Grown Up Grilled Cheese
Who doesn’t love a good, old fashioned grilled cheese sandwich? Our mothers made them for us when we were young. My mom would make them for my sister and brother and I on wheat bread with American cheese slices. My friends would have Wonder bread in the house, but in my home, it was always wheat bread.
About once a week we would have soup and sandwich night. We’d have BLT’s, or tuna melts or grilled cheese and a bowl of hearty soup. I still like to make soup and sandwiches for dinner for my family when I just don’t have the energy to make a time consuming dinner. Do you have soup and sandwich night at your house? What about breakfast for dinner? Meals like that are nostalgic for me and bring me back to my childhood. I hope my kids associate certain meals with good times of their younger years and bring back happy memories.
The key to a good grilled cheese sandwich is a nice, crisp outside and an ooey, gooey inside where the cheese oozes out the sides when you slice the sandwich in half.
[tweetthis]Grown Up Grilled Cheese Sandwiches are sophisticated, yet still great for kids. Make these for an easy weeknight supper. #dinner #recipe[/tweetthis]
I still love an old fashioned grilled cheese sandwich, but sometimes I like a Grown Up Grilled Cheese and that’s what I’m sharing with you today. Kids will still like the grown up version, but it’s a little more sophisticated and good enough to serve on game night with a group of adults. It’s got crispy bacon, juicy tomatoes and of course, cheese, the star ingredient.
Grown Up Grilled Cheese can be made with a variety of different fillings and any cheese that you like. This recipe calls for Havarti cheese, which is a favorite in my home.
Havarti cheese is very smooth and buttery and melts really well, which makes it perfect for a grilled cheese sandwich. It’s got a very mild flavor, so it won’t overpower the other ingredients in the sandwich.
No grown up grilled cheese sandwich is complete without crispy bacon! There are lots of pins on Pinterest of ways to cook bacon in the oven or microwave, but I still like to cook bacon on the stovetop in a skillet. Center cut bacon is leaner than regular bacon, but still crisps up nicely. It also renders less fat in the pan, so there is less mess to clean up.
Another key to a good grilled cheese sandwich is a nice, hearty bread. Sara Lee now has a line of Artisan breads that are thick cut and taste more like they came from a fresh bakery than the bread isle at the grocery store. For a Grown Up Grilled Cheese, I like to use wheat bread, rather than white. Wheat bread not only is better for you, but I prefer the flavor.
*Note, this is not a sponsored post, I just really like this bread!
Build an assembly line to move the sandwich making process along. Spread a thin layer of butter on one side of each slice of bread. This way, there is no need to keep adding butter to the pan and every sandwich has a nice, buttery outside.
Cooking the sandwiches low and slow will give you a nice, crispy outside, while still allowing the cheese to completely melt on the inside. We have an electric cooktop and setting the burner on 6 makes for the best grilled cheese.
Let the pan heat up for about two minutes, then lay a slice of bread, buttered side down. Add a slice of Harvarti, two slices of crispy bacon, two thick slices of juicy tomatoes, another slice of Havarti, and another slice of bread, buttered side up.
Cook until nice and golden brown on one side, then flip over and cook until golden brown on the other side.
Look at that golden deliciousness! If you turn up the heat too high, the bread will burn before the cheese has the opportunity to melt. Being patient will pay off, trust me!
That, my friends, is what a Grown Up Grilled Cheese sandwich looks like. If you like a little bit of heat, add some sliced jalapeños.
Do me a favor this week, and make Grown Up Grilled Cheese for dinner and come back and leave me a comment and let me know what you thought. Snap a photo and tag #ketchumkitchen on Social Media.
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Ingredients
- 8 slices thick cut bread (like Sara Lee Artesano wheat bread)
- 8 slices center cut bacon, cooked until crisp and drained well
- 8 thick slices beefsteak tomatoes
- 8 slices Havarti Cheese
- 4 tablespoons real butter
Instructions
- Butter one side of each of the 8 slices of bread. On medium heat, heat up a grill pan for 2 minutes. Add 4 slices of bread, butter side down. Top each piece of bread with one slice of Havarti, followed by 2 slices of bacon, then 2 slices of tomato, another slice of cheese, and another slice of bread, butter side up.
- Cook the sandwiches until they are golden brown on one side and the cheese starts to melt. Flip over and continue cooking until golden brown on the other side.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition Facts
Grown Up Grilled Cheese
Serves: 4
| Amount Per Serving: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 735.61 kcal | |
| % Daily Value* | ||
| Total Fat 55.46 g | 84.6% | |
| Saturated Fat 26.32 g | 130% | |
| Trans Fat 1.22 g | ||
| Cholesterol 125.93 mg | 41.7% | |
| Sodium 1043.5 mg | 43.5% | |
| Total Carbohydrate 31.83 g | 10.3% | |
| Dietary Fiber 2.97 g | 8% | |
| Sugars 5.59 g | ||
| Protein 27.6 g | ||
| Vitamin A 273.47 µg | Vitamin C 7.51 mg | |
| Calcium 466.85 mg | Iron 2.5 mg | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ketchum Kitchen
