by Francesca Di Meglio

Because my family usually eats a big Italian lunch on Sundays, we nosh on something light for dinner. Our usual Sunday dinners are either homemade pizza with fresh arugula sprinkled on top or tomatoes and bread seasoned with olive oil, basil, and salt. In the summer, my father might just make a huge salad with all the goods from our garden. Tonight, however, I made my family La Zingara, a special panino or sandwich that is often served in Ischia, a small island off the coast of Naples. My husband's family taught me a unique recipe for this delicious sandwich, and now I'm going to share it with you. Here goes:

Ingredients:
Roll or sliced Italian bread
Prosciutto (one to two slices per sandwich)
Sliced Cheese (one to two slices of fresh mozzarella or provolone per sandwich would be best)
Eggplant Parmigiana (I used the recipe from The Silver Spoon, which is considered "Italy's cooking bible" and it turned out great.)
Lettuce
Tomatoes (two slices per sandwich)
Mayonnaise (optional)

Directions:
Put the prosciutto, cheese, and a bit of the eggplant parmigiana in between two slices of bread. If you like mayonnaise, you can slather a bit on the slices of bread. Then, place the sandwich on a panini press. If you don't have a panini press, you can use a grill pan. You could also use a regular pan, and either press down on the sandwich with a smaller lid or wrap a brick in aluminum foil and use that to press on the sandwich. After the cheese is almost completely melted, insert the tomatoes and lettuce into the sandwich. Let it cook a moment or two more and then plate it. Finally, take a bite. You'll like it!

You can cut up the sandwich and serve it as an appetizer as well. The eggplant gives this panini an extra kick. Any panini recipes you'd like to share? Send them to me at francesca@francescadimeglio.com.

Di Meglio is the guide to Newlyweds for About.com, where you can get quick tips on everything from being reliable to talking to each other.

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