Gourmet Grilled Cheese
Total Time
20 mins
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Rating
5 out of 5 stars
(4)
Ingredients
4 servings
- Green Harissa
- 2 green Anaheim peppers, or 1 poblano
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
- 3/4 cup cilantro
- 1/4 cup pepitas
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- freshly ground black pepper
- Grilled Cheese
- 8 sourdough bread slices
- A few handfuls of spinach leaves
- 2 to 3 cups grated havarti cheese
- Extra-virgin oil, for grilling
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Preparation
Step 1
Make the green harissa. Char the peppers over a gas burner or under a broiler until the skin is blackened all over. Remove from the heat and place in a bowl and cover with a towel or plastic wrap for 10 minutes. Slice off the stem and place the peppers, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, coriander, salt, honey, cilantro, pepitas and a few grinds of black pepper into a food processor and pulse until combined. Drizzle in the olive oil and process until smooth.
Step 2
Make the grilled cheese. Slather the green harissa on the insides of each slice of bread. Assemble with spinach leaves and cheese. Pre-heat a cast iron skillet or grill pan over medium heat. Brush the outsides of the sandwich with olive oil and grill on each side until the cheese is melted.
Step 3
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Chef's notes
Better ingredients = a better sandwich. As with all simple recipes, the better your ingredients are, the better your grilled cheese will be. I like mine with sourdough or good crusty bread and havarti or sharp cheddar cheese.
Use a good melting cheese. Because higher-moisture cheeses yield the best oozy, pull-apart sandwiches, steer clear of crumbly, hard types of cheese like Parmesan or manchego. I use havarti here (Roth Cheese is a favorite), but gruyere, gouda, provolone, mozzarella, and white cheddar cheeses (or a mix!) are all great choices for a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich.
Cover for even cooking. If the bread is browning faster than the cheese is melting, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. The trapped heat will help melt the cheese before the bread gets too brown.
Save the leftover harissa. If you try this green harissa recipe (and I hope you do!), you’ll end up with some leftover. Save it for a gourmet grilled cheese sandwich on another day, or use it in something else entirely. I recommend scooping it onto tacos, avocado toast, grilled veggies, pizza slices, falafel, or a chickpea shawarma wrap! And for a more traditional (red) harissa recipe, check out page 281 of my new cookbook, Love & Lemons Every Day.
