Ahh, the grilled cheese. A college student classic. Warm, melted cheese, buttery, toasty bread; it can’t get any better than this. Or can it? Here are five ways to turn this classic into a culinary masterpiece sure to impress all of your friends.
1. Spinach and Sun-dried Tomato
Difficulty: Piece of cake.
Payoff: 100% worth it.
Starting with a base of thick cut mozzarella, pile on the spinach and a few sun-dried tomatoes. Cook on a flat surface such as a griddle or a skillet, and place another skillet on top for weight. This holds everything together, and ensures that the cheese melts evenly.
2. Pesto, Havarti, and Muenster
Difficulty: No harder than a regular grilled cheese.
Payoff: Worth the one extra step.
On whatever kind of bread you have, spread a nice layer of basil pesto. Add a slice of Havarti and a slice of Muenster, and sizzle away. Basically a regular grilled cheese, but way more impressive.
3. The Chicken Bacon Ranch
Difficulty: You have to cook chicken first.
Payoff: You can thank me later.
Make some chicken. Bake it, boil it, put it in the crockpot, whatever suits you. Make sure it is well seasoned, though. No one likes bland chicken. Salt, pepper, garlic, and onion are pretty basic go-to seasonings for this one. Once the chicken is thoroughly cooked, shred it. Kitchen hack: put the chicken in a bowl, and the shred it with a hand mixer. It will take about 1/10 of the time shredding it any other way would. Next, make some bacon. On some nice, firm bread, start with a hearty layer of Asiago cheese. Pile on some of the shredded chicken, drizzle some ranch on there, throw some bacon in there, and top off with another layer of Asiago. Cook in a skillet or on a griddle. Everyone will want to be your friend if you can make this dope AF sandwich. You’re welcome.
4. Goat Cheese, Fig, and Arugula
Difficulty: Medium.
Payoff: You’ll really look like you can make fancy food.
Using nice artisan or ciabatta bread, spread a nice layer of fig spread (surprisingly easy to make, or you can just buy fig jam or preserves at any store). Next, put on a healthy layer of goat cheese. You’ll need more than you think because it melts and becomes pretty thin. Add a layer of arugula, a drizzle of balsamic glaze, and put it in the Panini press. If you are a normal college student who does not own a Panini press, use the waffle maker at your cafeteria!
5. The Croque Monsieur
Difficulty: You have to use the oven.
Payoff: 10/10.
If you have never tried Gruyere cheese, be prepared to be amazed. It’s insanely good. Set the oven to broil. Make a béchamel sauce (trust me, this makes the entire sandwich, and it’s super easy). For the béchamel, I used a recipe by Marc Murphy on Foodnetwork.com. (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/marc-murphy/croque-monsieur.html) Once that is done, put a layer of black forest ham, pour on a bit of the béchamel, then add a layer of gruyere. Place the second slice of bread on top, and then cover that in a layer of gruyere as well. Broil until cheese on top is melted and has a bit of color.
Use these tips to trick your friends into thinking that you can actually cook when in reality, it’s a simple grilled cheese! Bon appetit!