It never would have crossed my mind to pair roast beef with apples if Rachel of Coconut & Lime hadn't suggested it as part of my new On Your Grill series. Rachel writes:

My dream panino? A variation of a salad I had years ago that
included gorgonzola, thinly sliced tart apples and thin, rare slices of
roast beef.

That sure sounds dreamy, doesn't it? What a smart idea to look to a great salad for inspiration. In a way, panini are kind of like composed salads - complementary ingredients bound together inside some great bread. So I decided to go ahead and give this great-sounding salad the panini treatment. Want to skip ahead? Click here for the final recipe.

Roast Beef with Gorgonzola & Apple Panini - Attempt #1

• Bread: French baguette
• Meat: Roast beef
• Cheese: Gorgonzola
• Condiments: Mayonnaise
• "Goodies": Granny Smith apples

THE PREPARATION: I started out with the apples. When Rachel said "tart", I immediately thought Granny Smith. I cored and sliced one up into thin, flat slices and squeezed lemon juice over them to keep them from browning. So far so good.

This sandwich seemed like it was going to be pretty straightforward, except for the gorgonzola. Its flavor is just so pronounced that I knew I was going to face some challenges in balancing it. I'm not the hugest gorgonzola fan, but I do enjoy it in moderation. Since this sandwich was going to be on an open-sided baguette, I thought a sliced format would be the best way to go (in my buffalo chicken panini recipe I used crumbled blue cheese, but that one was in a pita so the crumbles were somewhat contained). I should once and for all invest in a good cheese slicer, because trying to break off a thin slice of gorgonzola with a regular knife proved to be a rather sticky endeavor! Nonetheless, I got my slices.

THE CONSTRUCTION: I cut off a 5-inch section of my French baguette and sliced it again lengthwise. Then I spread a little mayo inside the bottom half of the bread to give the sandwich a little moisture, but without adding any real competing flavor. Next went on the roast beef - two slices from my grocery store's deli counter. Rachel's description of "thin, rare slices" made me long for some beautiful carpaccio, but such is not found at my local Vons. I covered the roast beef with four slices of apple and then the gorgonzola and top half of the baguette.

I put the sandwich on the grill at 375 degrees and set the timer for 5 minutes, thinking I'd likely need a longer-than-usual cook time due to the thickness of the baguette. An additional 30 seconds after the timer and it was done.

THE RESULTS: Looks pretty, but holy gorgonzola! Looking at the photo now, it definitely appeared that there would be no escaping the gorgonzola flavor. From a volume standpoint, it's the same amount of cheese I would normally use on panini, but gorgonzola is kind of like ultra-concentrated laundry detergent - a little goes a long way! In a salad, it's much easier to moderate it. I could barely taste the apples and they should have been prominent as well. Now, it still was a good sandwich - I kept taking more bites "just to check" - but my instinct told me to give it another try with a milder blue cheese.

Fortunately, I planned ahead on the chance the gorgonzola didn't work out. I bought a Rosenborg Danish blue cheese which my local cheesemonger (aka, the nearest person I could find in the cheese section at Vons) assured me would be milder in flavor. It came pre-sliced, which was a plus! The slices were thinner than my gorgonzola ones, so for that reason alone I knew the pungency would be dialed down a bit.

Onto the grill went a second sandwich, this time with the Danish blue.

The dream panino comes to life! I much, much preferred this version. The creamy, tangy (and somewhat milder) blue cheese was a fantastic complement to the sweet tartness of the apples. The roast beef, which had been seasoned with garlic and other spices, provided a wonderful savory component. You kind of have to open your mouth big to get through the crispy baguette but it's worth it to get all of these great flavors in one bite. Roast beef has met its panini match - thanks, Rachel, for a fantastic idea!

> Get the final recipe!

Be featured on Panini Happy - take part in the On Your Grill series! Click here to find out how.

• Yup, I Grilled Cookies ~ Yes, ice cream sandwiches can become panini too!
• In Celebration of Grilled Cheese - Reader Tiffany recommends grilled raclette on French bread
• A Little Breakfast Panini Party - My family members crowd the kitchen to watch me grill smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel panini

The best grilled cheese I've ever made is with raclette cheese on slices of french bread. To die for.

Quite a strong recommendation - sounds enticing! Thanks for the idea, Tiffany. I can't say I've ever had raclette cheese, but I'm always up for sampling new cheeses so I decided to give this idea a go. By the way, did you know that April is National Grilled Cheese Month? Seriously. Want to skip ahead? Click here for the final recipe.

"To Die For" Grilled Cheese Panini - Attempt #1

• Bread: French
• Meat: None
• Cheese: Raclette
• Condiments: None
• "Goodies": None

THE PREPARATION: I decided to read up a little on raclette before I got started. Turns out it's a Swiss cheese - not the kind with the holes, but a semi-firm cow's milk cheese that's often used in fondue. Huh. Well, if it's good in fondue, then it's probably an excellent candidate for panini - sounds to me like a cheese that melts well. I had no trouble finding it at Bristol Farms in the specialty cheese section. And I was kind of pleased with myself to be bringing home something a little more interesting than cheddar for once (although I still love you, cheddar!).

THE CONSTRUCTION: I thought I'd make Tiffany's sandwich exactly as she described it for the initial attempt. Never having tasted raclette, I needed to get at least a baseline understanding of the flavors. This was, by far, the simplest sandwich I've made to date on this blog: brushed some melted butter on the outer sides of the bread, put a few slices of cheese in the middle and grilled on medium-high heat for a whopping 3 minutes.

THE RESULTS: Wow, that is delicious! The cheese melted beautifully, kind of stretchy like mozzarella. The flavor kind of reminded me of a really, really mild brie. I also detected a slight sweetness to it. The crisp, buttery French bread was a great accompaniment as its mildness really allowed the raclette to be the star. As good as this was, I thought I might be able to take things up one more little notch by tapping into that sweet flavor I tasted. I once had a pecorino and honey appetizer and I wondered whether honey might work here as well. On to Attempt #2!

Grilled Cheese & Honey Panini - Attempt #2

Okay, so this was the second-simplest sandwich I've made to date on this blog. I spread a little honey on the bread before adding the cheese this time.

THE RESULTS: Positively addictive! That touch of sweetness from the honey was a wonderful complement to the raclette. Incredibly simple, yet incredibly tasty. Thanks to Tiffany, this is now my favorite grilled cheese too!

Get the final recipe!

So I'm launching On Your Grill - an opportunity for all of you wonderful Panini Happy readers to share your original panini ideas. Got a combination you've been meaning to try? One you make all the time and your family loves? Favorite flavors from your culture? Send them my way and I'll choose a few every month to develop into panini and feature on Panini Happy!

How to Submit an Idea

Send an e-mail to panini[DOT]happy[AT]yahoo[DOT]com with the following information:

• Subject line: On Your Grill
• First name
• Location (e.g, San Diego, CA , USA)
• Panini Idea (e.g., chicken breast, spinach & fontina on ciabatta)
• Inspiration (optional)

By submitting an idea, you agree to allow me to publish your first name, location, panini idea and inspiration. Looking forward to hearing your ideas - as always, happy grilling!