Caramelized Apple Grilled Cheese Sandwich

As part of my nutrition education, I volunteer as the assistant for a food lab that all nutrition majors need to take. It is by no means a healthy cooking class; rather, it's an introduction to the fundamentals of cooking and food preparation, as well as to the notion of food safety and sanitation practices. This week in lab, the students each made their own, individual apple pie. I watched as the girls cringed as they filled their measuring cups with shortening, and I helped them maneuver their delicate crusts to their foil pie tins. It's a fun lab. And at the end of it, the professor always passes around a plate of cheddar cheese slices for the students to top over their still-warm-and-fresh-from-the-oven pies. Many people refuse or, at the very least, hesitate considerably. It's totally weird, right?

Wrong!

Alright, maybe I shouldn't be that harsh or that black and white with things as subjective as flavors and food. However, even if you forget the sophisticated cheese-and-fruit classic pairing or you have never heard that sweet + salty = pretty darn tasty, even for a salt-phobe like me, I have this recipe to prove to you just how heavenly warm cheese and apples can be. It comes directly from the blog, Closet Cooking, (and, in fact, he says the inspiration for the sandwich came from hearing about the apple pie + cheddar combo) and I made it just about a half century ago (re: last semester). So, although it's definitely not apple season anymore and I did recently (kind of) post a cheesy, melty, pan-sauteed sandwich type of thing, I ask you to hear me out. Because this recipe is good. Healthy? Not so much. But good? Times five hundred percent, two thumbs and both big toes up. Seriously. I didn't even write any notes about it (that's how long ago I made it), and I can tell you emphatically just how worth it this conglomeration of hearty whole grain bread, gooey cheese and warmed, caramelized apples is. Yes, I did say caramelized - as in, you cook the apples in a whole lot of butter mixed with some cinnamon before even introducing the words cheese or bread to the pan. I'm shocked that you're still sitting here, actually, unless you do come here for healthy(ish) recipes and you have the restraint of a saint.

I really shouldn't even re-post the recipe, since I changed nothing and think that it is absolute perfection just the way it is, so I'll simply direct you over here for the Real Deal.

I will say, though, that I wholeheartedly encourage the use of a heavier, heartier bread - I use a whole grain oatmeal bread almost without exception for my grilled sandwiches because it adds a significantly noticeable level of complexity to the texture and flavor. It's not just because Wonder Bread frightens me. Also, as you can see in the picture, I paired it with a side salad consisting of mixed greens, walnuts, and cranberries to round out this Autumn (and, I'd argue, winter...) meal.