Italian Portobello Sandwiches

This week I made a new recipe, Italian Portobello Sandwiches from Cooking Light: Weeknights.  The cookbook was a gift back in January and so far everything I've tried has been great!  I altered the recipe a little bit - cut up the mushrooms and onions into small pieces because it was just easier, used white bread and American cheese instead of sourdough and Provolone because that's what I had, and put them in my new Griddler to make them into paninis, because I'm still pumped about my new griddle/grill/panini maker.  So, since I remembered to take lots of pictures, I'll walk you through it all step by step:


1.  Saute mushroom and red onion.  Really onion rings and big pieces of mushrooms were probably preferrable, but this worked out fine:

2.  Mix mayo with basil and pepper, put mayo mix on bread -  Basil and pepper! Such a fun way to switch up typical condiments.  I must remember this more often!

3.  Add roasted red bell pepper to the sandwich... I LOVE ROASTED RED BELL PEPPER!

4.  Then some mushroom/onion mix...

5.  Top with cheese (American instead of Provolone, still tasted great!)

6.  Sandwich time!!

7.  (Not shown) I put this in my Cuisinart Griddler and made it into a nice warm panini!

I honestly think having this served warm MADE THE MEAL!  The melty cheese was amazing.  The only negative I would say about this recipe is that you can't really "pre make" sandwiches.  I tried, and they ended up way soggy.  So, this is definitely not a lunch to pack, but rather one to enjoy while you are at home :-)

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Workout updates:
Wednesday: weights and spin class? check
Thursday: 4 mile tempo run on the treadmill because I'm allergic to rain? check
Friday: weights? check! Jillian DVD: this afternoon!

Big news from all of that?  I CAN BENCH PRESS THE BAR.  Two sets of ten today.  I am damn proud of myself.  Monday I'm going for three sets of ten.  Woohoo!

I can't BELIEVE Thanksgiving is only one week away, and the 15K is two weeks from tomorrow!  So many exciting things coming up!  I'm currently trying to figure out how I will get workouts in while I'm staying in a house with 8 other people and have no exercise equipment and likely icy conditions unsafe for running... any tips out there? :-)