Crispy. Garlic. Chips.
I was standing at my spice shelf with my recipe notebook, glaring at my recipe for this ciabatta melt. What I had seemed so basic. Mushrooms, garlic, onions, cheese. Wasn’t there some herb or spice I could add to jazz it up? Chili flake? Thyme? How about a spread? Dijon mustard?
For the next two weeks, I fussed with the recipe. I researched mushroom and spinach flavor pairings online. I examined recipes for other dishes—hot vegetable sandwiches, vegetarian quiches—with similar ingredients and studied their flavor profiles. I found lots of thyme and mustard and the occasional chili flake: all workable ideas. But nothing really clicked.
Finally I decided to test the recipe as it was. Maybe inspiration would strike when I was testing.
And it did. Kind of. I was eating the first bite of my melt when the answer came to me:
Nothing. This recipe needed nothing. It already had garlic, mushrooms, onions, and cheese: ingredients loaded with amazing flavor. They didn't need anything else.
Today’s culinary scene is exploding with new, exotic ingredients from cuisines all around the world: gochujang, miso, turmeric, cardamom.
Surrounded by such an abundance of new ingredients and flavors, it’s easy for us to over-complicate and overdo. We become obsessed with the desire to be innovative and creative, and we forget that our ultimate goal is to create something truly delicious. And sometimes, what is truly delicious is when we let a few well-prepared ingredients speak for themselves.
This Ciabatta Melt is a celebration of garlic and mushrooms. It’s a tribute to golden toasted ciabatta and jammy onions and crispy garlic chips. It may not be the most exotic or ground-breaking dish you’ll ever cook. But it will taste amazing.
Enjoy!
Ciabatta Melts with Mushrooms and Crispy Garlic
(Serves 2 for an appetizer or 1 for an entree)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced, plus 1 garlic clove, diced
½ onion, thinly sliced
2 cups thinly sliced mushrooms
Diamond Crystal kosher salt and pepper
2 large handfuls spinach, plus a few extra leaves, sliced thinly
2 slices Swiss cheese (about 1 ounce per slice)
1 ciabatta roll, sliced in half
Method
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Pour 2 tablespoons vegetable oil into a large nonstick skillet and tilt the pan to distribute evenly. Add the thinly sliced garlic cloves, one piece at a time so they don’t stick together. Place the skillet over medium heat so the oil and the garlic come up to temperature at the same time. Once the garlic starts to smell, turn the pieces over so they brown evenly and cook until both sides are lightly browned and toasty-smelling. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel.
Place the ciabatta roll halves cut side down in the garlic-infused oil. Toast over medium heat until golden brown, then transfer them to a baking sheet and toast in the preheated oven for 3 minutes, or until warmed through.
Meanwhile, heat remaining tablespoon of oil in the skillet. Add onions, diced garlic, and a three-fingered pinch of salt. Cook over medium heat until nearly translucent (about 3 minutes), then add mushrooms. Cook onions and mushrooms until both are softened and the onions are translucent. Toss in spinach and cook a minute more, or until the spinach is just wilted. Remove from heat.
Remove the ciabatta rolls from the oven (if you haven’t already) and top with sautéed spinach, mushrooms, and onions. Lay a slice of cheese over top. Return to the oven and broil for 1 minute or bake for 2 minutes, or until cheese is melted.
Top with garlic chips and spinach slices, and serve.
Originally posted December 4, 2019.