An Apple a Day

This week everything is coming up Apples on A Little Loveliness! I am preparing to host our quarterly ladies book club, and our fall book selection has given us a perfect fall theme. Sweetwater Gap by Denise Hunter is set in an apple orchard, so we will be serving up bushels of fall flavor and fun at tomorrow night's potluck dinner. I will be chronicling all of the festivities here, so be sure to stop in this week for an apple a day!

I am busy working on several projects for book club, but wanted to at least take a moment to share lunch with you. I recently picked up a Rival Mini-Grill, and in the 3 minutes it takes to heat up, I can assemble a ham, apple and brie panini. Two minutes on the grill, and I have a delicious sandwich worthy of my favorite lunchtime cafe.





Ham, Apple and Brie Panini

I found my new favorite sandwich recipe, along with a bushel of other "Fresh Picked Apple Recipes," at Family.com.

2 slices Tuscan style rustic bread

2 slices smoked ham or smoked turkey

3 teaspoons mayonnaise

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons pepper jelly, mango chutney, sour cherry jam or cranberry jam

3 slices brie cheese, thick

1/2 crisp, tart apple (such as Granny Smith), thinly sliced

handful baby lettuce

Heat the panini press or skillet, greased with butter, to medium heat. Spread one slice of bread with mayonnaise and mustard. Spread the other slice with the pepper jelly or chutney. Fold the ham or turkey slices in half, and place on one slice of bread; top with the apple slices. On the other slice of bread, layer on the brie cheese. Carefully close sandwich, and place in the panini press. Cook until sandwiches are golden brown and the cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Alternately, place the sandwiches on a grill pan or skillet and cook for about 5 minutes per side, compressing them slightly with a spatula. Remove from the pan, add some baby lettuce and serve. (Note: I used whole-grain sandwich bread I had on hand, with delicious results. It takes about 2 minutes to toast a panini on my Rival Mini-Grill.)

"A seed hidden in the heart of an apple is an orchard invisible." ~ Welsh