Step 1

Choose your bread. A panini can be made with Italian bread, ciabatta, focaccia, sourdough, or any kind of bread you like.If you are using a roll of bread, slice your bread into 3/4 inch thick slices. You can also cut your bread length-wise.Keep round tops turned in. If you try to grill round-topped bread, like baguettes, you’ll find it can be a real challenge to keep them from rolling over and spilling out the contents of your panini. To solve this problem, turn round-topped bread inside out so that the flat surfaces make contact with the grill.

Step 2

Spread olive oil on the inside of your bread. Use a brush or butter knife to distribute a small around of olive oil over the inside surface of your bread. You want to achieve a thin coating here, so make sure not to glob a lot of olive oil onto the bread.If you use too much oil, your bread will get soggy!

Step 3

Add your cheese. Put one slice of cheese on each piece of bread, against the olive oil. Adding a piece of cheese to each side of the sandwich helps it stick together better while cooking.You can use grated cheese too.If you prefer, you can put cheese just on one side.

Step 4

Add your filling. You can get as creative as you want with your panini and use a combination of sliced meats or shredded meat, or make a vegetarian panini with sliced zucchini. Add two slices of meat or zucchini to one piece of bread.You can increase the amount of filling if you prefer a thicker panini.

Step 5

Add some extra flavor. Try some diced onions or fresh cilantro. You can also sprinkle in some salt and pepper, garlic, or add a dash of your favorite hot sauce.If you are interested in adding vegetables like lettuce, spinach, or tomatoes to your panini, wait until you have cooked it. This will ensure that the vegetables stay crisp and don't get soggy.

Step 6

Close your sandwich and butter the outsides of the bread. Make sure you don't overfill your panini by too much or the inside of the sandwich won't warm properly when cooking.You can also use margarine.