Scoop up the loose shredded cheese in the skillet with your spatula and place it on the buttery outside of the sandwich, creating an extra-delicious, crunchy cheesy outside.
Dawn Kessinger/The Lima News
I used to dread making grilled cheese sandwiches.
I know, I know — how hard can it be? First, I pull two pieces of some kind of bread (sourdough is great, but I typically use whatever I have in the cupboard — Lewis brand Nutty Oat, usually) from its bag. Then I take the butter from the fridge.
Then I discover the bread is still too fresh and fragile and I battle with the butter to spread without ripping the bread to shreds. When I was a girl, I remember my mom left some butter out on the counter in a nice covered butter dish. Why don’t I do that?
With my unreliable memory, I don’t dare: While it’s “safe” to leave butter out at room temperature for a day or two, it can turn rancid if left out for too long. I often go two or three days without using butter. In as no-nonsense a tone as possible, I can instruct myself, “Make some toast and finish using the rest of the butter tomorrow.” But as soon as it’s out of my line of sight, the butter is forgotten.
How about a handwritten reminder note? It either gets dropped on the floor and attaches itself to the bottom of a shoe, or tucked into a pair of jeans pockets and forgotten. Thus, for me, it’s safer to keep the butter in the refrigerator to avoid wasting it when I discover it’s not good to use when I need it a week later.
After the bread-buttering war, I place the piece of bread in the skillet, butter-side down, then put a slice of Kraft American cheese (or a Velveeta jalapeno cheese slice) on it. Then I sprinkle shredded cheese — sometimes it’s cheddar, sometimes it’s Italian or mozzarella — onto the slice of American and put the other piece of bread on top, butter-side up.
It should not be a big deal to wait until the cheese has had sufficient time to melt onto one side of the bread before I flip it. But I am a ridiculously impatient person. Nine times out of 10, I flip the sandwich before the cheese has had a chance to begin to melt, and my sandwich falls apart, with a good portion of the shredded cheese going everywhere in the skillet. Ack!
But then I discover that the two slices of bread are fairly easy to match back together. Even better, the well-done, crispy cheese from the bottom of the skillet is quite delicious. And often, as I continue flipping the sandwich, I scoop up the loose cheese with my spatula and place it on the buttery outside of the sandwich, creating an extra-delicious, crunchy cheesy outside to complement the warm, melty goodness inside.
I don’t mind making grilled cheese sandwiches anymore. I’m happy that I discovered something good despite my impatience and my mess.
No-Dread Grilled Cheese
Ingredients:
• 2 pieces of bread per sandwich
• Butter
• One slice cheese per sandwich
• Shredded cheese
Turn your stove burner on medium.
Sprinkle a handful of shredded cheese into the skillet.
After you’ve buttered one side of each piece of bread, lay one slice of bread in the skillet, butter side down. Place a slice of cheese on the bread. Sprinkle shredded cheese on top, then add the other slice of bread, butter side up.
Let your sandwich rest for a minute or two in the skillet then flip it with a spatula. Flip until both sides of your sandwich are browned and crisped how you best like it.
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