The Piglet Sandwich

Overview

Take your traditional grilled cheese to the country with this gourmet sandwich. Start with smoked ham, sweet and savory apple mustard, and Tillamook Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar, and grill them between slices of rustic country-style bread with rosemary compound butter.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons (2 oz) Tillamook^® Salted Butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced
¼ cup no-sugar-added apple butter
¼ cup caramelized onions
¼ cup stone-ground mustard (such as Sierra Nevada Stout Mustard)
8 slices Tillamook^® Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese
8 slices fresh artisanal levain bread (or other country-style bread)
½ lb high quality smoked ham, thinly sliced (such as Vande Rose Artisanal Smoked Ham)

Preparation

Rosemary Butter
Cream together butter and minced rosemary.

Apple Mustard
In a blender or small food processor, blend together apple butter, caramelized onions, and mustard until smooth.

Assemble the Sandwiches
Spread rosemary butter on 1 side of each slice of bread. Place bread buttered side down. Spread apple mustard on the inside of one slice of bread for each sandwich. Layer 1 slice of cheddar on each of the 4 slices of bread, then ham, then another layer of cheddar.

Cooking
Sandwiches can be cooked open face on a pre-heated cast-iron pan in a 500°F oven, then closed and served. Or they can be closed, then cooked in a pan on a stovetop over medium-low heat until bread is toasted and cheese is melted. Serve immediately.

Tip
To make The Piglet into a breakfast sandwich, add an egg. While the sandwich is cooking in a hot oven using the open-face technique, cook the egg “over easy” on a skillet over medium heat . Close the sandwich with the egg inside and serve immediately.