grilled cheese « (y)our food choices™

Now that we are coming into summer with Memorial Day just around the corner, creamy potato salads, grilled burgers, and plenty of other great picnic foods have finally returned to our tables and plates. Mayonnaise is a one of those condiments/ingredients that most people buy store bought, and until recently we were included in the group. Last week, we were out of the stuff in a jar, so we decided to make our own. The ingredient list is short and the technique is pretty straight forward, but it’s work. Whisking while slowly pouring oil into the bowl drip-by-drip is hard work. Seriously!

There are some things that demand a little mayo, like that potato salad, fried chicken sandwiches and grilled cheese. Seriously, for the best grilled cheese sandwich, spread mayo on the outer sides of the bread instead of butter or oil. Since mayo is mostly oil, it frys up the bread and creates a nice crunchy crust. Trust us, you’ll agree.

Most mayo recipes suggest a neutral oil like canola or safflower. We had neither, just regular extra virgin olive oil. The olive oil is a little grassy and peppery, but delicious for our needs and works well for sandwiches and salads.

Whip up a batch the next time your out of your favorite jar, or if you just need a good one arm workout.

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Olive Oil Mayonnaise
adapted from Good Eats

1 egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
A pinch of sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 cup olive oil

In a glass bowl, combine the egg yolk and dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, combine lemon juice and vinegar.

Whisk half of lemon and vinegar with egg yolk mixture until blended and then start whisking oil in drips into the egg mixture until it starts to thicken into an emulsion. Increase the stream of oil while you continue to whisk vigorously (you may sweat a little), making sure not to add the oil too quickly. Once all the oil is added, you should have a nice, creamy but soft mayo. Let sit for a couple of hours at room temperature, then refrigerate.

Sometimes, what might seem like a brilliant blog idea can lose momentum and fade away if we don’t just sit down and write it. Looking through many photos of our cooking we’re amazed at how many missed opportunities have gotten away from us – great ideas unwritten and unpublished. So to make amends we’re finally getting around to writing and publishing a blog that we started several months ago. We figure since the guy that predicted the rapture was wrong–twice, we have time to prepare for the next BIG party.

Back in May, the day before the “first” rapture was supposed to happen, Jason was in our kitchen making a big batch of grilled cheese sandwiches for an Artist Opening at Zannah Noe‘s Velcrow Studio. Making the sandwiches took hours, and as the time went by Jason thought about the type of food one would serve at a rapture party. We’re Gleeks (we’ve seen all the Glee episodes multiple times) and it seemed obvious to Jason that Grilled Cheesus would not only be the ultimate rapture food, but it would coincide with the season finale of Glee–assuming we were all still here. Alas, the season ended, the world didn’t, summer rolled over us like a truck and here we are, approaching Halloween, and this darned grilled cheese post is just now seeing the light of day.

All the fixings for the ultimate grilled cheese.

So now we’re in our kitchen prepping more sandwiches again, for Zannah Noe’s Open Studio on Saturday, October 29, TODAY! We will be at her studio with our panini maker, bread, and lots of cheese. The Ultimate Grilled Cheese is a Ruth Reichl recipe that we fell in love with after seeing it on the PBS holiday special, A Moveable Feast, which featured several cooking show hosts preparing their favorite holiday food. Ruth’s grilled cheese sandwiches are wonderful and adaptable to any, and all, cheese. The point is to experiment.

With All Hallows Eve only a couple days away, and the holidays fast approaching, if you need a quick and easy appetizer that everyone will love, try the ultimate grilled cheese sandwich. They are so good that if the rapture does happen these sandwiches will be your ticket to Heaven.

The Ultimate Grilled Cheese

1/3 pound Swiss cheese, shredded
1/3 pound Irish cheddar cheese, shredded
1/3 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons onion, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
freshly ground pepper
6-8 slices No-Knead bread or good quality bread

Mix the shredded cheeses with the onion, shallot, garlic, and ground pepper. Place between two slices of bread using a panini maker to grill the sandwiches, or butter both sides of the sandwich and lightly grill in a skillet over medium low heat.