Panini is the perfect weekend late lunch or dinner while watching my Arizona Cardinals on Sunday Night Football. The word “panino” is Italian for small bread roll; its plural form is panini. Many Americans use the word paninis, which is incorrect. I’m using panettone as the bread for my panini. Panettone is a sweet bread of Milan, it is usually prepared for Christmas and New Year all around Italy and is one of the symbols of Milan. It is readily available in markets now and throughout the holidays.  I found two flavors at Cost Plus World Market, the traditional one which is studded with candied orange, citron, lemon zest, and raisins. The other is a Cranberry Panettone and has dried cranberries in place of the raisins.

To make panini, you can use an electric panini press, a cast-iron stove-top press, a waffle iron, or even a George Forman grill.  Just be sure to preheat whatever you use. I have a well-seasoned stovetop cast-iron press, so I do not butter my bread first, but you certainly can if you so choose.

I was drinking a chai tea latte while I was making these and just before I was going to caramelize the apple slices, I decided to use the chai tea concentrate instead of water to caramelize the sugar… turned out great!  I love the TAZO brand, but you can easily use 1/4 cup of water in its place.

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