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Joanna Adduci is a Northport resident, currently working as a Marketing & Social Media Specialist. She has a B.S. in Journalism from St. John's University and is active within her community as a writer and mentor. She enjoys cooking, traveling and singing in her Long Island-based cover band, Next Generation. Joanna can be reached by email at |
| The Grilled Cheese Sandwich. So remarkable in it’s ooey, gooey glory that it deserves more than a spot on the children’s menu. Originally popular in the 1920s and 1930s, the grilled cheese was more of an inexpensive, easy-to-prepare meal option rather than savory, comfort food. While our grandparents and parents grew up making this tasty treat with white bread and American cheese, times are a’ changin, folks. That’s right. Leave the white bread at home. American cheese? Forget it. Think parmesan and pesto on a toasty ciabatta. How about gorgonzola and bacon? Or maybe you’re in the mood for an audacious mix of brie and honey fig jam? The possibilities are endless. You should think about a few things before creating your grilled cheese sandwich. What kind of bread do you like? What kind of bread will work with the ingredients you’re going to use? Maybe a nice baguette will provide the texture you’re looking for. If you’re going to be using savory ingredients, try a slightly richer, softer option like brioche. Whether you choose a crusty bakery bread or healthier oatmeal wheat, it’s important to consider the texture and flavor before embarking on your grilled cheese adventure. Now the cheese. I mean, who doesn’t like cheese? Honestly, I’ve been studying cheese for years and I still regularly come across a surprising brie or an unpredictable goat cheese. Flavor is key here. Decide what you like. (If you can’t decide what you like, decide what you don’t like and work from there.) If you prefer something sharp, you may want to start with cheddar. If you’re searching for something a tad milder, more luxurious and tangy – aim for taleggio. (I live for taleggio with a hearty fig or onion jam. To die for.) The world is your oyster. Explore the cheese department of your local grocer. I’d recommend Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods or Fairway Market. All have excellent options and knowledgeable staff. Ask to try different cheeses – educate yourself – learn what you like and go from there. My infatuation with grilled cheese was amplified after recreating a “Brie and Bacon Grilled Cheese with Fig Jam” recipe I found. To put this sandwich into words would be arbitrary. The salty crunch of the bacon mixed with the oozing, buttery globs of brie. No words. Then, the fig jam becomes undeniably apparent to your palette; sweet and textured in all of its honey glory. (I’d put fig jam on just about anything, but this was undoubtedly delicious.) Bottom line: Grilled cheese is otherworldly in all of its stringy, savory, oozing goodness. Seriously, you need to make a grilled cheese sandwich. Next time you’re too tired to cook, create something simple, yet spectacular. Put your chef hat on and think of all the whimsical things you could do with a few slices of bread and some leftover ingredients in the fridge. Pull together your resources and engineer a masterpiece. Who knows? You may become a grilled cheese connoisseur. |
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20 lucky winners will win $500 each in prizes totaling $10,000. 