Apple soup anyone?

This is simply the perfect side to my Grilled cheese sandwich with bacon, sharp cheddar,apple and honey mustard. Light but full of flavor, sweet and savory all together.

Ingredients :
1 celery root - diced
1 large parsnip - diced
1/2 yellow onion - diced
2 red apples - peeled and diced
1 tbs light brown sugar
1 shot of Jameson Irish Whiskey
1 to 2 tbsp creme fraiche
chopped bacon to taste.
salt and pepper to taste.


Directions:
Cover the bottom of a dutch oven pot with extra virgin olive oil and turn the heat on medium. Add the diced celery root and parsnips. cook on medium for 15 to 20 minutes. Add the onions and cook covered for another 5 to 10 minutes. Deglaze the pot with a shot of Jameson and add 1/2 cup of vegetable broth and 1 table spoon of light brown sugar. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to taste. Add the 2 diced apples and cook for an additional 15 minutes, until everything is nice and soft. Using a hand held mixer, puree until evenly smooth. Add the creme fraiche and pour into serving dishes. Sprinkle in the desired amount of bacon and garnish with some Italian parsley or cilantro.

the memorial day blues

Everyone always looks forward to the long memorial day weekend. Usually 4 days of sun filled barbecues , family and friends at a park or at the beach if you are lucky enough to live in SoCal.
but let's be hones, as much as one can love a good ol' bbq chicken plate, or a nice juice perfectly seasoned steak....but the time Memorial day Monday actually comes....aren't you tired of even the sound of the word bbq? ......this is why this year, after a friday,Saturday and sunday night filled with grilled meats we decided to put a spin on the Monday night grilling tradition. we left behind the heavy and expansive meat and opted for another American Classic: The grilled cheese sandwich.
I consider this sandwich a perfect blank canvas you can work with to create so many different and easy dinners, the Spanish have their Tapas parties...well, we now have a grilled cheese party full of bite size cheesy surprises.

- Sweet Surprise grilled cheese -

Make sure your grill is nice and hot. Prepare your bread, I chose sourdough for this, by spreading a thin layer of butter on the both the outer sides of the slices, this helps giving the bread that nice crispy golden brown appearance. Then spread a nice layer of fig jelly on one slice and place your preferred amount of brie on the other slice. Grilled the sandwich on both sides until the cheese is melted and the bread has nice grilling marks and a nice golden tone.

-Italian date night grilled cheese -

Butter the outer layers of the bread slices. Place 2 slices of havaarti cheese on one slice of bread followed by two thin slices of Prosciutto di Parma, enough thinly cut date slices to cover the whole sandwich and top it all with a couple of fresh basil leaves,cut into small pieces and a couple more cheese slices. grill the sandwich on both sides until golden brown and the cheese is fully melted.

- Salty Bites grilled cheese -

In a small bowl combine, 10 small diced kalamata olives, 10 large green olives and a tbs of  capers and 1 tsp of pimientos pieces. Add 1 to 2 tbs of extra verging olive oil, 2 cloves of garlic, minced, and a little orange zest. Add a pinch of pepper and a sprinkle of chile flakes. mix well.

Butter the outside of your bread slices, spread a generous amount of the olive salad you just prepared then covered it with two thin slices of french Fontina cheese. Add a few leaves of Arugula and place two more slices of fontina cheese on top. Cover and grilled until both sides are golden brown and the cheese is fully melted.

- Grilled Cheese  Alla Romana - 

Butter the outer sides of the bread.Flip them over and place a couple of thin slices of mozzarella fresca on the bread, two or three ( depending on the size of the bread you chose) thin slices of heirloom tomato, three filets of anchovies, some chopped fresh italian parsley and top it again with a little extra mozzarella fresca. Close the sandwich up and grill until the cheese is melted and the bread in golden brown. 

- Midwestern grilled cheese - 

Lightly butter the outer sides of the bread. Spread a small amount of Honey mustard on one of the inner sides of bread. Place two slices of sharp cheddar over the mustard and top them with a few pieces of bacon cooked to the desired crispness. Add a couple more slices of cheese and top it off with a few thinly slices of green apple.Coat the inner side of the other bread slice with some softened butter and grill the sandwich until all the cheese is melted and both sides of bread are golden brown.