A fresh take on your favorite sandwich

Healthy Mom’s Kitchen provides family-friendly fat burning recipes and menu plans as well as natural solutions for healing and cleaning with essential oils. Bloggers Nisha Riggs, Michelle Bailey and Brittany Hansen seek to empower moms with  tools to take care of their own health and the health of their families.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 3 minutes
• Total time: 5 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): 1 sandwich

Recipe Overview

Attention cheese lovers – you still CAN eat healthy and enjoy grilled cheese comfort food!  This Tuscan Multigrain Grilled Cheese features three different kinds of cheese on a homemade multigrain bread with pesto, sprouts, and avocado to give it that healthful Tuscan flare.

Ingredients List

• 1 slice Monterrey Jack Cheese
• 1 slice Tillamook Colby Jack Cheese
• 1 slice Tillamook Medium Cheddar Cheese
• 2 slices Healthy Mom’s Kitchen Homemade Multigrain Bread (½ inch slices) See recipe
• 1 teaspoon basil pesto (½ tsp on each slice)
• 1 teaspoon Smart Balance Mayo
• 2 tablespoons sprouts
• ½ small avocado
• ½ small tomato

Preparation/Instructions

Cut 1/2 inch slices of homemade multigrain bread. Toast slices in toaster til lightly golden brown.  Slice 1 small roma tomato thinly.  Slice 1 small avocado thinly.  Measure 2 Tbsp sprouts.

Spread 1/2 teaspoon mayo on each slice of bread.  Spread 1/2 teaspoon pesto on each slice of bread.  Add Colby slice on one piece of bread, trim edges to fit perfectly on bread.  Add Medium Cheddar and Monterrey Jack slices on other piece of bread, again trimming edges to fit perfectly on bread. Lay bread slices on oven safe cookie sheet and broil on high for approximately 2 minutes.   Do not preheat oven – turn broil on once bread and cheese is in the oven.  Watch carefully.

Take bread out of oven and top one piece of bread with tomato, sprouts, and avocado.  Cover with other piece of bread and enjoy!

Homemade multigrain bread

By Tillamook

All your favorite elements of a jalapeno popper in a grilled cheese

Bree Hester is a food lover and mom of three. She writes the food blog Baked Bree, where she wants you to eat well and laugh often.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 20 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): 4 sandwiches

Recipe Overview

A grilled cheese version of one of my favorite bar snacks, the jalapeño popper. This grilled cheese is a fun take on that snack, and would be perfect served alongside tortilla soup or chili.

Ingredients List

• 8oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup pickled jalapeños, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 slices Tillamook Monterey Jack Cheese
• 2 slices Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 2 slices hearty white bread
• 2oz Tillamook Unsalted Butter

Preparation/Instructions

In a small bowl combine cream cheese, green onions, and jalapeños. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Preheat skillet to medium heat. Arrange bread on a cutting board, and spread cream cheese mixture on both pieces of bread. Add a slice of Monterey Jack and a slice of cheddar. Close the sandwich and lightly butter one side. Place the buttered side down in a skillet. Let the cheese melt, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat if needed. Butter the top and flip sandwich over. Cook second side about 2 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bread is brown and toasted.

Jalapeño cream cheese mixture

Piling on the yummy

Grilled to perfection!

By Tillamook

Grilled cheese and tomato soup...together in a single sandwich

Mike Towers, the Food Service Manager at the Creamery Café, has worked in the restaurant industry for more than 20 years with jobs ranging from dishwasher to General Manager.  Mike says “I have always loved to cook and most of my fun and relaxing times are spent in the kitchen.  I especially enjoy grocery shopping and planning out what I’m going to make for the week for me and my son.”

Recipe Details

• Prep time:  2 minutes
• Cook time: 8 minutes
• Total time: 10 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): One serving

Recipe Overview

Mike reincarnated his love for Tomato Basil Soup into this a sandwich because of his love fresh basil.  He says that he’ll put basil on everything!   The recipe is simple, straight forward and good.

