Grilled Brie with Apricot Jam

Despite hailing from the "sweet grilled cheese" section of GGC, this week's sandwich could be enjoyed equally as an appetizer or an entree (personally I love turning appetizers into my entree, so this is win win for me)!  Most everyone loves a good brie en croute and that's basically what this sandwich is.  As such, the ingredients were easy to come by:

One fresh baguette, a wedge of brie, apricot jam (or really any jam of your choosing) and butter.  Bam!  We're ready to go.

First up: halve the baguette and cut it into four equal lengths.  Cutting the baguette underscored the importance of using fresh bread.  If the bread isn't relatively fresh it will be much more difficult to cut and won't be soft and easy to bite into/chew once you've made the actual sandwiches. 

As is the norm with rounded bread the next step was pulling out some of the inside to create wells.  You don't have to scrape every last bit out, but make sure to remove enough to allow you a place to put your brie and jam (and no, that's not a euphemism).

I had left the brie out of the fridge so it was room temperature and easy to work with.  However, removing the rind proved to be a challenge (as always).  Nonetheless with some patience and ample scraping I was good to go.

Yummm I want to eat this whole thing!

While the brie patiently waited I slathered the inside of four of the pieces of the bread with about 1 Tbsp of jam each.

Next came the brie sliced unceremoniously into pieces that I deemed the appropriate size to fit on the sandwiches.  Once that was set I placed the other four slices on top to create my sandwiches.

This is the first time that a recipe called for me brushing butter onto the exterior of the sandwiches that I actually chose to do so (turns out a small craft brush does the job just fine-- don't worry, it had never been used).  I melted about 2 Tbsp of butter and generously covered the outside of the sandwiches with it.  I grilled each sandwich in my non-stick pan until the cheese was as melted as it was going to get without me burning the bread.  That meant that covering the sandwiches while cooking was particularly important this time! 

Taste Review:

The baguette formed a pretty solid crust around the brie which meant that there was virtually no aroma.  Biting into the sandwich you notice that the crunch of the bread and the creaminess of the cheese and jam are perfect compliments to one another.  I was worried that, despite using a fresh baguette, the bread would get too hard during cooking, but this was just right.  It was crispy on the outside and had that crackery crunch, but the inside was pure softness.

Brie is just a great cheese.  Despite the less than stellar Salmon and Brie Quesadilla, there is rarely an instance where I've used brie and been disappointed (and to be fair, it wasn't the brie's fault in the case of the quesadilla).  The way the brie melts to be so smooth and creamy, thus blending with all the other flavors in the sandwich, is but one of its many virtues.

One quick note-- the brushing on of the melted butter proved to be a key to the sandwich's success.  Something about a thin even coating of butter on the outside gave just enough of a buttery taste so that it was noticeable, but wasn't overwhelming you in some places and going missing in others (as can be the case when you spread on butter).  It also made cooking a lot more even-- you can see it has a sort of golden glow over the whole top of the sandwich even though the darker center section is really where contact was made with the pan.

FINAL RESULTS:

Sandwich:	Grilled Brie with Apricot Jam
Gooey-ness:	3.5
Aroma:	1
Appearance:	Looks bland and boring (but looks can be deceiving).
Taste:	A-

Gooey Scale	Aroma Scale
1 = still cold/hard	1 = can’t smell a thing
2 = slightly melted but still firm	2 = tender waft
3 = melted evenly	3 = makes your stomach growl
4 = melted and slightly runny (starting to get those cheese strings between your sandwich and your mouth when you take a bite)	4 = strong scent
5 = runny	5 = overpoweringly pungent
6 = sloppy mess!

Colin contended that he would like this as an appetizer but it didn't fill him up as a meal.  But seeing as how I eat less than him (and prefer appetizers to entrees), I was happy as a clam with this one.

Pimento Cheese Grilled Cheese

This week we're going off book and featuring a non-GGC sandwich.  Recently a friend of mine asked if I had ever tried a grilled cheese made with pimento cheese.  I had not (and, shamefully, can't remember having ever actually tried pimento cheese), so I decided to give it a go.  My initial research yielded me an interesting factoid: pimento cheese sandwiches are a signature item at the Masters Tournament.  Don't believe me?  Well, check out this link.  What almost perfect timing!  Sadly I didn't learn this in time to make the sandwich for the actual Masters Tournament, but I'm only about a week and a half late and can take this opportunity to test out a recipe for use next year. 

I went ahead and used the original recipe from the above link (not the blogger's modified version).  The ingredients seemed easy enough, but I did make one mis-step.

