Grilled
Cheese
50 Recipes to Make You Melt
by Marlena Spieler
(Chronicle Books, 2004)
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Our
love affair with grilled cheese sandwiches started
a long time ago with Mom's "Hawaii toast."
This was an open-faced presentation with a slice of
white bread, Kraft Singles, ham and a circle of pineapple,
grilled to melty perfection in the oven. We have long
since graduated from processed cheese—but for
a kid it was a lunch-come-true. Equally finger-lickin'
good was the simple, classic variation with two slices
of sourdough or rye bread and a good cheese: crunchy
on the outside and gooey on the inside. This is something
we still indulge in now and then, and it has to be
the old-school variety with buttered bread, the kind
you'd get in a traditional diner with a tall glass
of cold milk or a real coke.
To prove that grilled cheese sandwiches aren't kids
stuff, Campanile
in Los Angeles offers 14 different versions on its
Thursday Grilled Cheese Nights. Go figure. If we haven't
convinced you yet to give this American classic another
try, check out Grilled
Cheese: 50 Recipes to Make You Melt by Marlena
Spieler. She writes that the options are limitless.
Basically it comes down to your imagination and what's
in your kitchen cabinets. The fig d'India jam you
brought home from Calabria might come in handy. So
may canned (or fresh) pineapple. Mom knew what she
was doing.
Where it gets really interesting, though, are with
Spieler's creations like the Saltimbocca Sandwich
(sage, prosciutto and Beafort on country bread), or
the satisfying Melted Appenzell, Emmentaler, Pear
and Cumin! We're lusting after Grilled Cheddar, Chutney,
Sauasage and Cilantro, and Crisp Truffled Comté
with Black Chanterelles. Or Radicchio, Roquefort and
Toasted Pecans on Pain au Levain. Before we list every
single mouthwatering option in this small but tasty
(and deliciously illustrated) book, we'll sum it up
with the statement on the back cover, although we're
not sure whether to credit Spieler or Paris Hilton:
"grilled cheese is hot!"
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