant - Marbled Jack and Ham Grilled Cheese submitted by Recipe Boy, the 7-year-old son of Lori at The Recipe Girl. The future of grilled cheese is a bright one!

And now for the highest honor of the evening…the (randomly selected) winner of the Grand Supreme tiara and a copy of Tom Colicchio’s brand-new ‘wichcraft cookbook goes to:

Kevin and his Ultimate Grilled Cheese from Seriously Good!

Congratulations to Kevin and all of the pageant participants! I hope you had as much fun with this event as I did and maybe even picked up a few new grilled cheese ideas along the way. Thank you so much for making Panini Happy’s first-ever blog event a fun success. Happy grilling!

On three occasions in the past few weeks our cheese drawer has slid out of the fridge and crashed onto the floor. It’s overstuffed with cheese - the price of being a panini blogger, I suppose. I just get so excited to work with different types of cheeses, it sometimes gets a little out of hand.

So rather than provoke a fourth cheese drawer accident, I decided to use up some of the contents and draw upon a fabulous idea from Mary and George at Taste Artisan Cheese and Gourmet Shop, a great local shop here in San Diego. They sell a “shredded blend” made from odds and ends of different artisan cheeses. No two batches are the same. As they describe it, the blend “makes for a wonderfully eclectic mix of flavors and textures.”  While my cheese stash can’t compare with what Mary and George work with I was intrigued by the idea of putting together an interesting combination. That’s why I’m calling this the Grilled (All The) Cheese Panini, featuring seven different cheeses: cheddar, Monterey Jack, parmigiano reggiano, mozzarella, Swiss, pecorino romano and Brie. All on homemade dark rye bread. It would take a palate more sensitive than mine to discern the flavor of each individual cheese, but the combination was pretty fantastic.

[Read on and Get the Recipe →]

Just a reminder that entries for Panini Happy’s Grilled Cheese Pageant are due this Friday, April 17 at 12:00 PM PDT. You can preview just a few of the tasty sandwiches that have already been submitted in the above collage…mmmm!

Remember - your sandwich doesn’t have to be fancy and you don’t have to be a blogger to participate. This is all about celebrating and showcasing the humble grilled cheese sandwich, in whatever form you like it most. And to make things even more fun, one participant, selected at random, will receive a copy of Tom Colicchio’s new sandwich cookbook, ‘wichcraft: Craft a sandwich into a meal–and a meal into a sandwich.

Ready to enter? See the original post for details. Happy Grilling!

The early entries for my Grilled Cheese Pageant have been truly inspiring (have you entered yet?)! You’ll be amazed to see how something as simple as the humble grilled cheese sandwich can be interpreted into so many different delicious incarnations. In keeping with this theme, I’ve decided to make exclusively grilled cheese panini this month (that is, all of the panini I make will be grilled cheese - I will be eating other things too).

[Read on and Get the Recipe →]

Is your grilled cheese “glitz” or is it more “natural”? Either way, show it off in all its glory in Panini Happy’s first-ever blog event - The Grilled Cheese Pageant!

April is National Grilled Cheese Month, so to celebrate I thought it would be fun to invite you all to showcase your best grilled cheese sandwiches in a little “pageant” of sorts (can you tell I’ve been watching “Toddlers & Tiaras” on TLC this season?!). It’s not a beauty pageant per se, because as well all know the best tasting stuff often isn’t the prettiest. I’m talking about a taste pageant - whatever type of grilled cheese you like the most, let’s see it!  And because every pageant needs a grand prize - one participant, selected at random, will receive a copy of Tom Colicchio’s (of Top Chef fame) delicious new sandwich cookbook, ‘wichcraft: Craft a sandwich into a meal–and a meal into a sandwich.

How to Enter:

Send an e-mail to panini [DOT] happy [AT] yahoo [DOT] com (ONE entry per person, please!) with the following information by Friday, April 17 at 12 PM PDT:

• First name
• Blog name (or hometown if you don’t have a blog)
• Blog URL (if you have a blog)
• Recipe post URL, please include a link to this post (if you have a blog)
• ONE photo of your grilled cheese sandwich, at least 490 px wide
• A one-line description of your sandwich

I’ll post a roundup of all the submissions on Monday, April 20. And, yes, I’ll ship internationally on this one so it’s open to all. Have fun with this - can’t wait to see your grilled cheese!

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If any of you remember The Jetsons Meet the Flintstones from the ’80s the idea of bringing my two blogging worlds together for this post will be familiar to you. Here’s how it all transpired.

I was enticed by my sister’s suggestion to add walnuts to the Brie & Dried Apricot Panini I was conjuring up. Then I remembered that I’d just seen a recipe for walnut bread on the back of a bag of King Arthur flour. It was too perfect! I’d bake the bread for my new blog that features on-the-package recipes, Cooking On the Side, and turn it into panini on Panini Happy. Unexpected, yet fortunate blog synergy in action.

[Read on and Get the Recipe →]