Taking Panini Bread Recipes to the Next Level

Many people who enjoy making their own panini want to take it to the next level. They not only create these super sandwiches themselves, but also actually use panini bread recipes to make their own bread! Even though it’s easy to find good bread in stores – and of course it is of course simpler to use the ready made stuff – it’s easier for those who bake their own bread to guarantee quality, especially if they are in places where good bread may be hard or impossible to find. Also, for those people who really love creating stuff, it can be really satisfying to do so.

For those of you who’ve been interested to try making your own bread for panini but have been put off by the supposed complexity of doing so, take heart. It’s not as hard as it may seem actually, and, as I’ve mentioned above, it can be both fun and deeply satisfying.

Here is a great recipe for baking your own bread for use in panini. It’s relatively simple as breadmaking goes and aromatic thanks to the inclusion of a little rosemary, and the olive bits will accentuate the flavor no end.

Sift together a cup of all-purpose flour, half a teaspoon of salt, a tablespoon of dry yeast and half a teaspoon of white sugar. Pour a cup of water into a saucepan and add three tablespoons of vegetable oil to it, and warm the mixture gently. When warmed, remove from heat.

Add half a cup of chopped black olives and a whole room-temperature egg to the dough mix. Add the water-oil mixture to the dry ingredients little by little, mixing gently with an electric mixer until smooth (there should be no lumps). While continuing to beat the mixture, slowly stir in an additional 1¾ cup flour, little by little, until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Prepare a surface for kneading by cleaning it thoroughly and flouring the surface to prevent the dough from sticking. Remove the dough from the bowl, place it on the surface, and knead in an additional ½ cup flour. Cover the dough with your mixing bowl and allow it to rest ten minutes.

Now place the dough on a lightly greased baking sheet. Using a rolling pin, roll it out gently to a circle 12 inches in diameter. Cover the dough circle with a clean towel and let it rest for 45 minutes.

After resting, uncover the dough and, using a fork, poke holes in it at 1½-inch intervals. Brush the dough with ¼ cup of olive oil, and bake it at 400 degrees Fahrenheit or 205 degrees Centigrade until light golden in color (around 15-30 minutes). Cool before using.