Italian Pressed Sandwiches

Italian pressed sandwiches are a delicious blend of Italian meats, cheeses, and pesto cold pressed between ciabatta rolls. These pressed picnic sandwiches are a must for any fan of Italian subs!

I love a good sandwich.

Especially one that doesn’t require a lot of high maintenance prep.

Yes, I have made some sandwiches that require tons of veggie chopping.

And those are worth it for sure.

But these Italian pressed sandwiches need minimal chopping and little active prep.

The hardest part of the whole process is waiting for the sandwiches to set as they press during which time you can go about living your life!

What is an Italian Pressed Sandwich?

You may have heard these called pressed picnic sandwiches.

They are the same thing and are cold sandwiches on ciabatta rolls that are chock full of Italian meats, cheeses, pesto, and tomato slices. 

Unlike a panini, which is a hot pressed grilled sandwiches, these sandwiches are cold and get wrapped in plastic wrap and pressed under something heavy in the fridge.

What does cold pressing a sandwich do?

Have you ever had a sub sandwich that you’ve wrapped up in plastic and tucked away in your lunch box or fridge to eat later?

If you haven’t you need to do this asap!

When you cold press a sandwich, it helps the flavors all blend together so the bread takes on all the savory flavors from the salami, proscioutto, cheese and pesto.

It’s a similar effect to a wrapped sub sandwich that you don’t eat right away only without the risk of the bread getting soggy!

Ingredients

To market these you’ll need:

• Ciabatta rolls– Don’t substitute a different kind of roll. These are pretty sturdy and a little on the drier side, which is good, because they won’t get soggy in the fridge!
• Pesto– Your favorite kind
• Meat– Thinly sliced salami and prosciutto
• Cheese– Sliced provolone and mozzarella
• Tomato– Sliced into 4 slices
• Basil leaves– Fresh

How to Make

Italian pressed sandwiches are easy to make!

To do it, make sure you have a clean work area.

Then slice the ciabatta rolls in half, laying the cut side up on your workspace.

Then spread one tablespoon of pesto on the bottom cut side of the roll.

Layer on 3 slices each of salami and prosciutto and one slice each of mozzarella and provolone.

Top the cheese layer with a tomato slice and some fresh basil leaves.

Close the sandwich by placing the top of the roll on the sandwich cut side down.

Repeat this until you have made 4 sandwiches.

Then tightly wrap each sandwich with plastic wrap.

Put the wrapped sandwiches on a tray and put something heavy like a cast iron skillet on top of the sandwiches to weight them down.

Then refrigerate the whole thing for at least 2 hours.

Serve cold and enjoy!

Storing Leftovers

This is one sandwich recipe that stores really well!

I recommend wrapping any leftovers tightly in plastic and storing in the fridge (under a weight if desired) for up to another day.

Tips and Tricks

• You can adjust the amount of pesto and spread some on both the top and bottom of the rolls.
• Not a fan of this combination of meats or cheeses? Substitute what you like. Deli sliced pepperoni and capicola ham would both be excellent choices.
• Add more flavor with a few slices of pepperoncini on the sandwiches.

Other Italian Sandwich Recipes

Italian pressed sandwiches are a delicious choice when you need a make ahead lunch sandwich that holds up well.

Make these and enjoy!

Looking for other Italian sandwich inspired recipes?

Try these:

• Italian Chopped Sandwiches
• Sun Dried Tomato Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwiches
• Oven Baked Meatball Subs

If you’ve tried these ITALIAN PRESSED SANDWICHES, or any other recipe on the site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!