The recipe called for wheat bread, but I couldn't help but try it on my beloved Pepperidge Farm sourdough.  Add to that some extra sharp Vermont cheddar, onion, mayonnaise and chili sauce and I was on the right track.  Unfortunately, I couldn't find pimentos in the store.  I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't even know what I was looking for, so I ended up mistakenly buying pre-made pimento spread.  Well, the whole point of this recipe is to make my own pimento spread, so this would not do.  I called my grocery shopping consultant (Mom) and asked for a description of pimentos and had no trouble finding them on my second trip to the store (oddly enough, they were in the Hispanic food section).  For those of you who may also struggle as I did, here they are:

Anywho, I assumed that the recipe I found excluded some important "/" marks and that the recipe did not actually call for 14 cups of pimentos, so I started out with this big guy and finely chopped him until I had about 1/4 cup (making sure to drain the juice from him as much as possible as I worked).

Then I went ahead and grated half of my block of cheddar (approx. 4 ounces).

Next came all of the mix ins-- the diced pimentos, 2 T mayonnase and 1/2 t. hot sauce.

I mashed this together pretty thoroughly with a fork until I had the following:

It said salt to taste, but since I never salt my food I just left it as is.

Next it was time to assemble the sandwiches.  I buttered one side of two slices of sourdough and piled on the pimento.  I used almost all of the cheese on just two sandwiches (maybe because I love cheese so much), but that was fine, just note that you'd have to multiply the recipe for more people.

Next came a few thin slivers of sweet onion.  I was a little nervous about putting raw onion on the sandwich, but decided to trust the recipe.

Unfortunately, my other ingredient mis-step was an inability to locate watercress.  I took several turns about the produce section to no avail, so I decided to do without  (I mean come on, who needs more veggies? :-P).

I believe the Masters variety is served as is, but it wouldn't be a grilled cheese if I didn't grill it!  So into the pan they went and mere minutes later I was ready to devour the melty perfection.

Taste Review:

The first word that popped into my head when I tasted this sandwich was "feisty!"  I'm not sure exactly why since that's not a standard sandwich descriptor, but something about the blend of flavors makes this quite a fun sandwich.  The sandwich has a good texture to it-- that perfect blend of crunchy bread with just the right amount of creamy filling (although sometimes the filling gets a little runny and falls out of the sandwich).

The use of a roasted pepper reminds me of the Two Cheese Mediterranean, but it was improved here by the fact that the pepper had been finely diced rather than being served as one big slippery pepper (it was almost too much to handle in the other sandwich). 

Even though I was worried about what the raw onion might do to the sandwich, it proved to be a great addition!  It was the middle ground between the slightly sweet pimento and the sharp cheddar (I think the key being that this is a sweet onion).

The most shocking statement of the night came from Colin who said that he felt the level of spiciness was actually good and that he wouldn't add any condiments (or anything else) to the sandwich because it already contains everything he would add (read: Sriracha).

I can see why people like pimento cheese as a dip.  I would happily scoop this onto a cracker, veggies, or any other appropriate dipper, so including it in a grilled cheese was certainly a great move!

FINAL RESULTS:

Sandwich:	Pimento Cheese Grilled Cheese
Gooey-ness:	5
Aroma:	2
Appearance:	Very orange!
Taste:	A-

Gooey Scale	Aroma Scale
1 = still cold/hard	1 = can’t smell a thing
2 = slightly melted but still firm	2 = tender waft
3 = melted evenly	3 = makes your stomach growl
4 = melted and slightly runny (starting to get those cheese strings between your sandwich and your mouth when you take a bite)	4 = strong scent
5 = runny	5 = overpoweringly pungent
6 = sloppy mess!

Overall it's a sandwich that is truly worthy of The Masters!

National Grilled Cheese Month (and an Apology)

First off, I must start with an apology for the degree to which I have been slacking on posting as of late; an action that is particularly unforgivable given that this month is National Grilled Cheese Month!  In tribute I'm bringing you this post-- a hodge podge of grilled cheese factoids, a refresher on grilled cheese making tips and pitfalls to avoid, and how to find delicious grilled cheeses in your own home town.

Did you know that Americans make, on average, 2.2 billion grilled cheeses at home each year? (Although I'm single-handedly working to push this number higher.)  And while I recently crowned my favorite sandwiches and ingredients, I recently discovered that the most popular cheeses for grilled cheese are cheddar and American.  I totally understand why.  Cheddar is one of my favorites for making a wide variety of grilled cheeses whereas American is the ingredient in the beloved classic grilled cheese. 

