Focaccia Turkey Panini

Recipe Note

Recipe FAQ

Why turn the griddle off before toasting the panini?

The Fusion Griddle retains heat extremely well — once it's up to temperature from cooking the bacon, the residual heat in the cast iron surface is enough to toast focaccia golden without any active burner. Using that residual heat rather than live flame gives you a slower, more controlled toast that builds color evenly without the risk of scorching. Active burner heat on a griddle this thick at any meaningful temperature level makes it too easy to burn the bread exterior before the cheese in the center has time to melt.

Why does the grill press need to be preheated before using it?

A cold grill press placed on top of a hot sandwich pulls heat away from the top of the sandwich and slows the cheese melt. A preheated press applies gentle, even downward heat from above while the griddle toasts from below — creating the two-sided heat environment that a panini press produces. It also ensures you get consistent contact across the full surface of the focaccia, which is thicker and less uniform than sandwich bread and needs the weight distributed evenly to toast without gaps.

Can I make this without leftover Honey Mustard Rotisserie Turkey?

Yes — any cooked leftover turkey works well. The honey-mustard glaze from the rotisserie recipe adds a sweet-savory depth that complements the cranberry chutney, but plain roast turkey or even deli-sliced turkey produces a very good sandwich. If you're using plain turkey, consider adding a thin spread of Dijon mustard directly on the bread before the brie layer to replicate some of that savory tang. The key is slicing the turkey thin enough that it heats through quickly during the griddle press without making the sandwich too tall to compress properly.

What's the right ratio of brie spread to cranberry chutney?

The recipe calls for equal amounts — half a cup each across four sandwiches, which is about 2 tablespoons of each per sandwich. The brie and cream cheese mixture is rich and fatty; the cranberry chutney is sweet and acidic. At equal volumes they balance each other. More chutney than brie makes the sandwich lean sweet and the bread gets wetter from the fruit. More brie than chutney makes it lean rich and slightly one-dimensional. Apply the brie first as a base layer that adheres to the bread, then spoon the chutney on top so it sits in the spread rather than soaking directly into the focaccia.

Can I cook this Indoors?

We rate this a 4 out of 5 for cooking indoors. Great in the kitchen, better on the grill. A cast iron skillet or griddle pan on a stovetop burner over low heat handles the bacon and panini toast perfectly. The residual-heat technique still applies — let the pan cool slightly after cooking bacon before adding the sandwich. A heavy skillet or Dutch oven makes a functional substitute for a grill press. What you give up is the Fusion Griddle's even heat distribution across the full sandwich footprint.

Recipe Highlights & Insights

• This sandwich is intentionally built as a leftover recipe ecosystem — it draws directly from two other ATBBQ recipes (Honey Mustard Rotisserie Turkey and Whipped Brie with Bacon) and assumes you have components from both on hand after Thanksgiving. That means the active cook time is genuinely 10–15 minutes: bacon, assemble, press. It's one of the fastest recipes in the catalog to execute at a high quality level, which makes it ideal post-holiday content when the audience is tired and ingredient-rich.

   

• Focaccia is the correct bread choice here for structural reasons. Its open, airy crumb absorbs the brie and chutney without going soggy the way a softer sandwich bread would, and its thick, oil-enriched crust toasts to a deep golden color with the kind of crunch that holds up even after the cheese has fully melted and the filling has softened slightly. Sliced horizontally rather than as a roll, it also creates a flat, even surface that the grill press can compress uniformly.

   

• Pork fat on the griddle rather than butter or oil is a deliberate flavor choice. Butter burns too easily at even moderate griddle temperatures and can impart a scorched dairy note. Neutral oil works but adds nothing. Pork fat — lard or rendered bacon fat from the same cook — has a high smoke point, bastes the bread with subtle savory richness as it toasts, and creates an audible sizzle that tells you the surface temperature is right. It's also consistent with the bacon already in the sandwich.

   

• The sandwich rests 1–2 minutes after pressing before slicing, and that rest matters. The cheese continues to set slightly as the temperature evens out through the layers, which means the filling holds together when cut rather than sliding out. A sandwich sliced immediately off a hot press loses the structural integrity the press built — the layers compress and then spring back apart. The brief rest is what produces the clean cross-section that photographs well and eats without falling apart.

Recommended Recipes

• Honey Mustard Rotisserie Turkey

• Whipped Brie & Bacon Toast

• Grilled Chick-fil-A Club Sandwich

• Cuban Croquetas