Say cheese!

Get Ready To Enjoy A Sandwich That Is Classic Comfort Food In A Whole New Way

Get Out The Fry

PAN and grab your favorite cheese. April 12 has been anointed as “Grilled Cheese Day,” and I happen to think this classic comfort food deserves the designation.

Two food inventions probably elevated this sandwich to classic status: the bread slicer in the 1920s and Kraft Food’s individually wrapped slices of processed cheese that hit store shelves in 1965. The term “grilled cheese” showed up in print for the first time in the ’60s, replacing “toasted cheese” or a “melted cheese” sandwich.

My childhood grilled cheese sandwich was simply some sliced Velveeta on Wonder Bread. I was an adult before I was grilling something other than white bread and the cheese of choice was not individually wrapped.

These days, I don’t make the same sandwich twice, changing up the bread along with what I put inside the pieces of bread. I might add whole grain mustard and I always experiment with the cheese. Right now, my fave is Golden Onion Jack by Boar’s Head. I might throw in some slices of bread and butter pickles. And instead of buttering the outside of the bread, now I spread mayo.

Think of grilled cheese month as a time to pay homage to this classic comfort food. At a cooking class at the Yellowstone Art Museum’s Raven Cafe d’Art, I sampled Angela Lyle’s Southern Pimento Cheese Sandwich — it was very tasty. And if you like Muenster cheese, then I strongly suggest the Melty Muenster offered up by Ashley Lauckner at Evergreen Cafe. (I tried to get her to part with the recipe for their Tomato Basil Soup, a perfect companion to the melty Muenster, but she wouldn’t budge. You will just have to stop by and take some home.)

Here's to your grilled cheese month. I raise my melty cheese and bread in your honor.

Enjoy!

KAY ERICKSON, writer

Kay has spent her professional career in public relations and broadcast news, currently at Yellowstone Public Radio. Her journalism degree is from Northern Illinois University. Her passions include her family, sports and food. Her mom and an aunt taught her the finer points of cooking and instilled a love of good food and family mealtime.