Ingredients List

• 2 slices white bread
• 4 tablespoons marinara
• 3 slices tomato
• 7 leaves of fresh basil
• 2 slices Vintage White Medium Cheddar

Preparation/Instructions

Take two slices of white bread. Brush marinara onto one slice. Place one slice of Vintage White Medium Cheddar onto each piece of bread. Place tomatoes on one slice and basil on the other.

Grill to a golden brown. Combine both slices of bread together and eat!

By Tillamook

Want to take your grilled cheese to a whole new level? Try triple cheese bread. Yum!

Liren Baker is the voice behind the blog Kitchen Confidante, where she shares taste and inspiration in the kitchen. It’s her way of welcoming you into her home, where she loves to shares recipes and images that remind her of her heritage, her childhood in New York, and the vibrant culinary culture she has learned to embrace in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she currently lives. She considers herself a late bloomer when it comes to enjoying grilled cheese sandwiches, but has embraced its cheesy goodness wholeheartedly and has made up for a childhood missed. This sandwich is just one example of how she loves to put two of her favorite things together: bread and cheese.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Total time: 15 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): Serves 4

Recipe Overview

The distinct, salty Ibérico ham pairs nicely with the mellow Colby Jack Tillamook cheese and the sweet roasted red peppers. But the sandwich is made even more special when you use Triple Cheese Bread, made with, yes, Tillamook Cheese. It will ooze from the inside out!

Ingredients List

• 8 slices Triple Cheese Bread
• Melted Tillamook Unsalted Butter
• 8 slices Tillamook Colby Jack Cheese
• 2 fire roasted red bell peppers, halved (jarred is fine)
• 4 to 8 slices Ibérico Ham

Preparation/Instructions

Lightly brush both sides of all the bread slices with melted butter. Lay one slice of cheese on one slice of bread. Layer slices of roasted red bell peppers, along with a thin layer of ham. Top with one more slice of cheese, followed by the second slice of bread. Repeat for remaining sandwiches.

On a nonstick or cast iron pan over medium-low heat, cook the sandwiches until the bread is golden brown on both sides, and the cheese just melted. If the sandwich is thick, it may help to transfer the sandwiches onto an ovenproof plate and place into a 350 degree oven to help melt the cheese.

Slice the sandwich in half on the diagonal and serve immediately.

By Tillamook

South of the border spicy grilled cheese from Panini Happy

Kathy Strahs has been writing PaniniHappy.com, a food blog all about sandwiches and other innovative recipes for the panini maker, since 2008. She lives in San Diego with her husband and two preschoolers.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 45 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): 4 panini

Recipe Overview

The word rajas in Spanish literally translates as “strips”…as in strips of roasted chiles and onions that bring a punch of south-of-the-border flavor to all kinds of dishes. Grilling rajas is an easy job on the panini maker – it takes just minutes to get them nicely charred. Pile them on sourdough bread with Tillamook Pepper Jack for a spicy grilled cheese sandwich or, to tone down the heat, opt for Tillamook Monterey Jack.

Ingredients List

• 1 poblano pepper
• 1 red bell pepper
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 small white onion, sliced into 1/2-inch thick rounds, rings intact
• 8 slices sourdough bread
• 8 slices Tillamook Pepper Jack or Monterey Jack

Preparation/Instructions

Preheat the panini grill according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Slice off the tops and bottoms of both peppers. Stand each one up on its end and slice it open from top to bottom. With the poblano you’ll be able to open the pepper out flat; with the red bell pepper you’ll need to cut the walls of the pepper a section at a time. Remove and discard the seeds and trim any white ribs.

Lay the peppers cut side down on the grill and close the lid. Grill the peppers until they’re charred and blistered, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a paper bag and leave them in there for 20 minutes to allow the steam to release the skin.

While the peppers are steaming, drizzle the onion rounds with oil and grill them until they’re tender with dark grill marks, 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer the onions to a medium bowl, separating the rings. Keep the panini grill on.

One at a time, remove the peppers from the paper bag, peel off the skins (if they don’t come off easily, try putting them back in the bag to steam for a little while longer) and slice the peppers lengthwise into strips. Toss the peppers in with the grilled onions.

