I love Panera's Tomato and Mozzarella Panini so much that I decided to make it myself. This vegetarian recipe comes pretty close to the original!
Things I Can't Stand
There are a lot of universally loved things that I can't stand:
Movies - Yes, that's right, I hate movies. Movies in general. I hate how loud they are. I hate cinematic scores. I hate going to the movies. And sitting in one spot, doing nothing else but watching a movie is just torturous to me.
Greek Yogurt - Stop telling me how thick and creamy it is. I don't care. I will never eat it. "Thick and creamy" does not make up for "sour and fetid."
Greeting Cards - Unless and until someone comes out with a line of cards for emotional cripples like me ("Hey, you're alright. I don't hate you. Cordially, Kiersten"), greeting cards just aren't my bag.
Fresh Tomatoes - Not only do I not like fresh tomatoes, I've never even tried one. I just know I don't like them.
So let's talk about that last one. Fresh tomatoes. You might find it odd that my favorite sandwich at Panera is the Tomato and Mozzarella Panini, considering that it has the dreaded fresh tomatoes on it. But as soon as I get it, I take it apart and carefully pick off the fresh tomatoes before I start eating. And let's be real, it's not like vegetarians have a ton of other options at Panera. So the Tomato and Mozzarella Panini it is.
Unfortunately, we don't have a Panera in our town, so what used to be a fairly frequent lunch stop in between weekend errands has now become a rare occurrence. I started really missing that panini, so I had the brilliant idea of trying to make a copycat recipe, fully knowing that most of my attempts at copycat recipes are unmitigated disasters. But this seemed simple enough!
About the Recipe
The first thing I had to do was deconstruct Panera's Tomato and Mozzarella Panini. What makes it so delicious? Well! There's a tomato pesto spread on the ciabatta bread. Then that's topped with oven-roasted tomatoes and (my hated) fresh tomato slices. There's fresh mozzarella on top of that and a few basil leaves—not many!
You'll have to make this and tell me what you think, but I kind of think I nailed it. Is it an exact replica of the Panera sandwich? Okay, maybe not. But it's really, really close! Unlike the Panera one, which only comes grilled, you can do this one cold too. If you're a fellow fresh tomato hater (SOLIDARITY!), you can make yours without. And if you love fresh tomatoes, you can add extra. Everyone wins.
Ingredients
Roasted Tomatoes
- 2 Roma tomatoes sliced into ¼-inch rounds
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- ¼ tsp Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
Tomato Pesto
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes the kind that come in a jar of oil
- 1 tbsp oil from sun-dried tomato jar
- 2 tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese
- 5 basil leaves
Sandwiches
- 1 large loaf of ciabatta bread
- Tomato Pesto
- Roasted Tomatoes
- 1 to mato thinly sliced
- ¼ cup basil leaves
- 4 oz fresh mozzarella cheese cut into 8 slices
- olive oil to brush grill or panini press
Instructions
Roasted Tomatoes
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Place tomato slices on a rimmed baking sheet that's been lined with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, then sprinkle with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Bake for 20–25 minutes or until softened and beginning to brown.
Tomato Pesto
- Combine all ingredients in food processor and process until smooth.
Sandwiches
- Preheat panini press or grill to high.
- Cut ciabatta bread into 4 equal sections and then cut each section in half lengthwise. Spread tomato pesto onto the bottom of each ciabatta section. Top with roasted tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, basil leaves, and mozzarella.
- Brush grill with olive oil. Place panini onto press and heat until cheese has melted, about 8–10 minutes (depending on the brand and type of press you use).
Nutrition
This post was originally published on 2 July 2012.
Abbey says
For future reference, you can let the people at the register know you dont want fresh tomatoes and you can ask for no meat on anyother sandwhich or pretty much do whatever you want to any sandwich
Kiersten says
Thanks!
Madre Nelson says
Holy MOLEY! Made these for my family tonight. Everyone LOVED them! Thanks for sharing a great recipe. 🙂
Kiersten says
Thanks for letting me know--I'm glad your family enjoyed them! 😀
Ramya says
I've made these a couple of times and we liked it a lot! Thanks for this recipe.
Kiersten says
Thanks for the comment--I'm glad you enjoy them! 🙂
Morgan says
Can you tell me how much pesto your recipe yields? I'm keying this into Weight Watchers. Thanks
Kiersten says
I'm afraid that calculating points that way wouldn't work--since Weight Watchers' points calculator would likely have nutritional information for store-bought tomato pesto and mine is homemade, it wouldn't give you an accurate number. The best way to do it would be to enter each ingredient individually in the recipe builder. I was a member of WW for 7 years, so I speak from experience. 🙂
Lindsey says
As a southern-raised girl, I can't see how anyone within tomato-growing distance hasn't yielded to the summer delight of a warm-from-the-sun, just-plucked tomato eaten exactly like an apple. But I won't judge you, mainly because I understand the aversion to Greek yogurt...I eat it sometimes, mostly plain-- no "flavored"-- and mixed with other things (honey, fresh cherries, in a recipe like smoothies or as sour cream substitute) for the protein benefit. I hate regular yogurt, too. 🙁
I have been making a similar sandwich for years now, but never used roasted tomatoes or a tomato pesto! Duh!! Why did I not notice how amazingly better this could have been-- I'd just being doing the basic tomato slice, basil leaves, fresh mozz-- slap it together and BAM-- even using regular basil pesto. Also: TOMATO PESTO IS WHERE IT'S AT, YO. So. Much. Better.
I also *love* to find a take-and-bake loaf of ciabatta at the grocery and heat it those last few minutes up at home for the airy, crackly, doughy pull of a warm ciabatta slice. Heaven.
