A Grilled Cheese Spread

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Can you see the possibilities here!  Just looking at this picture makes me hungry again despite the fact that I recently chowed down on a hearty lunch.  Unfortunately, my lunch was not a grilled cheese sandwich, if it had been, I would be utterly satisfied. Instead, my mind is wandering to last night’s dinner. 

We made these delicious grilled cheeses, a sun-dried tomato and macadamia nut pesto with smoked mozzarella and a grilled tri-cheese edamame-kale pesto sandwich. You can’t go wrong with any combination of cheese and bread grilled with rosemary butter.

The key to these tasty sandwiches was the herby, golden flavor of the rosemary butter. You have to try it.

First, the pesto:

Sun-dried Tomato and Macadamia Nut Pesto:

1 8.5 oz jar of sun-dried tomatoes, packed in olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 cup of basil, packed

1/2 cup parmesan

1/3 cup macadamia nuts, roasted

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tablespoon tomato paste

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

In a food processor, combine nuts, garlic and basil. Pulse until everything is broken down.  Add in the entire jar, including the oil, of sun-dried tomatoes and pulse until combined.  Add in parmesan, tomato paste, and lemon juice and pulse until all ingredients are combined. With food processor running, drizzle in olive oil until mixture comes together.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Tomato Pesto Grilled Cheese with Smoked Mozzarella

Sliced focaccia bread

Smoked mozzarella

Tomato pesto (see above)

Fresh basil

Rosemary Butter (1 stick of butter, about 1 tablespoon rosemary, pinch of salt)

Spread 1 teaspoon of rosemary butter on each slice of bread, the butter side out for grilling. Spread each slice of bread with tomato pesto, sliced smoked mozzarella, fresh basil and top with another slice of bread, with buttered side out. Grill on either side until golden brown. Allow to cool for a minute of two before cutting in half.

Edamame-Kale Pesto

1/2 bunch of kale

1 1/2 cups edamame

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted

1/2 cup fresh basil

2 sprigs of tarragon

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 cloves garlic

Salt and Pepper to taste

Olive olive as needed

Blanch kale and enamame in simmering water for 20 seconds or until they are a bright green. Remove from water and set aside.

In a food processor combine nuts, kale, edamame, basil, tarragon, and garlic. Pulse until everything is broken down. Add in soy sauce, vinegar, salt and pepper, and pulse until combined. Then slowly drizzle in olive oil until you’ve reached your desired consistency. 

Grilled Tri-Cheese with Edamame-Kale Pesto

Sliced rye bread

Gorgonzola cheese

Gruyere cheese

Edamame-kale pesto (see above)

Rosemary butter (see above)

Spread 1 teaspoon of rosemary butter on each slice of bread, the butter side out for grilling. Spread each slice of bread with edamame-kale pesto pesto, cheeses, and top with another slice of bread, with buttered side out. Grill on either side until golden brown. Allow to cool for a minute of two before cutting in half.

Enjoy.