For each sandwich: Lay a slice of cheese on a slice of sourdough bread. Top the cheese with a generous pile of peppers and onions and second slice of cheese. Close the sandwich with another slice of bread.

Grill the panini until the cheese is melted and the bread is toasted, 4 to 5 minutes.

Grilled peppers and onions give this grilled cheese a little kick!

By Tillamook

Sweet, savory and oh so cheesy!

Blogger Barbara Kiebel loves sharing the food she makes with her family and friends both at her table and on her blog, Creative Culinary, through photos and recipes.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Cook time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 20 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): One serving

Recipe Overview

Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese is combined with fresh apple slices, savory pancetta and a sweet and savory spread on a buttery grilled croissant.

Ingredients List

• 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon whole grain mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon honey
• 1 tablespoon dried cranberries, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Tillamook Unsalted Butter for grilling
• 1 large croissant, sliced in half
• 2 slices Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 2 slices pancetta
• One half apple, cored and sliced

Preparation/Instructions

To make the cranberry spread, blend together the mayonnaise, mustard, honey and dried cranberries and set aside.

Place the pancetta in a pan or on a flat grill heated to medium. Cook until brown and starting to crisp. Drain. Wipe off pan or grill.

Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in medium heated pan or on flat grill. Place cut edges face down on butter until slightly toasted; approximately 1 minute. Remove from pan.

Melt another teaspoon of butter on pan or grill and place bottom of croissant in pan, toasted side facing up. Layer 1 slice of cheese, apple slices, pancetta and a 2nd slice of cheese on top of croissant. Spread the inside of the top piece of croissant with the cranberry spread and place it with spread face down on layered ingredients.

Lower heat and cover the sandwich with a lid or aluminum foil until the cheese starts to melt; carefully watching the underside so as not to burn. Carefully flip the sandwich over and repeat. Remove from heat, cut in half and enjoy.

Let the grilling begin!

By Tillamook

Grilling up a BBQ Grilled Cheese Sammich while traveling as a Loaf Love Tour Brand Ambassador

Kelly Sanders is a former Loaf Love Tour Brand Ambassador and blogger at Around the World in One Blog who just can’t get enough Tillamook Cheese. She travels the world looking for the best places to eat, and on her way, she’s learned some great ways to use Tillamook.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 10 min
• Total time: 25 min
• Yield (number of servings): 2

Recipe Overview

As a Loaf Love Tour Brand Ambassador I traveled the country and lived in hotels.  I spent my days surrounded by delicious Tillamook Cheese and incredible produce at local Farmer’s Markets. Whenever I got back to the hotel, I had to find ways to combine this great food with my only option for cooking; the hotel BBQ. Thus, the hotel grilled cheese was invented.

Ingredients List

• 8oz Tillamook Garlic Chili Pepper Cheddar, shredded
• 6 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 4 slices good dense white bread
• 4 basil leaves
• 6 spears of Asparagus
• 1 zucchini, sliced
• Half a red onion, sliced in rings
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tsp Kosher salt
• 1tsp pepper

Preparation/Instructions

Place asparagus, zucchini slices and onion slices in a shallow pan. Cover vegetables with the remaining olive oil, kosher salt, pepper and chopped garlic.  Allow to marinade for as long as possible but even 5 minutes is enough.

Pre-heat grill. Brush 2 tbsp of olive oil on all sides of the bread slices. Grill bread until grill lines appear on bread. Remove from heat.

Grill marinade veggies until chard with grill lines. Place shredded cheese in a grill safe pan and allow the cheese to melt. Watch the cheese closely as it can quickly over cook.

Assemble the sammich. Place one slice of bread on a plate. Add ¼ of the melted cheese, followed by two basil leaves, half the zucchini, a few onion slices, and 3 asparagus spears. Add another ¼ of the melted cheese. Place the second slice of bread and push firmly on the sandwich to help it stick together. Repeat for second sandwich.

By Tillamook

Local Texas ingredients + two kinds of Tillamook Cheese = YUM!

