Sun-Dried Tomato, Parsley, and Manchego Grilled Cheese Recipe
Sometimes you just want to cook with whatever you have on hand. So we made this grilled cheese with commonplace ingredients. Going beyond convenience, it’s flavorful and begging to be dipped in a bowl of soup.
What to buy: Manchego is the most popular Spanish cheese. Made from sheep’s milk, it provides great flavor to anything it tops. These days, it can be found at most grocery stores, but be sure to buy good-quality Manchego because the cheap stuff is rubbery and lacks flavor.
Sun-dried tomatoes come packed dry or in oil and can be found at most grocery stores. Here we use those packed in oil because they give more flavor than their dry counterparts.
- 2/3 cup grated Manchego cheese
- 1 tablespoon sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
- 2 (1/2-inch-thick, 4-by-5-inch-long) slices whole wheat bread
- Mix together cheese, tomatoes, and parsley in a small bowl until well combined.
- Heat a large frying pan over medium-low heat. Meanwhile, spread butter on 1 side of each slice of bread.
- Once the pan is warm, add 1 slice of bread buttered side down, top with cheese mixture, then close sandwich with other bread slice, buttered side up.
- Cook until bread is toasted and cheese is melted, about 5 minutes per side.
Beverage pairing: Von Hövel Estate Riesling Balduin, Germany. A number of white wines—because of their bright acidity—could work with this sandwich, but the inclusion of sun-dried tomatoes and their raisin-like sweetness pushes the pairing to a white wine with a little sweetness of its own, in this case a simple, elegant German Riesling.