Husband-and-wife duo Mike Niccoli and Kim Baker serve up wood-fired food created from locally sourced ingredients at Restaurant Navona. Mike is the executive chef and Kim runs front of house. Their five-cheese grilled sandwich exemplifies their mission of creating lovingly made fare that supports the farmers in the community we call home, while delivering delicious platters of comfort to their guests.
Ingredients
- Olive oil to taste
- ¼ medium white onion, diced fine
- 1–2 shallots, diced fine
- 1 quart diced fresh or canned tomatoes
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 sprigs thyme
- Sherry vinegar to taste
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 pieces provolone, sliced as thin as possible
- 2 pieces muenster, sliced as thin as possible
- 2 pieces smoked Gouda, sliced as thin as possible
- 2 pieces cheddar, sliced as thin as possible
- Butter, to taste
- 2 slices pumpernickel bread
- 3 tablespoons pecorino, grated
- 2 tablespoons tomato jam (recipe below or store-bought version)
Preparation
Put a saucepan over medium heat, and add olive oil to taste. Sweat onions and shallots. Once they soften, add tomatoes and the remaining ingredients. Reduce heat to low-medium. Stir occasionally. When the liquid has simmered off almost completely, the jam will be thick and spreadable. This will take at least 2 hours. Remove the bay leaves. Stir in vinegar to taste, and season with salt and pepper.
Instructions
Butter one side of one piece of pumpernickel bread. Cover the buttered side with grated pecorino cheese. Place the butter- and cheese-slathered-side down, and spread tomato jam on the plain side of the bread facing up, add cheese stacks. Spread tomato jam on the second slice of bread. Place it face down on the cheese stacks, now butter the exterior side of the bread, and add grated pecorino cheese. Grill in heated skillet with melted butter until cheese is melted and bread is crisp on both sides. (Matt recommends flipping the sandwich every minute or so to make sure it doesn’t burn.)
Pairing recommendation from EmpireWine.com
Wölffer Estate Rose 2017: A lovely blend of six varieties that exudes pure and fresh aromas of peach and pear.
