Monday, March 31, 2014

Grilled Cheese Nirvana

While I had my waffle iron out to make stuffing waffles, I decided to use it as a panini press. Have you ever make a  grilled cheese sandwich in a waffle iron? Well, neither had I, and it seemed like a fun idea.

To get the full value of this story, you need to know that my waffle iron is very special. I bought it perhaps 30 years ago in tiny Hilton, New York at a little shop called The Fixer's Offerings. The Fixer went around finding other people's castoffs, repairing and returning them to service. He was the ultimate recycler 20 years before the term "recycling" became a household word.

I bought the waffle iron mostly because I was enchanted by the two little round burners, the metal on-off switches that were sure to become red hot during the baking (they do), and the cloth-wrapped cord. Obviously, I was going through some kind of vintage stage.

Anyway, what I brought home as a quirky, five dollar purchase has been with me ever since. Other waffle irons have come and gone in my life but this one remains. It simply makes the best waffles on earth, and in a fraction of the time of any other waffle baker I have owned. The grates are seasoned from years of use, so they don't need greasing any more. Oh, it has some drawbacks, like the red hot switches and the fact that it can overheat, but all those considerations are minor compared to nearly instant and delicious waffles.

So, when I thought about putting a grilled cheese sandwich into my waffle iron, I thought carefully first. I didn't want anything to screw up my precious find. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?

I needn't have worried - the waffle iron accepted the sandwich and the weight of the heavy metal grates flattened it down so that the whole sandwich settled into the grid and toasted to a golden brown in just a few minutes. No sticking, no protest, it just went to work.

Oh, my heavens! What a lovely, crisp, buttery, gooey perfection of a sandwich! The Swiss cheese melted not onto the bread but rather into it, and became one with it. We couldn't tell where the bread ended and the cheese began, except for the long threads molten of cheese that pulled out with each bite. This was grilled cheese nirvana.

I immediately began thinking about other ways to riff on the sandwich but My Beloved stopped me. "This is perfect just as it is," he said and, as he so often is, he was right. No need to gild an already golden sandwich.


6 Comments:

Blogger Greg said...

Yums! Be one with the sandwich!

Monday, March 31, 2014  
Blogger Three Dogs BBQ said...

You were watching Triple D yesterday. Were you not? ;)

Monday, March 31, 2014  
Blogger Nancy Ewart said...

You are so lucky to have one of the older waffle irons. My brother took the family one when we cleaned out mom's house. It makes big waffles big enough to feed the family. They come out perfect, crisp golden squares - just crying for butter and either sweet or savory sauce. My great-nephews love those waffles and declared - through a mouth of waffle and syrup - that these are the bestest waffles ever.

I did have a waffle iron but it never worked like I wanted to. The waffles were either brunt to a crisp or soggy. Ah well, such are the travails of cooking with modern equipment.

Monday, March 31, 2014  
Blogger Zoomie said...

Greg, we became one with two of them!

Three Dogs, actually, no. Did he make waffle grilled cheese sandwiches?

Nancy, I do love this old thing, even though it is a little scary sometimes. Shall I leave it to you in my will? :-D

Monday, March 31, 2014  
Blogger Nancy Ewart said...

HA HA! I fear that such a precious piece of equipment would probably go to one of your beloved's daughters with little ones to feed. Far be it from me to snatch waffles from the mouth of babes.

Besides, you are going to be around for a long, long, long time.

Tuesday, April 01, 2014  
Blogger Buzz Baylis said...

When we get back to entertaining I see these cut in french fry sized portions and served as hot grazign offerings!

Thursday, April 03, 2014  

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