Now, I’m known for many, many bad habits. One of the worst (at least according to my mother), is that I don’t eat leftovers. I’ve passed this on to Bo to, and I admit, it’s horrible.
It’s also got to change.
Food is bloody expensive, and I’m in the (also horrible) habit of cooking far too much for two and a half people. See, I told you, lots of bad habits.
Any way, the lesson here is that I’m starting to make an effort to re-use food from the previous nights dinner to make Oliver’s lunch the next day. One thing we almost always have is day old bread. Bo loves a fresh loaf of bread with dinner, but he’s usually the only one to eat any (well, Oliver always takes a slice or two as well).
This day, I had half a loaf of rustic Italian bread left over, so I thought: open faced grilled cheese. Here’s what I did:
First up, I grated some sharp cheddar cheese and put it in a small bowl with some parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, minced garlic, hot sauce and worcestershire sauce
Mix it all up.
Spread some butter on your bread and throw in, butter side down, on a hot skillet or griddle until nice and golden brown.
Put some parchment paper on a baking sheet (no mess this way), then put your bread on it and top with your cheese mixture. But wait, what’s this? You made too much cheese mixture? Well, if you’re like me that’s no by accident. That’s an on purpose. I make a bunch of little puddles of cheese around the bread. Those will turn into cheese crackers. Yum.
Throw it in the oven, and bam, this is what you’ve got in 10 or 15 minutes.
Closer look? Ok, if you insist.
Then, just cut it up into slices.
I don’t know about you, but I was quite happy to have grilled cheese for lunch. Oliver was too.
Here’s the printable:
Open Faced Grown-Up Grilled Cheese
Ingredients
- ½ loaf leftover bread (Italian, French, etc)
- 3 to 4 tbsp butter, softened
- 1½ cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
- ½ tbsp Italian seasoning
- ½ tsp worcestershire sauce
- ½ tsp hot sauce
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp minced garlic, 1 clove
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Spread the softened butter on the bread then place the bread buttered side down in a hot pan or griddle. Leave for 2 to 3 minutes, until deep golden brown and crisp.
- In a medium bowl mix the cheeses, Italian seasoning, worchestershire, hot sauce, garlic powder, garlic, salt and pepper.
- Place the bread on the parchment paper lined baking sheet then top with the cheese mixture. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is well melted and bubbling.
- Let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then cut into slices and enjoy.
Let me know below!