Roasted Tom-Jack Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

 
A few weeks ago, I had the house all to myself, and while I was cleaning the house, I got in some face time with Food Network. While I was dusting, Sunny Anderson came on.

I had never watched her show before, but Sunny was making Roasted Tom And Jack Grilled Cheese Sandwiches – and my interest was piqued. Her twist on an old favorite was too tasty to resist, and I made a mental note to pick up some fresh cilantro the next day.

These sassed-up grilled cheese sandwiches are my new favorite – I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I've made them four times now! The TomJack is the star of this meal, but I'm a sandwich-dunker, so I serve it with soup.

ROASTED TOM AND JACK GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES

Ingredients:
* 2 plum tomatoes, sliced 1/4-inch thick
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
* 1/4 cup chopped red onion
* 1 lime, zested
* 6 tablespoons softened butter
* 8 slices stale white bread, with no holes
* 8 (1-ounce) slices pepper jack cheese

Directions:

Step 1: Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Step 2: In a small bowl, drizzle the sliced tomatoes with oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and put a cooling rack on top. Arrange the tomato slices on the rack. Roast until the tomatoes begin to caramelize on the edges, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove and let cool, then gently chop.

 
 

Step 3: Pile the cilantro, onion, lime zest and a pinch of salt together on a cutting board. Chop vigorously until finely minced and combined. Mix in the chopped tomatoes.

 

Step 4: Place four pieces of bread on a cutting board. Top each piece of bread with a slice of pepper jack cheese, then 1 tablespoon of the onion-tomato mixture, then a second slice of cheese, and then top with another piece of bread.  

 

Step 5: Heat a saute pan large enough to fit the sandwiches on medium-high heat. Generously slather half of the softened butter over the top pieces of bread. When the pan is hot, carefully place the sandwiches in the pan, buttered-bread-side down. Then, slather the remaining butter of the unbuttered sides. which are now face up in the pan.

 

Step 6: Gently press down on each sandwich with a spatula. After the cheese begins to melt a bit, check the bottom of the sandwich for color - if golden brown, gently flip. Gently press each sandwich while toasting the second side. Remove when the bottom reveals a golden brown color and the cheese is melted, about 4 minutes.

 

Step 7: Arrange on serving plates and serve, with soup, if desired.

 

Chef's Notes: My Grandma made the best grilled cheese in the whole wide world; my father was a close second. Both of them believed that in order to have a properly toasted grilled cheese sandwich, you needed to do two things: 1.) use a generous amount of butter on your bread, and 2.) butter your bread before it enters the pan.

I set my sandwiches up the way my Grandma and father taught me to – however, Sunny likes to add the butter to the pan, so if you prefer that method, check out her directions.

Happy Reading!
Denine

 

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