Big Loaf with Pinzimonio

Ingredient: 1 flat loaf country bread, such as ciabatta, Extra-virgin olive oil, Lemon juice, Salt and freshly ground black pepper, 4 big, very green leaves of butter lettuce, 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella, drained and thinly sliced, 4 Roma tomatoes, cored and sliced, 1 small red onion, thinly sliced, 1 yellow sweet pepper, cored and seeded, cut into thin rounds, 2 sweet carrots, peeled and thinly sliced, 6 radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced, and 10 basil leaves.

The most tender vegetebles of the season, when served raw with an olive oil dipping sauce, are called pinzimonio. Here, a garden's worth of raw vegetables are layered over fresh mozzarella, each ingredient bathed in olive oil and lemon juice. The sandwich looks fresh and inviting, like a salad within a sandwich.

For an alfresco lunch, present the loaf unsliced, then cut into sections at the table. Serve with oil-cured black olives flavored with red pepper flakes. Offer Italian soft drinks such as aranciata and chinotto, and a big bottle of minerral water. For dessert-a bowl of seasonal fruits cooled with ice cubes.

Cut bread in half horizontally. If the loaf is more than a couple of inches thick, pull out some of the soft bread in the top and bottom to create hollows. Moisten interior of both halves generously with olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.

Layer the rest fo the ingredients on the bottom half of the bread in the order listed. Drizzle each layer with a few drop of olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper

Layer the rest of the ingredients on the bottom half of the bread in the order listed. Drizzle each layer with a few drops of olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Cover with the top half of the loaf. Press down lightly to hold ingredients together.

Keep loaf whole for presentation. Right before serving, cut into 4 sections.

Makes 4 panini.