Cook With Ido

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Bread Recipes No Cooking Entertaining

Focaccia Panini Sandwiches

(sliced focaccia, three filling combos, no pressing required)

I
By Ido
· August 2026 · ★ Rate this recipe
Stacked cut focaccia panini sandwiches on a floral plate, with bowls of tomato, cucumber, and corn salad in the background

Focaccia panini sandwiches are built, not cooked. The technique is one cut: slice a baked focaccia into portions, then slice each portion in half. Everything else is what you layer inside, no grill, no press, no extra pan to wash. This is my go-to for feeding guests at home without standing at a stove while everyone else is sitting down. If you have not made the base yet, start with my no-knead focaccia, this recipe picks up right where that one leaves off.

Prep
15
min
Cook
0
min
Serves
4
people
Level
Beginner
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The Italian word panini just means small breads, it does not require a grill press, and this version is served cold, straight from the freshly baked focaccia. The bread itself is doing most of the work here, focaccia holds up to wet fillings far better than a soft sandwich loaf, so tomato, pesto, and fresh mozzarella all stay put instead of soaking through. I usually build a few different combos on one board so guests can grab whichever one they want.

Overhead shot of eight focaccia squares laid out with manchego, tomato, red onion, arugula, mozzarella, and pesto assembled before closing
Build a few combos side by side, this is the easiest way to feed a table of different preferences

Ingredients

What you need
Makes 4 sandwiches · tap to check off
  • 1 batch baked no-knead focaccia, cooled
  • Sundried tomato paste
  • Pesto
  • Fresh mozzarella, pulled apart
  • Manchego cheese, sliced
  • Fresh tomato, sliced
  • Red onion, thinly sliced
  • Arugula
  • Fresh basil leaves
  • Olives (optional)
  • Salt

How to Build Focaccia Panini

1
Slice the focaccia into portions. Cut the baked, cooled focaccia into squares or rectangles roughly the size you want each sandwich.
2
Slice each portion in half horizontally. This gives you a top and bottom for each sandwich.
3
Spread your base on the bottom half. Pesto or sundried tomato paste, depending on which combo you are building.
4
Layer the fillings. Cheese, tomato, onion, arugula, and basil, in whatever order you like, salting as you go.
5
Close with the top half and serve. No pressing, no toasting, straight to the table.
Side cross-section of two cut focaccia sandwiches showing layers of mozzarella, tomato, arugula, and pesto
Focaccia’s open crumb holds fillings without falling apart, even with juicy tomato this close to the bread
🧺
Great for entertaining
These are built for a crowd. Assemble a few different combos on one board so guests can pick, and they hold well at room temperature for an hour or two if you need to build ahead of when people arrive.

Three Combos to Try

Same bread, same technique, three completely different sandwiches depending on what you layer in.

Caprese
Pesto, pulled mozzarella, fresh tomato, basil, salt. Simple and classic, the pesto does most of the flavor work.
Manchego & Sundried Tomato
Sundried tomato paste, arugula, sliced manchego, tomato, red onion. Sharper and more savory, the manchego holds up well against the sundried tomato.
Ham & Cheese
Mayo, mustard, ham, Emmental or Gouda, a touch of horseradish. Swap in your favorite deli meat and cheese for a heartier version.
Close side-on cross-section of a focaccia sandwich showing manchego, red onion, and arugula layers next to another sandwich with mozzarella and tomato
Manchego and red onion on one side, mozzarella and tomato on the other, both from the same loaf
Angled close-up of open-face focaccia sandwiches topped with manchego, tomato, red onion, mozzarella, and pesto
Build a few open-face before closing them, so you can see exactly how much filling is going in

How to Serve

Pairs with
  • A creamy corn salad on the side, exactly what is shown in the photos here.
  • Cutting into smaller squares for a party platter instead of full sandwiches.
  • Making a pizza instead with the same base? Try my focaccia pizza, built from the same loaf.

That is the whole post. One baked focaccia, a handful of spreads and fillings, and lunch or a party spread is done without turning on the stove. Drop a comment below and tell me which combo you built.

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