Chicken Bacon Artichoke Panini
I like to be creative with food, especially on the weekends. This Chicken Bacon Artichoke Panini is to die for on a Saturday at lunch time. It’s better than going out, and easy to prepare, two of my favorite things.
Hearty Chicken, crispy bacon, tangy marinated artichoke hearts all on a melty crunchy sandwich? I think yes! Invite some friends over and wow them with this tasty goodness!
Make it into finger food by cutting them into wedges or make it a meal by adding a fresh garden salad. Either way, you can’t really go wrong with this list of ingredients. This is one of my favorite flavorful sandwiches to make.
Making Panini’s
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A panini is an Italian sandwich that means small bread. You usually find these at restaurants served in an Americanized way, which is grilled.
You don’t really have to grill this sandwich though; my kids will layer up a panini after taking bread out of the toaster. Not quite the same, I know, but it does work.
I prefer to use the oven to toast the bread rather than the toaster. That way I can control just how toasted it is. The oven is much easier to make a large batch at once that using a skillet to toast up the bread.
Preparations
You will begin by laying out your bread on a baking sheet so when the oven is ready you can pop it in there. Crack your eggs into a shallow bowl, whisk lightly and get breadcrumbs ready. Cook up some bacon and drain the artichoke hearts then set them aside.
Either slice your chicken breasts in half to make them thinner or pound them out thin so they cook evenly and are just the right thickness for a sandwich. Dip each one into the beaten eggs, and then into the breadcrumbs.
Place the chicken into a skillet preheated with olive oil and cook until golden brown. Set these aside with your tomatoes and artichokes. Add onions to the skillet and cook until soft, then add garlic and cook for an additional minute before adding tomato sauce.
While the sauce simmers for ten minutes you can start layering up your panini’s. This is assuming you didn’t forget the bread in the oven and over toast it (Guilty! I’ve done it!).
Building the Panini
Take your toasted bread from the oven and flip them toasted side sown on the baking sheet. Spoon about a tablespoon of the tomato sauce mixture onto the bread. Layer chicken and bacon on and cover with remaining tomato sauce. Add artichoke hearts and cheese then top off with six more slices of bread.
Put your assembled panini’s back into the oven to toast the top bread and melt the cheese. This will take only a couple of minutes so keep an eye on it. Not only have I over toasted the bottom slices, but then I over toasted the top too!
Slice them in half and serve while still warm. Depending on the season either a warm cup of soup or a fresh salad goes wonderfully with this delicious creation.
