Grilled cheese sandwich three ways

Now and then, life requires a grilled cheese sandwich. It's the culinary equivalent of a black t-shirt. Sometimes you wake up knowing that nothing but your favorite black shirt will feel right and sometimes nothing but your own personal version of the perfect grilled cheese sandwich will satisfy your hunger.

It's in part an atavistic urge, or nearly so, as most of us imprinted on some form of toasted bread with gooey melted cheese at an impressionable age. John Ash, a colleague and a friend, frequently credits his grandmother's grilled cheese sandwiches with leading him into a culinary career, including a partnership in Hot Cheese, which offered contemporary grilled cheese sandwiches at the Windsor Farmers Market last year.

My mother occasionally made grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch on weekends, especially if it was stormy outside. Technically, her version wasn't grilled but the overall effect qualifies it for the moniker. She would toast a piece of bread lightly, spread a smear of margarine -- alas, we did not use butter when I was growing up -- over it and then top it with exactly one and one-quarter slices of American cheese, just enough to completely cover the bread with a single layer of cheese. Then she would set it on a piece of aluminum foil and place it under the broiler until the cheese inflated like a balloon and the edges charred.

Sometimes the cheese would remain inflated until I took a bite and then the air would rush out and the cheese collapse. I can taste it as I write.

It's been a grilled cheese kind of year, at least so far, with endless rain when we're all longing for sunshine, distressing political news and gas prices that make us all think twice and even three times about driving anywhere. I've been inclined to stay home with a good book and a favorite movie. With all the fixin's for a good sandwich in the fridge and pantry, it's an entirely pleasant thing to do.

If I have homemade tomato soup on hand, all the better. (For my favorite tomato soup recipes for winter and spring, visit this column's companion blog, Eat This Now, at pantry.blogs.pressdemocrat.com)

Sandwiches are hugely popular these days, especially at food trucks and celebrity restaurants, such as Tom Colicchio's 'wichcraft sandwich shops. The classic Croque Monsieur is often among the offerings, yet it is frequently more complicated -- dipped in egg and slathered with bechamel sauce, for example -- than we want to duplicate at home.

But Julia Child's version, adapted here from "Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home" (Knopf, 1999, $40), is both simple and perfectly explained, with instructions that apply to almost any sandwich, especially when it comes to arranging the bread.

Julia Child's

Croque Monsieur

Makes 1 sandwich

2 slices soft home-style white bread, removed from the loaf in sequence

1 tablespoon best-quality mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

2 or more slices Gruyere or Emmentaler, 3/16-inch thick, cut to fit the bread

1 ' slice good ham, 3/16-inch thick, cut to fit the bread

2 tablespoons clarified butter

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

Lay the bread on a work surface and open it like a book, so that when you close the sandwich the right and left sides will match exactly. Spread an even coating of mayonnaise on top of each slice and add a bit of mustard. Lay a slice of cheese on the right side, top it with a slice of ham and another slice or two of cheese. Turn the left slice of bread over on top of the right and press down firmly on the sandwich with the palm of your hand. Rotate and press several times to hold the sandwich together. Use a large, sharp knife to trim off the crusts all around to form a neat square.

Melt a tablespoon of the clarified butter in a frying pan and set over moderately high heat. When the butter is very hot, reduce the heat to medium and set the sandwich in the pan, pressing down with a metal spatula several times as the sandwich browns. Cook for 2 minutes.

Lift the sandwich up, add the remaining tablespoon of clarified butter to the pan and, when it is melted, set the sandwich down on the uncooked side, again pressing down as the sandwich browns.

Transfer the sandwich in the pan to the oven and bake for 7 or 8 minutes or until the cheese is completely melted.

Cut the sandwich in half diagonally and, if you wish, in half again to make small triangles to serve as appetizers. Serve hot.

True Cheddar cheese is crumbly; you can't grate it or slice it successfully. But such cheese shouldn't really be in a sandwich; it should be savored on its own, maybe with a simple condiment or two. For the comfort of a grilled cheese sandwich, you need something more pedestrian and inexpensive; it is part of the alchemy.

Grilled Cheese & Spring Onion Sandwiches

Makes 2 servings

4 slices bread of choice (I prefer sourdough hearth bread)

-- Best-quality mayonnaise, optional

-- Dijon mustard, optional

1 spring onion, about 2-inches in diameter, trimmed and thinly sliced

-- Kosher salt

6 to 8 ounces cheddar cheese of choice, grated

-- Worcestershire sauce

-- Bottled hot sauce

1 tablespoon butter, plus more as needed

Set the bread on a clean work surface and quickly smear mayonnaise or mustard or both over each piece slice. Be as generous as you like and add the condiments in one sweep of a knife or thin rubber spatula; do not rub either into the bread.

Spread onions on two slices of bread, season with a little salt and top with cheese.

Sprinkle a little Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce over the cheese. Top with the second slices of bread.

Set a saute pan that will hold both sandwiches over medium heat, add about half the butter and, when it is melted, add the sandwiches. Cook for about 3 minutes, until the bread is golden brown. Quickly add the remaining butter, lift out the sandwiches and when the butter melts, turn them over into the pan. Set a heavy lid directly on top of the sandwiches and cook another 3 minutes or so, until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is completely melted.

Transfer to sturdy napkins or plates and enjoy immediately.

Variations:

* For a classic grilled cheese sandwich, simply omit the onion.

* Instead of spring onions, use thinly sliced avocado

At some point, if a grilled cheese sandwich gets too complicated, it warrants a different name. This version is about as far as I can go without calling the sandwich something different.

Grilled St. George Cheese, Mushroom & Tapenade Sandwiches

Makes 2 servings

3 tablespoons butter

-- Handful of mushrooms of choice, thinly sliced or broken into small pieces

-- Kosher salt

-- Black pepper in a mill

4 slices local bread of choice

3 tablespoons best-quality mayonnaise, optional

1 tablespoon black olive tapenade, plus more if needed

6 to 8 ounces St. George cheese (from Joe Matos Cheese Factory), grated

Melt about half the butter in a saute pan set over medium heat, add the mushrooms and saute, turning frequently, until tender; the time will vary based on the type of mushroom. If the mushroom releases any liquid, cook until it evaporates. Season with salt and pepper and remove from the heat.

Set the bread on a clean work surface.

If using the mayonnaise, combine it with the tapenade and spread over each slice of bread. If not using mayonnaise, spread a thin layer of tapenade over each slice of bread. Spoon mushrooms on top of two pieces of the bread, leaving as much of the buttery pan drippings behind as possible. Top the mushrooms with the cheese and season it generously with black pepper. Top with the second slices of bread.

Return the pan to medium heat, add about half the remaining butter and when it is add the sandwiches. Cook for about 3 minutes, until the bread is golden brown. Quickly add the remaining butter, lift out the sandwiches and when the butter melts, turn them over into the pan. Set a heavy lid directly on top and cook another 3 minutes or so, until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is completely melted.

Transfer to sturdy napkins or plates and enjoy immediately.

Variations: Use Italian Fontina or Gruyere instead of St. George.

Michele Anna Jordan hosts "Mouthful" each Sunday at 7 p.m. on KRCB 90.9 & 91.1 FM. E-mail Jordan at michele@micheleannajordan.com. You'll find her blog, "Eat This Now," at pantry.blogs. pressdemocrat.com/