J. Black’s Feel Good Kitchen & Lounge talented and creative Executive Chef, Josie Paredes, combines her experience and passion for exceptional food to create a delicious selection of starters, sharing plates and artisan pizzas at their two locations in Austin, Texas and Dallas, Texas. Chef Paredes has had a passion for food ever since she saw her mother cooking at 7 years old in South Texas. Chef Paredes has been with J. Black’s since 2007.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 5 Minutes
• Total time: 8 Minutes
• Yield (number of servings): 1

Recipe Overview:

In celebration of Austin Grill Cheese Week, J. Black’s The Feel Good Lounge has put together the Open Faced Grilled Cheese B.A.T., featuring an overload of Tillamook Sharp Cheddar and Monterey Jack, topped with Niman Ranch Bacon, local Texas baby arugula and Texas tomatoes on a fresh thick cut of Challah bread.

Ingredients List

• 1oz Tillamook Unsalted Butter
• 2oz Tillamook Sharp Cheddar, shredded
• 2oz Tillamook Monterey Jack, shredded
• 1 thick cut slice of Challah bread
• 3 slices of Niman Ranch Bacon
• 2oz baby arugula
• 2 – 3 tomatoes slices

Preparation/Instructions

Lightly butter one side of thick sliced Challah bread and place it butter side down on medium heated pan or flat grill. Place shredded Sharp Cheddar and Monterey Jack Cheese on bread. Let cheese melt while checking the underside so as not to burn. In a separate pan cook the bacon until crispy. Once desired melted cheese consistency has been reached, remove from heat and top with baby arugula, bacon and tomatoes. Serve and enjoy.

By Tillamook

Check out Cate's unique chile rellano-inspired grilled cheese!

Cate Melton of the blog Cate’s World Kitchen is a full-time teacher and new mom who loves to cook, bake, and run. Her blog is where she shares her favorite recipes and a little peek into her life.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 10 minutes
• Total time: 30 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): 6

Recipe Overview

Inspired by the flavors of a chile relleno, these sandwiches feature roasted portobello mushrooms, green chilies, and Tillamook Monterey Jack Cheese with spicy mayo on cornbread.

Ingredients List

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 portobello mushrooms
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp hot sauce
• 1  4-oz can diced green chilies
• 6 pieces cornbread, halved horizontally
• 6 slices Tillamook Monterey Jack Cheese

Preparation/Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Slice the stems off the portabellos and scrape the gills out with a spoon.  Carefully cut each mushroom in half horizontally.

Arrange the mushroom pieces on a rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with the olive oil.

Roast the mushrooms for 15-20 minutes, flipping them one, until tender.  Remove from the oven and set aside.

While the mushrooms are roasting, mix the mayonnaise and hot sauce together (add extra hot sauce if you prefer spicier food!)

Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise on half of a piece of cornbread, then top with a slice of cheese.  Place under a broiler or in the oven for a few minutes to melt the cheese.

Lightly butter a skillet and set it over medium heat.  Place a piece of portobello and about 2 tablespoons of chiles on top of the cheese.  Top with the other half of the piece of corn bread and cook in the skillet for about 3-4 minutes on each side.  Repeat with remaining ingredients.

By Tillamook

Simple and delicious recipe from 52 Kitchen Adventures

52 Kitchen Adventures is a recipe blog full of decadent desserts, easy CrockPot meals, and much more. Stephanie Nuccitelli, the blogger behind the adventures, focuses on cooking and baking from scratch and eating as healthy as possible while having a big sweet tooth.

Recipe Details

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Total time: 15 minutes
• Yield (number of servings): 1

Recipe Overview

Brown butter takes a classic grilled cheese sandwich to the next level. The sandwich is loaded with sharp cheddar, which is melted to perfection as the bread is toasted in nutty brown butter.

Ingredients List

• 1/2 tablespoon Tillamook Salted Butter
• 2 slices Tillamook Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• 2 slices whole wheat bread

Preparation/Instructions

Over low heat, melt butter. Stir occasionally until butter turns brown. Add both slices of bread to pan and place cheese on top of one slice. Once bread is browned, place the empty slice on top of the cheese, browned side up. Lower heat to lowest setting. Press down on sandwich with spatula and occasionally flip sandwich until both sides are browned and cheese is melted. Enjoy immediately.

By Tillamook