Recipe & Image: KATHY PATERSON
In need of a little love? Make a glorious grilled cheese sandwich.
Makes 2
15g butter, plus extra for buttering bread slices
a dash of olive oil
1 medium onion, finely sliced
1 ripe but firm pear, quartered, cored and sliced
sea salt and pepper
¾–1 cup coarsely grated cheese, such as Gouda, Gruyere or Cheddar
1 buffalo Bocconcini, torn into pieces
4 slices bread (a potato sourdough bread is good here)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Heat a wide heavy-based saucepan or frying pan over low heat. Add the butter and oil, and as the butter melts and bubbles, add the onion. Cook until the onion softens and turns lightly golden, stirring from time to time to prevent sticking (about 7 minutes). Transfer onion to a plate then add the sliced pear and cook until tender and golden, turning once. Season with salt and pepper and add to the onion. Set aside to cool.
In a bowl, combine the grated cheese and torn buffalo Bocconcini.
Heat a heavy-based frying pan over medium heat.
Spread the cheese mixture on one side of each of two bread slices. Top with the onion and pear mixture. Spread the Dijon mustard on the remaining two bread slices and place mustard-side down on the cheese mixture to make sandwiches. Butter the outside of each sandwich on both sides.
Place sandwiches in the hot pan and cook until the bread is golden brown, then flip the sandwich and cook the other side. Serve.
Kathy Paterson is a recipe developer, food stylist and photographer. A plentiful herb garden and a trial and error vegetable garden give Kathy the starting place for her recipes along with her love for the classics with a modern twist.
