Chicken Panini with Swiss Chard and Leeks

After our little excursion to San Luis Obispo's Farmer's Market over Spring Break, I had renewed inspiration seeing all that gorgeous produce. Prior to our little trip, I'd been nursing a pretty serious case of cooking block...my culinary equivalent to writers block. It was self imposed actually. I filled up my days, taking on tasks and responsibilities that honestly weren't fun. They dominated my time and zapped my creativity. When I'm not in the kitchen or writing I am not a happy camper and since most of what I write is inspired by food and cooking, it makes sense, that if one goes, the other follows. But thankfully my cooking block was lifted with just a little inspiration in the form of Rainbow Swiss Chard. 

The vivid colors grabbed my attention at first, but the discovery that these ruffled, leafy greens weren't bitter, was what sold me. I knew very little about Swiss Chard, so I read up a little about it. Swiss chard is a member of the beet family, but unlike beets that are mostly grown for their roots, Swiss chard is grown only for its leaves. And it comes in many different colors. See how beautiful it is with it's multi-colored stems, how could you not buy some? Incredible! 

I love to cook, but I'm not a trained chef by any stretch of the imagination. I like to stumble along and throw this and that together and hope it tastes good in the end. Trial and error makes for some pretty good recipes but you still have to eat through the bad ones. 

What a delicious metaphor for life, right?

Luckily, this recipe is one of the good ones. Paninis are basically glorified grilled cheese sandwiches. I pulled these together using some left over chicken and muenster cheese. Adding the Swiss chard and leeks, just kicked it up to fancy land, but don't be intimidated. It is so simple that you'll wonder why you've never made Paninis before. If you don't have left overs, you can also use some sliced deli meats, turkey or ham or whatever you prefer. Enjoy!

Chicken Panini with Swiss Chard and Leeks
Serves 4-6

4-5 leaves of Rainbow Swiss Chard, thinly chopped
1 leek, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced and rinsed well
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 cooked chicken breasts, sliced (I used left over herb chicken)
Muenster Cheese
8 slices of San Luis Sourdough with Rosemary and Olive Oil
Butter

Prepare vegetables. Take care to rinse the chopped leeks to remove all the fine sand and dirt. Place Swiss Chard, leeks, garlic and olive oil into a large skillet and saute vegetables until they are softened, about 12 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste and set aside. The chard is so beautiful with it's spots of color confettied against the green.

Slice the chicken and set aside.  Butter the outside of the bread and layer one slice of muenster cheese on the dry side of the bread. Add a single layer of sliced chicken and then the Swiss Chard and Leek mixture. Top with another slice of cheese and the other piece of bread, butter side up. Place sandwich in a Panini Maker or a George Foreman Grill...or if you are like me and don't have either of those things...make your own makeshift grill.

I placed the sandwich on my grill pan (or skillet) and topped the sandwich with a small cookie sheet which I weighted down with 2-3 cans of canned beans. Grill sandwich for about 5 minutes to melt the cheese and toast the bread. Take a peek to ensure it is browning evenly and to your desired taste. Add time as needed. Next, remove the cans and small cookie sheet and flip the sandwich over, grilling the other side for another 5 minutes. Remove from pan, cut along a diagonal and enjoy! 

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