It was fantastic on burgers (see Burger Mini-Panini Slider Bonanza!) and added a great punch of flavor to fish patties (see Crispy Fish Panini) - it’s about time I give Old Québec Vintage Cheddar its proper due in a Cheese, Please! post.

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If you come to dinner at my house, there’s a really good chance you’ll encounter a “dress-your-own” component in at least one of the courses.  The main reason is that I firmly believe that dinner guests are entitled to be served something they’d like to eat!  How many times have you been invited to someone’s [...]

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Red Dragon, with its robust cheddar, mustard and ale flavors, would make a fantastic grilled cheese sandwich on its own (read my “review” of this great cheese!).  In fact, I broiled a few open-faced ones for breakfast last week!  But since the point of my Cheese, Please! series is not only to find great cheeses [...]

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For this next installment of my Cheese, Please! series, I decided to do a little “research” at my local cheese shop, Venissimo. I told the ladies behind the counter that I was looking to expand my repertoire of cheeses that might melt well in panini and the samples started rolling in one after another.  It [...]

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What better way to learn about different cheeses for panini than from a cheese shop? I recently had the most wonderful time “cheese-ing” with my sister at Venissimo in Mission Hills.  They brought out an endless stream of meltable options for us to try: Raclette, Etorki, Gruyère, Habanero Jack, Red Dragon…I could barely keep up [...]

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I may have a new favorite sandwich.  Now, I have enjoyed all of the panini on my blog or I wouldn’t have written them up (trust me, there a number that will never be repeated!), but today’s Emmental, Honey & Ham Panini was especially tasty.  Can’t-put-it-down good.  And it all hinged on the terrific flavor [...]

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In my recent Panini Happy reader survey, I asked what your favorite sandwich ingredients were.  Would you believe how many of you responded, “Cheese, cheese and more cheese!”?  Wow! Well, I love cheese too.  Although sandwiches don’t have to contain cheese to be deemed “panini”, you’ve probably noticed that pretty much all of mine do.
So [...]

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Now that I’ve got a lot of sandwich-grilling experience under my belt, I thought I’d pause for a moment and share what I’ve learned about how to make great panini. What would a Panini 101 series be without a good, old-fashioned “how-to” guide? So here it is: your step-by-step guide to successfully making any type [...]

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Welcome to Panini 101 - an ongoing series designed to give you tips and techniques for how to make great panini sandwiches. Check out the following articles:

NEW! How to Make Panini - Your step-by-step guide to successfully making any type of panini you can dream up.
8 Tips for Making Great Panini - Want to make [...]

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Panini have been around for centuries, and these days they’re being grilled up in practically every corner café in America. The popularity of grilling panini at home reached a fever pitch when Oprah Winfrey featured the Breville Ikon Panini Press among her 2007 “favorite things”. That model (which I use) and many others began selling [...]

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