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I hadn't planned on putting this in here since it was really an off-the-cuff, what-do-I-have-in-the-fridge thing, but seeing a post on Facebook that had a recipe containing blue cheese reminded me of how tasty my lunch on Saturday was.
I had some homemade bread in the fridge (I'd rather have it go stale than moldy, and I don't eat a ton of it at once), and had been thinking about making a grilled cheese for lunch. Sometimes, I'll go for the basic cheese on the inside/butter on the outside type of grilled cheese, but often, I like adding something--a contrasting flavor or texture, or something really strongly flavored, just to spice things up. Some of the things I've added have been caramelized onion jam, mango chutney, sriracha sauce, sliced dill pickles, and sliced apples. I've also used a variety of kinds of cheese.
I'd recently seen something online about pimiento cheese, and had found myself thinking, "Hey, a grilled pimiento cheese sandwich sounds like it would be really good." Thinking about that, I also remembered seeing this recipe from the Pioneer Woman for a broiled bread with a cheese mixture that included chopped black and green olives. I said to myself, "Self, you don't have any pimientos. However, you DO have green olives STUFFED with pimientos. Why don't you make an olive grilled cheese?
"Yes," I responded immediately. "That sounds like a SUPERB idea. After all, The Friendly Toast does grilled cheese with an olive tapenade on it, and you love that!"
I grated some good sharp cheddar cheese that I had in the fridge (it melts better that way), and chopped up some green olives. Since PW's olive cheese recipe used a little mayo as a binder for the cheese mixture, I added some of that. I also threw in a dash of Worcestershire sauce and a dash of Tabasco, both of which are common to pimiento cheese recipes. I then thought, "Hey, isn't there just a bit of blue cheese in the fridge, too?" I'd been reminded of something called fromage fort, a cheese spread made with leftover bits of strongly-flavored cheese. I reckoned my sandwich could use some of that, and crumbled in the blue cheese. I also added a little garlic, because when you're doing something like this, you may as well add garlic. I mashed it all up, and spread it on my bread, then proceeded to make grilled cheese.
The sandwich turned out to be incredibly tasty, if somewhat messy. I think the mayo was probably responsible for that: it didn't hold up well to heating, probably because it was a lower-fat variety. In the future, I suspect cream cheese would make a good replacement. The strong, tangy, savory cheese spread was addictive, though. I think it would be awesome spread on crackers as well, if mixed a little more thoroughly.
I had some homemade bread in the fridge (I'd rather have it go stale than moldy, and I don't eat a ton of it at once), and had been thinking about making a grilled cheese for lunch. Sometimes, I'll go for the basic cheese on the inside/butter on the outside type of grilled cheese, but often, I like adding something--a contrasting flavor or texture, or something really strongly flavored, just to spice things up. Some of the things I've added have been caramelized onion jam, mango chutney, sriracha sauce, sliced dill pickles, and sliced apples. I've also used a variety of kinds of cheese.
I'd recently seen something online about pimiento cheese, and had found myself thinking, "Hey, a grilled pimiento cheese sandwich sounds like it would be really good." Thinking about that, I also remembered seeing this recipe from the Pioneer Woman for a broiled bread with a cheese mixture that included chopped black and green olives. I said to myself, "Self, you don't have any pimientos. However, you DO have green olives STUFFED with pimientos. Why don't you make an olive grilled cheese?
"Yes," I responded immediately. "That sounds like a SUPERB idea. After all, The Friendly Toast does grilled cheese with an olive tapenade on it, and you love that!"
I grated some good sharp cheddar cheese that I had in the fridge (it melts better that way), and chopped up some green olives. Since PW's olive cheese recipe used a little mayo as a binder for the cheese mixture, I added some of that. I also threw in a dash of Worcestershire sauce and a dash of Tabasco, both of which are common to pimiento cheese recipes. I then thought, "Hey, isn't there just a bit of blue cheese in the fridge, too?" I'd been reminded of something called fromage fort, a cheese spread made with leftover bits of strongly-flavored cheese. I reckoned my sandwich could use some of that, and crumbled in the blue cheese. I also added a little garlic, because when you're doing something like this, you may as well add garlic. I mashed it all up, and spread it on my bread, then proceeded to make grilled cheese.
The sandwich turned out to be incredibly tasty, if somewhat messy. I think the mayo was probably responsible for that: it didn't hold up well to heating, probably because it was a lower-fat variety. In the future, I suspect cream cheese would make a good replacement. The strong, tangy, savory cheese spread was addictive, though. I think it would be awesome spread on crackers as well, if mixed a little more thoroughly.
