Sandwich with Greek Manouri cheese and rocket pesto

Manouri is an airy and light semi-soft white cheese used very often in making sweet and savoury pies and desserts but also used in salads. It is made from the drained whey from feta cheese production (of sheep's or goat's milk). Similar to feta cheese but creamier and much less salty or even salt-free. The regions famous for the Manouri cheese are Central and Western Makedonia (up-North Greece) and Thessalia (Central Greece). It has a slightly grainy creamy texture and a milky taste with a mild citrus flavour. It does not have an outer rind or solidified casing. It is almost always sold in log-shaped rolls or in individual pieces cut from a roll. Wherever a sweet, rich cheese is used, think of manouri. Decent substitutes for Manouri are the goat cheese, the cream cheese or farmer's cheese. To introduce you to this tasty cheese I have a nice and light sandwich that you can enjoy anytime of the day. It tastes even better if you leave it to rest for a bit allowing the bread to absorb the moisture and the flavour of the pesto

Adapted from a recipe of Dimitris Andreou,
"Cook Book" magazine of "ETHNOS" newspaper

Ingredients (for 4 people):
4 ciabatta buns (or other rustic-type of baguette)
½ a bunch of rocket (I have also used spearmint)
7-8 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
5 tbsp of olive oil
1 clove of garlic
250gr. of Greek Manouri cheese (or one of those I suggest in the introduction)
1-2 whole rocket leaves
1-2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar to drizzle (optional -my addition)
salt
pepper

Method:
Wash the rocket and pat dry. Put in a blender and whiz along with the oil, the parsley, the salt and the garlic until you end up with a smooth paste.

Cut the buns in half and generously spread the pesto on both sides.

Cut the Manouri in slices and place on top of the pesto.

Season with plenty of black pepper, garnish with the rocket leaves and drizzle with some balsamic (if used).
Cover with the other half of the bun and serve.