Broccoli Panini with Chickpea Spread & Mozzarella

This sandwich was not supposed to be what it is today, which is a dreamy-crispy balsamic broccoli & mozzarella panini with a smear of chickpea tomato pepper spread. When this sandwich was first requested (and yes, it was a request!), it was supposed to be a restaurant recreation of a broccolini sandwich with balsamic and provolone. And while that sounds delicious, I wanted this sandwich to be a bit more hearty.

At its core, this is just a really flavorful sandwich with blanched broccoli, balsamic glaze and melty mozzarella. Add some chickpea mash for extra protein, and it’s a perfect, easy vegetarian meal. Plus, you don’t need to make your own bread, store bought is completely fine! And then that means you can make this panini in a matter of minutes. You get your veggies, your protein and your melty cheese? What’s not to love, it’s like a grilled cheese with ~benefits~

Ingredients for this broccoli panini

The best part of this broccoli panini is how straightforward the ingredients are, and nothing should be too hard to find in your local grocery store. Here is everything you’ll need:

• 1 loaf of my whole wheat focaccia recipe, or any store-bought bread of choice is fine 🙂
• 1 large head of broccoli
• 2 tbsp balsamic glaze, plus more as needed
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 lemon for juicing
• 1/4 cup fresh oregano, optional, but really delicious
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, optional, but really delicious
• 1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 2/3 cup roasted red peppers, about 1 large roasted red pepper
• 1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil
• 1 tbsp calabrian chili paste, or 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste
• 6 ounces fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

How to blanch the broccoli for this broccoli & mozzarella panini

Blanching broccoli is the easiest way to make this broccoli perfectly toothsome and not too cooked down. This sandwich is best when the broccoli still has a bit of bite to it. Here’s how to perfectly blanch and season your broccoli:

• Cut the broccoli into long, thin pieces, leaving the stem on (it’s delicious in this!)
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt liberally.
• When the water is boiling, submerge the broccoli and cook for 1-2 minutes, or until the broccoli is bright green and tender. Remove and directly place into an bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.
• Chop the blanched broccoli into tiny pieces. Add these to a bowl, and drizzle in the balsamic glaze, the lemon zest, the juice from 1/2 of the lemon, and salt and pepper to taste. Season with more balsamic glaze, salt and pepper as you prefer.
• Roughly tear up up the oregano and basil in your hands to release their natural aromatics and add them to the broccoli. Set aside.

How to make the tomato pepper chickpea mash for this recipe

This is probably my favorite aspect of this recipe. It’s so easy to make and immeasurably delicious. To make it, get a food processor and add in the chickpeas, the red peppers, the sun-dried tomatoes, the chili paste, the juice from the other half of the lemon, and a pinch of kosher salt. Food process until very smooth. Add more salt as needed.

Suggestions on how to grill or press this broccoli panini

And when it comes to assembling this panini, you can either press it together on a panini press (believe me, the thinner the bread is pressed, the better this panini will be!) or you can grill it on a dry cast iron pan. Just be sure to really press it down, again, with the bread really crushed against the ingredients, all the flavors come together like magic.

Looking for similar recipes?

I don’t often make sandwiches, but when I do, they are goooood. Here are a few that I love:

And that’s it for this broccoli panini recipe!

If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.

And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you.