Grilled Cheese Image Used Under Creative Commons License From huffpost.com
Citizens! I am under a tremendous amount of strain at the moment, as I am arranging a HUGE event for a client of mine – it has consumed me these last several weeks in a shroud of darkness, but the final light is at last in sight (and the light does NOT appear to be an incoming train, for once)! As I look forward to respite, I find Myself craving comfort food par excellence – and NOTHING is more comforting to Me than a superlatively prepared grilled cheese, prepared to Mine own exacting standards to become the ULTIMATE version of said delight! With that, I will confine Myself to a short post today, as there is minimal history on grilled cheese. I just like it and I am confident you too will love My superlative, unmatched version!
A grilled cheese, toasted cheese sandwich, cheese toastie (UK) or jaffle (AU) is a hot cheese sandwich typically prepared by sandwiching cheese between slices of bread and cooking with a fat such as butter or mayonnaise on a frying pan, griddle, or sandwich toaster, until the bread browns and the cheese melts. Despite its name, it is rarely prepared through grilling. The 1861 English recipe book Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management includes a recipe for placing sandwiches of brown bread and butter with 1⁄2-inch (13 mm) slices of “a nice fat Cheshire or any good rich cheese” into an oven, and serving when the bread becomes toasted.
The cheese dream, an open-faced grilled cheese sandwich, became popular in the United States during the Great Depression. Cookbooks produced by the U.S. federal government describe U.S. Navy cooks broiling “American cheese filling sandwiches” during World War II. The cheapo grilled cheese inside a roll version made in West Coast U.S. cafeterias is known as a “Cheese Zombie“, BTW! Alternatives may include additional ingredients such as peppers, tomatoes, or onions. Although, cheddar cheese is used most widely, other variations of cheese like provolone cheese, gouda cheese are also used depending on the region and the local influences.
A quick scan of reddit turned up the following additional historic anecdotes:
In the sixth century, the Greek physician Anthimus warned against “roasted” cheese, which presumably was cooked on to something, unless it was particularly solid. In the fourteenth century, a man went into a Paris tavern, ordered cheese and bread, melted the cheese in a cup, then dipped the bread in the cheese (we know this because he didn’t pay and ended up arrested). (And yes, this IS the earliest example I know of a fondue.) The French have a kind of open faced grilled ham and cheese sandwich called a croque-monsieur; the earliest reference I found to that is from 1891.
Here’s La Varenne’s 1655 recipe for a cheese ramequin: “Take cheese, melt it with butter, a whole or chopped onion, lots of salt and pepper, spread all this on bread, pass the heated oven peel over it, and serve hot.”
Shakespeare uses the term twice, though that far back it might literally refer to the cheese itself. A cookbook from 1829 – a “new edition” – gives basic instructions for toasting bread and toasting cheese on top of it, to be eaten with mustard, salt and pepper. The writer seems to treat this as equivalent to Welsh Rabbit, though I first knew that as mainly melted cheese with bread buried in it (and as a little boy I kept looking for the rabbit). There’s already mention in 1837 of the Swiss eating “roast cheese”, which conceivably might have referred to fondue. Welsh Rabbit/Rarebit is first mentioned in print in 1725. There are earlier, 16th century references to other baked cheese dishes in Wales.
It appears the <American> grilled cheese sandwich came about during the Great Depression. With Kraft introducing processed cheese in 1916 and the introduction of sliced bread in the 1920s, which was the best thing since itself. They were also referred to as “toasted cheese” or “cheese dreams”.
Citizens, the innovations I have made to My grilled cheese sandwich are in the combination of cheeses I call for, the bread (I use only potato bread or sourdough), the use of a liberal spread of Dijon mustard and (most uniquely) turning this sandwich into a handheld version of French onion soup! My use of sweet sherry or madeira as you cook down the onions is the flavor profile classically associated with French onion soup, along with the use of fresh Thyme and the classic Gruyère cheese. I also call for Velveeta in My grilled cheese – don’t sneer, it’s needed for the proper classic “pull” of the cheese as well as the proper flavor and texture we all grew up with, even as the other cheeses add sophistication to your sammy.
In addition to Velveeta and Gruyère, I also call for grated Cheddar, Tête de Moine (available pre-shaved into proper ruffles at most Whole Foods cheese areas), and grated Moliterno al tartuffo (a hard Italian sheep cheese with black truffle paste veins, sometimes available at Whole Foods or buy it at the link) – you can simply replace the Tête and Moliterno with Gruyère and Romano, respectively, if they are unavailable.
The last trick to making My ultimate grilled cheese is in My secret spread for the outside of the bread – rather than buttering the outside of the bread, I have found that mayonnaise works FAR better to give you proper crunch and color on the sandwich. Again, give it a try before judging, this is a classic French chef technique! My spread is enriched with more umami from white miso, minced herbs, the Lebanese garlic spread known as toum (make it from the recipe found here or you can buy it from here) and European Maggi seasoning (buy it from here). You can buy Icelandic smoked salt crystals from Amazon (used in cooking the onions and in the cheese filling) here.
In short – this will be the best grilled cheese you will EVER have. My reputation ensures it, Citizens!
Combine all secret spread ingredients, reserve in fridge.
Combine all cheeses, reserve in fridge
Heat a large cast iron pan over medium heat, add sherry or Madeira, then olive oil, then onions and smoked salt. Cook for 20-25 minutes until caramelized. Remove onions, but keep pan hot on medium-low.
Coat slices of potato bread with secret sauce. Put in pan, coated side down. Quickly coat top sides of bread in pan with mustard, then some cheese blend, then some onions, then more cheese.
Sprinkle on smoked salt and pepper, then add the top piece of bread, coated with more mustard on the inside and secret spread on the outside.
Press gently with a spatula and cook 3-4 minutes per side or until golden brown.
Serve immediately.
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