Battle of 2 grilled cheeses

I’m making 52 sandwiches this year and you know that childhood comfort food, the grilled cheese, is going to make at least one appearance.

I decide this week is going to be a battle of two grilled cheeses.

Contender #1: The “grilled cheez”, the one many of us grew up with. Bread, butter, processed sliced cheese that’s not really cheese.

Contender #2: The “chef’s grilled cheese”, inspired by chef Roy Choi’s version depicted in this scene in the movie Chef. Bread, butter, neutral oil, more butter, two types of thinly sliced real cheese (I choose colby and havarti).

Which one pairs best with that other childhood classic, a nice warm bowl of Campbell’s tomato soup?

Up first: Grilled cheez. Both start with beautiful slice of brioche bread from Cliffside’s Hearth, a small batch bakery that makes everything from scratch. It’s buttery, soft, and it’ll make a perfect base for these sandwiches.

Bread gets a generous spread of butter. And I do mean generous.

Two slices of processed cheez go down on the unbuttered side. Top those with another piece of bread, butter side up.

Into a non-stick pan at medium-high heat it goes.

Once both sides are golden and the cheez is melted, it’s time for plating. I slice my grilled cheez into three strips and place them next to a steaming bowl of tomato soup. Ah … ooey gooey goodness. This is why I will never give up bread. This is the ultimate comfort food.

OK, time to test contender #2: the chef’s grilled cheese. Bread is buttered generously on both sides and now I slice my colby cheese, thinly.

That goes on my first slice of bread, buttered side down, then it gets topped with thinly sliced havarti. Top that with the other slice of bread, buttered side up.

Now to drizzle a bit of grapeseed oil into the pan, at medium high. Hmmm, maybe that’s a little bit more than a drizzle.

I’ve never made this version of a grilled cheese before, and it’s more of a situation. The buttered bread is interacting with the hot oil, introducing moisture into the outside of my bread and that is taking longer to get to a golden crust. About double the time of Contender #1.

OK, my sandwich is getting golden but the cheeses aren’t melting, so now I’m worrying about burning this beautiful brioche bread because I haven’t done the final ‘chef-y’ step yet: add a bit more butter to each side of the sandwich. Here we go …

This is such decadence, but I spread a thin layer on top of both sides of the already golden bread and give each side a little more time in the pan. The cheese finally starts to ooze just in time—a minute more and I would have burned my sandwich. But look at this:

The outside of Contender #2 is golden brown, crunchy, and the inside is an inferno of hot, stringy cheese.

Which one wore it better? Contender #2 is as decadent a grilled cheese sandwich as I’ve ever had. I mean, just look at it. Craig, who shares these sandwiches with me and helps me figure out the execution of each sandwich, votes for this version. A rich chef’s grilled cheese. Maybe a little too rich for me.

I’m voting for Contender #1, a grilled cheez that is easier and faster to make, has a great ooey gooey quality to it, and takes me back to the comfort foods of my youth.

But I wouldn’t kick either one of them out of bed.

Trish Hennessy