Honey Lime Shredded Chicken Panini with Lime Butter and Pepper Jack Cheese

What a long post title, huh? But this sandwich is a killer.

I had some lime butter left over from steak sandwiches I made yesterday as well as some day-old ciabatta bread, and thought that this would be an excellent night to try out a new honey-lime chicken recipe that I had been mulling in my mind for a few days.

First of all, I picked off about a third of the pan of honey-lime chicken before it made it onto the sandwiches... which I do not regret. When mixed with the pepper jack and lime butter, however, the flavors are even more pronounced and delicious.

Ok. NOT the most glamorous-looking sandwich I've ever made... but hungry company cut this photoshoot short and this is the best I can offer. Note that one hungry sandwich-monger added turkey bacon to his sandwich.

Honey-Lime Shredded Chicken, Pepper Jack and Lime Butter Panini

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts shredded or cut into very small pieces

1/2 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon honey

juice of 2/3 of one lime

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon Old Bay Herb & Garlic seasoning

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

lime zest

juice of 1/3 of one lime

4 slices ciabatta bread

2 slices pepper jack cheese

Directions:

1. Combine soy sauce, honey, juice of 2/3 of one lime, 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon Old Bay Herb & Garlic seasoning and two chicken breasts in a small covered bowl or a Ziploc bag. Marinate for at least one hour, preferably overnight.

2. Combined 4 tablespoons unsalted softened butter, 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, roughly 1/4 teaspoon lime zest and the juice of 1/3 of one lime. Refrigerate until needed.

3. Sautee shredded chicken until browned and fragrant. Set aside.

4. Lightly butter both sides of all 4 slices of ciabatta bread with lime butter. In a saucepan over medium heat, toast the buttered ciabatta bread until crisp. 

5. Add more lime butter to taste -- I added about another 3/4 tablespoon per sandwich -- as well as one slice of pepper jack cheese and cooked honey-lime chicken. Return panini to heat so that the butter and cheese may melt.

6. Serve immediately and hot.

Enjoy your small slice of summer in the wintry weather!

--Alyssa

Gruyere and Pepper Jack Rigati Pasta

Who doesn't love some serious carbs on a snowy December day? This girl loves them. There was too much sleet on the ground to make it to Panera for their famous (my favorite) commercial mac & cheese, so I decided to make some of my own.

You can use any small-shell pasta you like in this dish, but I chose rigati shell pasta because the cheese sauce tends to get sucked up into the shell -- yumm. And you want as much cheesy goodness in every bite as you can handle.

Well, hellooooo there beautiful.

Ingredients:

2 cups rotini or other small shell dry pasta

1 cup whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup shredded pepper jack cheese

1/3 cup shredded Gruyere cheese

1/4 teaspoon ground peppercorn

1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional: for a spicy kick)

Parmesan, for dusting

Directions:

1. Bring whole milk and heavy cream to a simmer on a stovetop. Add rotini pasta when milk and cream have begun to bubble and steam, and reduce heat.

2. Cook pasta on low heat for 15 minutes. After fifteen minutes, add in shredded cheeses, ground peppercorn, and, if desired, paprika. Stirring occasionally, cook pasta for five more minutes or until cheese is melted and a thick sauce is formed. Add a small amount of milk if the sauce is too thick for your taste.

3. Serve immediately and enjoy hot!

Happy wintering to you and yours!

--Alyssa