Anyway, thanks!
P.S. Greeting cards = overrated social convention
Kiersten says
I know, I am completely abnormal for not liking fresh tomatoes! I really want to like them, but I have some weird mental block about them. I grow a ton of them in my garden, which makes it even worse, right? What is wrong with me?!
Glad someone else agrees about the greeting cards. 🙂
Tess says
Hey can you tell me how the basil leaves that are placed on top of the mozzarella are prepped? Like, is it 1/4 cup sliced or chopped basil leaves or whole basil leaves? I love the Panera Bread panini and really want to make this for my family! Thank you so much for posting this!
Kiersten says
I just put whole leaves on my sandwiches, but you can chop or thinly slice them if you prefer. 🙂
Cheryl Reynolds says
I really dislike it when people comment without having tried the recipe they're commenting on, but here I am doing it myself! I took my sandwich apart just a few days ago to see exactly what the jammy type stuff was, so I've been looking up recipes for tomato jam, but after seeing the ingredients for that, I knew it couldn't be right. I'm so glad you have found the secret, since this is my favorite sandwich at Panera also. I always order a whole one and a bowl of soup, knowing I can't eat the whole sandwich but will enjoy it even more the next day for lunch.
Now if you could just figure out the secret ingredient for Summer Corn Chowder! I've been making corn chowder from a "copy cat" recipe, but there is a missing ingredient that makes Panera special, and I can't figure out what it is. The last two times I've gone to Panera, they've been out of corn chowder since it is the end of the season and they're not ordering as much...so I really need to figure this out soon!
From a fellow vegetarian, thank you! (although, sorry, I can't join you on the tomatoes--I love them!)
Kiersten says
Ahh, I love that corn chowder too! I'm writing a cookbook and I tried coming up with something similar, but no dice. 🙂 It's a good corn chowder, but it's not the Panera corn chowder. They also used to have an amazing mushroom soup every spring that was vegetarian and my husband and I still miss that one. And their mushroom panini! I miss that too.
Cheryl Reynolds says
Right after posting above, I went in the kitchen and made the recipe. As soon as I tasted the tomato pesto, I knew it was the right taste! I used tomatoes I had dried myself and I had to use homemade whole wheat bread since I was anxious to try the sandwich and had no ciabatta, but all the tomatoes were just right! Thank you!
Kiersten says
Oh good, I'm so glad you liked it! 😀
bbos42 says
At our house "the rule" was that you were allowed to not like something, but only after you had tried it. The reason being that when I was young that was not "the rule” and I didn’t like many things because of how they looked, but when I grew out of being a spoiled brat kid, I tried these dreaded things and not only did I like, most of them, but several became my favorites!
Millie says
This was AMAZING. Way better than Panera!
Kiersten says
I'm glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Sara says
I can now grab one of my favorite sandwiches at home in a few minutes......it's really good!
Thanks!
Kiersten Frase says
I'm glad you like them--thank you for your comment! 🙂
Kimberly says
Hi! I just saw this recipe and it looks amazing, but being a newer veggie for the first time (2 weeks, yo!) I wanted to if you abstained from animal rennet or no? The pesto includes Parmesan cheese and I'm trying to keep away from it, but I couldn't think of a suitable replacement. I love these paninis.
Kiersten Frase says
There are rennet-free Parmesan cheeses--you'll want to avoid anything that's imported, but domestic Parmesan cheese doesn't have the same labeling restrictions that they have in the EU, so many are made with microbial enzymes instead of rennet. I usually use the Organic Valley brand.
Gila Golder says
Look for Parmesan cheese that is certified kosher. By definition, kosher cheeses are always free of animal rennet. You can find a list of symbols to look for on packaging that indicate a product is certified kosher at this website: http://www.kashrut.com/agencies/
Kiersten Frase says
Thank you for the tip!
Melissa Johnson says
First of all, let me start by saying you are my new BFF. I have yet to meet someone else that hates going to the movie theater. I LOATHE movie theaters, and will do everything in my power to avoid having to go to one. However, being that I have an 8 and a 5 year-old, this poses quite a challenge. Why on earth would you want to sit in one, dark, confined spot for two hours eating crappy, overpriced JUNK, while the loud noise blasts all around you? I have to hold it if I want to go to the bathroom, and even if I don't hold it, I have to disturb everyone on my row, and then hear upon my return that I "missed the best part" of the awful movie I have been forced to watch. Secondly, Greek yogurt may be healthy and all that, but it's still disgusting. Thirdly, THANKS for the Panera version of the tomato mozzarella panini thingie. It's soooo good. You made my night, as I sit enjoying my panini, in front of my television in my comfy living room, without a bunch of strangers coughing behind me, spreading their germs all over the place. Life is good.
Sam says
Just made this for dinner! I'm a huge fan of the Panera version and this was a great at home alternative! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Marion says
I have just been to a Panera bread restaurant and the sin is that the panini is no longer served. They now have an awful flat bread with minimal mozzarella. Not any where near the original panini mozzarella and tomato sandwich. Very disappointed. Please, Panera, bring it back or you lose one customer, at least.
Ana says
Question - can you substitute the shredded Parmesan for grated Parmesan?
Emily says
Tried this today and my family loved it. You hit the nail on the head. I would never have thought to roast the tomatoes and this tasted great!!! Thank you so much!!
pattie says
Gosh, all this griping about dislikes! What do all of these dislikes have to do with trying to do a restaurant recipe at home?
Liya says
Made it for dinner last nite for my son who loves the tomato mozzarella panini from Panera. This recipe was a huge hit. Thank you!
Jodi says
This was my favorite sandwich at Panera and was so sad it is no longer available. Found this recipe and it is far better than the version at Panera.