How do you define a grilled cheese sandwich? Is it all about cheese, cheese and more cheese – or are you open to other supporting ingredients? Grilled Cheese Month evokes topics such as these! And, just like the sandwich itself, sentiments are divided:
I recently put the question out to the Panini Happy community on Facebook. At this writing, 52 percent of the vote is falling within the “Anything goes, as long as it’s cheesy” camp, while 41 percent say grilled cheese is “Lots of melty cheese grilled on bread, and that’s it” and 7 percent agree that “It can include veggies, condiments, etc. but not meat” (add your vote to the poll!).
As you can tell from the grilled cheese recipes I share on this blog, I definitely tend toward “Anything goes”…however…I’ve noticed that when I go for grilled cheese out at a restaurant, I’m usually drawn to cheese-only options (such as that luscious sandwich in the photo above, which I got from Cowgirl Creamery this past weekend in San Francisco). Go figure.
What’s your definition of grilled cheese? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Panini Happy, online since 2008, is more than just a sandwich blog. Here, you'll find hundreds of my original 
I’d say the basics are bread, cheese and fat for frying. But I’m definitely open to add-ins. I LOVE adding in bacon.
I’m all for bacon grilled cheese too, Brandon!
I love a classic but I love playing withe different flavors too!
The basic grilled cheese (we actually call it “cheese grill”) sandwich I was raised on was American Cheese on plain sliced bread with butter on the outside and grilled in a pan on the stove.
Definitely anything goes. I usually like very thinly sliced bread, or even split focaccia, with some kind of strongly flavored add in like sun dried tomatoes or tuna fish. Mmm, haven’t had a grilled cheese in awhile, now that I think about it!
I’m definitely open to adding extra excitement to my sandwich 🙂
Really good bread and lots of melty cheese! Yum!