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Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Toast farcito

This was one of my favorites for a light meal or snack when I was in Italy. Toast in Italian is not toast (which is pane tostato) but quite simply a grilled cheese sandwich, on commercial white bread (pan carre'.) The toast can almost always be found in a bar, but a toast farcito (farcito means "stuffed") is a little harder to find.

It is basically a grilled ham and cheese sandwich with a thin filling of sottaceti (soet-tah-CHEH-tee,) or pickled vegetables. If you'd like to make your own, you should obtain a jar of giardiniera, then drain (but do not rinse) the veggies. You may pick and choose what veggies to include and in what proportion: for example, in the pictured jar, I find the amount of cauliflower rather alarming. Mince them coarsely. Prepare your usual grilled ham and cheese, but about midway, re-open the sandwich and spread filling on one side. Continue to cook until done to your liking.

Italians generally do not make this either with prosciutto or with crusty bread.