Grilled cheese sandwiches will never get old for me. There are so many possible variations to get that gooey goodness on a plate, but I rarely experiment. I usually stick to a good cheddar and go to it. Today, I’m spreading my wings and reaching for brie, pears, a mess of caramelized onions, and Martin’s potato bread. Here’s my mise en place.
Making this sandwich is super easy. It just requires patience to slice and caramelize the onions. I like to make a big batch of caramelized onions for use in other dishes throughout the week. It’s a great flavour booster.
Two sliced onions and a healthy dose of olive oil go into the pan on medium-high heat. Season with salt and pepper. Stir occasionally to ensure all of the onions cook down.
Once the onions are soft, add about 4 tbsp of balsamic vinegar (pro tip: keeping your head back so you don’t inhale those strong fumes once the vinegar hits the pan.) Keep stirring, adding a splash or two of water to keep the onion/vinegar mixture from burning. This process takes about 20 minutes—or more if you like a jammy quality to your caramelized onions.
Meanwhile, slice two pears (apples will do fine here too), get a pan glistened with olive oil going on medium heat to do a light sautee on the pears (about 5 minutes). I seasoned the pears with a hint of freshly grated nutmeg and fresh cracked black pepper. You have the option of serving the pears as is, but my pears aren’t the ripest so the sautee method makes them readier for prime time.
Time to build the sandwich. Butter two slices of bread, wall to wall. Lay down thinly sliced brie cheese on the unbuttered side of one slice of bread.
Layer the pear slices on top of the brie. On one of my sandwiches I’m adding some crumbled blue cheese as an experiment. I want to see how it changes the flavour profile of this sandwich.
Caramelized onions go down (be generous!).
Cover the sandwich with the other piece of bread, butter side up and get that sandwich into a hot pan at medium heat, grilling on both sides until the bread is golden brown and the brie has melted.
Once the sandwich is grilled, we’re ready to serve.
The brie is dreamy and plays well with the pears and caramelized onions. The version with blue cheese was my favourite—it added complexity and it cut through the natural sweetness of the pears and caramelized onions. I haven’t worked with Martin’s potato bread before—it’s sweet and rich like brioche, which isn’t my favourite way to go with this sandwich. Next time I’ll opt for a pullman loaf if I can find one.
Overall, this is a decadent, rich grilled cheese. I’ll definitely make it again, but would more likely serve it cut into four triangles—more like an appetizer bite than a lunch sandwich.
— Trish Hennessy
A Year in Sandwiches 