apple + caramelized onion + shiitake mushroom grilled cheese
who doesn’t love apples in the fall?? with this recipe, you can use up some of your fresh picked fall apples, and incorporate some much needed nutrients into your meal.
onions are one of those foods that I think a lot of people don’t even realize have a lot of nutrients. they have antioxidants, which are important for preventing oxidation in our body, which basically just means they’re going to help reduce inflammation.
mushrooms have so much potential. they can have a ton of vitamin d in them, which is so important to get in our diet in the fall and winter months. the problem is, the amount of vitamin d that’s in them is dependent on whether or not they’re grown with a UV light.
I feel like for me, the type of cheese you choose when you make sandwiches or grilled cheese can make or break it. my personal favorites are: gouda, havarti, and provolone.
also…why is cheese so expensive all of a sudden? where I live, it’s literally gone from $4/8oz to $7-9/6-8oz. it’s insane! but…I will say that the “cheaper” cheese a lot of times has extra ingredients in it, which brings down the beneficial nutrients in it and decreases the protein a lot.
notes:
I used “hot” havarti cheese which just has some hot peppers added to it. I think it adds more dimension to the flavors without being too super spicy.
you can use whatever bread you want, but I always prefer a nice fresh sourdough bread. whole grain bread is good too.
you can look up a more detailed recipe on how to caramelize onions. really, it’s just cooking them on low for a long time. it shouldn’t be too complicated, but it really is needed for the complexity of flavor it brings!
you can use whatever cheese you want, these ones are just the best for this recipe.
ingredients:
half a yellow onion, sliced
6 oz of shiitake mushrooms, sliced
one honey crisp apple, thinly sliced
2 tsp oil
sourdough bread
shredded provolone
slices of havarti
butter
salt
pepper
instructions:
in a pan on low heat, add oil, yellow onion, shiitake mushrooms and a pinch of salt. stir. keep cooking over low heat for about 40 minutes, or until the onions are mostly browned.
sandwich assemble: cut two slices of sourdough bread. butter the outside of the pieces. on the inside, add provolone cheese to one slice of bread. on the other slice add havarti. add the slices of apple to one slice of bread, and add the caramelized onions and mushrooms to the top. close the sandwich and cook on medium heat until the bottom is browned. flip the sandwich and cook the other side until the bottom is browned again.
cut in half and serve with your favorite veggies or tomato soup.