Tag: slaw

Hot Pastrami Panini

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A hot pastrami sandwich can only be improved in one way, to make it into a panini.  So that’s what I did.  Panini-ing a sandwich nine times out of 10 will serve to elevate it to a new level.  This is no exception.

If you have never tried pastrami, you are really missing out.  Whatever can be done to this meat has been done.  It has been brined, dried, highly seasoned, smoked, and steamed.  With the care that it takes to produce a deli meat such as this, it is only right to treat it with the reverence it deserves. In most cases pastrami meat that is found in your run of the mill grocer’s deli is beef, but it can be made from pork, mutton or turkey.  In this case we are sticking to the beef variety.

Traditionally served hot, paired with mustard and cole slaw and some sort of rye bread, this sandwich is anything but ordinary.  I have taken the traditional and modernized it a bit using a marble rye, a Dijon mustard and a home-made Honey Mustard Slaw, oh and a panini press!  Can you say yum?

Freshly sliced deli pastrami.

Place slices on skillet all separately.

I chose to use marble rye bread. The rye is pretty traditional for a pastrami sandwich, the marble (the darker part) is a pumpernickel bread which adds just a touch of sweetness which will be reflected later in the sandwich building.

This is a stone ground Dijon mustard.

Spread evenly on the bottom of bread. This acts as glue and adds some great flavor.

Fry up the pastrami until it looks like this. This should take about 5-7 minutes on med. heat.

I know you can’t see it, but this is six pieces of pan-fried pastrami on top of that bottom piece of bread with the mustard spread on it.

Add two slices of cheese. I chose to use some deli sliced American, but a swiss, provolone or even a mild cheddar would be good here as well.

Pile on some Honey Mustard Slaw. This is great because it will echo the stone ground Dijon we used on the bottom bread slice.

Get a little veggie oil going on your grill pan. This is the Pampered Chef square grill pan. (I love this pan!) Heat on high.

Place the grill press on the pre-heating pan to heat up itself. This way when it’s placed on top, it can start the grilling process.

Place your built sandwiches on the grill pan. (My husband isn’t a slaw guy)

Place grill press on top of the sandwiches.

Remove panini from the pan when grill marks have formed and cheese is sufficiently melted.

Hot Pastrami Panini

Serves 2

Ingredients:

12 slices thinly sliced deli pastrami

4 slices Marble Rye bread

4 slices cheese (Swiss, American or provolone)

1/2 cup Honey Mustard Slaw

2 tsp. Dijon mustard

2 Tbs. Vegetable oil

Directions:

Pan fry pastrami on a skillet over medium/high heat until edges get a bit crispy.

Prepare two slices of bread with 1 tsp Dijon mustard each.  Add 6 slices of hot pastrami to each slice of bread right on top of the mustard.  Add two slices of cheese to each sandwich.  Add 1/4 cup of Honey Mustard Slaw to each.  Top each with the two remaining slices of bread.

Heat grill pan with about 2 Tbs. veggie oil with the panini press on top.  Once pan is very hot, place both sandwiches on the pan and press the heated panini press on top of both.  Cook until cheese is melted and bread has nice grill marks on top.  (The sandwiches may need to be flipped to achieve good grill marks.)

Serve hot, enjoy!

Honey Mustard Slaw

1 Comment

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Cole Slaw is not something I grew up liking.  It’s healthy and fresh and crunchy, but every time I tried it as a kid, it really just didn’t appeal to me.  As a result, I think of this more as an adult side.  My mom would always get it as a side to her fish and chips or fried chicken plate.  I think it’s something about that vinegary taste that turns kids off.  But… You know what kids like?  Honey Mustard.  I have yet to meet a kid who doesn’t like honey mustard.  So, I thought for something a little different, lets see how the two marry.

I was making a hot pastrami sandwich and needed something to top it, but I didn’t want straight yellow mustard and I don’t feel like straight mayo goes with pastrami either.  Hence, the Honey Mustard Slaw was born.  My kids tried it and liked it!  I’ll admit, they aren’t too hot on the Hot Pastrami Sandwich, so they got grilled cheese, but the slaw was a hit!

And the recipe couldn’t be easier, more affordable or more manageable as it lasts for several days covered in the fridge!

Start with a fresh head of cabbage. The fresher the better.

Slice off a couple inches from one side and wrap the rest in plastic wrap and store in the fridge for your next project.

Now Julianne the cabbage which basically just means to thinly and as uniformly as possible slice into strips.

Set the shredded cabbage aside.

Add 2-3 heaping tablespoons of mayo to a medium size bowl with a lid if possible.

Add in a heaping teaspoon of stone ground Dijon mustard.

Add in a good splash of apple cider vinegar.

Stack up about 4-5 slices of pickle or one small pickle would be fine here too, this is what I had on hand.

Slice them up.

MIx.

Add in some honey.  Try and invest in some good local honey, if you can, it’s really worth it!

Stir in honey and pickles.

Add in a touch of hot sauce, I am using Sriracha sauce here and only put in a little squirt. Depending on what you are using the slaw for and your heat tolerance, should determine how much you put in and if you don’t care for hot sauce, you can totally leave it out.

Add a good amount of fresh cracked black pepper and a small pinch of kosher salt.

The last thing I like to add in is a dollop of sour cream mostly for the tang and the creaminess.

My method of stirring is to add in the cabbage half first, coat with sauce and then add in the remaining shredded cabbage for the final stir.

Once the cabbage is completely coated with the sauce, you will want to let it rest.

Cover and place in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours. It will keep this way for several days.

Honey Mustard Slaw

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 cups shredded cabbage

3 heaping Tbs. mayonnaise

2 Tbs. sour cream

1 heaping tsp. stone ground Dijon mustard

1 1/2 tsp. local honey

1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar

4-5 sliced pickles, sliced into strips

1/4 tsp. fresh cracked black pepper

1/4 tsp. kosher salt

Hot sauce to taste (optional)

Directions:

Make the sauce by adding mayonnaise, sour cream, Dijon mustard, honey, vinegar, pickles, cracked pepper, salt and host sauce into a bowl (with a lid if possible).  Stir.  Add in 1/2 cabbage and coat with sauce.  Add remaining cabbage and continue to stir until all cabbage is coated with sauce.  Cover and let sit in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Enjoy!