It's great to think about what the majority of Americans prefer, but let's talk about a few tips to ensure success when making your own grilled cheeses at home.  I know I've touched on many of these throughout the past year, but it never hurts to have a handy all encompassing reference point.

* Use a non-stick pan.  While my grandma may have relied on her cast iron skillet, the best way to ensure an evenly cooked, easy to flip sandwich is to cook it in a non-stick pan.  End of story.

* Put the butter on the bread, not in the pan.  You want the butter to end up on the bread anyway, right?  Why not just take care of that up front?

* Don't be afraid to alter the cooking process.  From smushing the sandwich together to make sure the ingredients are trapped inside to covering the sandwich to ensure the cheese melts, a variety of tactics can be employed once the sandwich is inside the pan to help assure it is cooked to perfection.  While everyone may experiment and come up with their own tactics, I've found smushing and covering to be two of the most useful.

And the number one most useful tip that I tell everyone who asks me about how to make a good grilled cheese?

GRATE THE CHEESE! 

It's as simple as that.  Grated cheese allows for even coverage, more volume, and, most importantly, perfect melting.  Slices of cheese that are too thick tend to not melt thoroughly and slices that are too thin tend to just hold their square shape and not really cover the sandwich up to the very edge.

This brings me to the most common pitfalls associated with grilled cheesing.  Let me start this off with a story.  Last week I was traveling for work and found myself in Atlanta on National Grilled Cheese Day (April 13).  Since I couldn't celebrate by making one of my favorites I opted to order a grilled cheese for lunch.  Unfortunately for me this Friday the 13th lived up to its unlucky reputation and the sandwich I got was quite the disappointment.  The sliced cheese sat smack in the middle of the sandwich leaving a solid inch of crust around it and the thick tomato slices and overcooked bacon did little to make up for the lack of sufficient cheese.

Looks innocent enough, right?  Don't be fooled!

I felt bad as I had persuaded some of my fellow diners to order grilled cheeses as well in honor of the day, but was dismayed to hear that they all thought the sandwich was good!  This showed me that the average person doesn't necessarily know what to look for in a top notch grilled cheese.  So in addition to adhering to the above principles when possible, here are some tips on avoiding grilled cheese disaster.

* When cooking at home, be patient.  Better to cook the sandwich on a lower heat for longer than try to get the sandwich made quickly and burn the outside.  If you don't cook low and slow you'll end up with burned bread and cheese that has not melted.  This is something I struggle with both because of my gas stove and because I'm impatient, but it's advice to be heeded whenever possible.

* More cheese doesn't ALWAYS mean it's better (just most of the time, hehe).  But for real, be mindful of the balance of ingredients-- are you using something strong like garlic?  Then maybe keep that under control so as to not drown everything else out (a lesson learned from the Green Goddess).  Conversely, are you going for the gooiest sandwich possible?  Then don't be afraid to pile on the cheese (even if it oozes out into the pan-- crispy cheese bits are duh-lic-ious).  Basically, find the recipe that works for you and run with it.

And, most importantly: don't order the "gourmet grilled cheese" at a non-grilled cheese restaurant unless there is actually something special about it.  Nine times out of ten I have found that these alleged "ultimate grilled cheeses" are just some variation of cheese, tomato, and bacon.  A delightful combination but, as related above, one that is often poorly handled.  That's not to say never order a grilled cheese at a restaurant, just be wise in doing so.  For instance, look to see if they've gotten innovative with their ingredients.  This probably means they've put some thought into it and thus it's potentially worth your time.

The addition of avocado and extra gooey cheese took this otherwise standard grilled cheese to a higher level.

But what to do when you really want a great restaurant-made grilled cheese?  Well, lucky for us all, grilled cheese fever is rapidly spreading.  Before I travel I make a point of researching potential grilled cheese deliciousness and so far have always found a restaurant that offers a famous grilled cheese (see: Field Reports).  Food and Wine even compiled this useful list of some of their favorite sandwiches from across the country.  And while the majority of the sandwiches are located in major metropolitan areas, there are enough small town spots to make me optimistic that there's a quality grilled cheese lurking virtually anywhere!  (Five Guys even gets a shoutout for theirs, and we know those are easy to find.)  And even after searching high and low you still can't find a good grilled cheese near you, perhaps it's time to try your hands as a grilled cheese restaurateur?  I'll be happy to pay you a visit!  Until then I'll continue to try and find my way to the Grilled Cheese Invitational.