Cheese on Toast

DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME

I love good cheese on toast. The trick is to get a nice, thin, lightly burned top while keeping the bulk of the cheese good and gooey. The skin gives it taste, the goop texture and follow through.

Tonight I saw a trailer for a cooking show where the chef caramelized the top of a creme brulée with a blowtorch. I couldn't resist.

Lightly toast some bread. Add a really, really thin spread of marmalade (optional, but try it...). Top with grated cheese and apply the MAPP torch. You'd be surprised just how close you have to hold it to get the cheese to brown—I started waving it vaguely in the direction of the bread, but ended up playing the flame directly over it.

The result was gorgeous.

DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.

Comments

[Michael Daines]

I think I saw that on Home Improvement once??

[Avi Bryant]

Excellent. But try replacing the marmalade with Branston Pickle...

[Olivier Ansaldi]

When's the "Pragmatic Cooking" book coming out? Any PDF beta?

[Sam Aaron]

eeek! I go to every effort *not* to let my cheese burn at all. Lovely and runny is my goal, and any hint of brown is a sign of failure!

So to see someone go to great lengths to burn the cheese 'properly'.... oh, poor, poor cheese.

...or maybe it's because the cheese over there in the states isn't as good as the cheese over here in England/Europe, and the burning is necessary for flavour ;-) hehe

[Jo Stockley]

Never mind Branston Pickle (which is quite excellent), try it with a thin layer of Bovril!

Hmmm...

[Rik Hemsley]

A splash of Worcester sauce is my favourite, preferably on a mature Cheddar. I'm feeling very hungry now. Thanks, Dave.

[Joe American]

Silly English partisan, we are a great trade empire, any local deli that cheese lovers go to will have chesse from all over the world.

Judging from some of the French cheeses I've tried, I'd think cheese abuse was typically European.

I say save the blowtorch for the brulee, and be nice to your cheese. I know it makes you feel so clever, but a programmer should know better!

[rcoder]

mmm, welsh rarebit...there's a pub here in portland that does a decent job of it, though i'm usually lazy and just fake it by putting a bit of mustard and worcestershire under the cheese, and drinking (rather than melting-in) the requisite glass of stout.

[Damon Clinkscales]

Where are the pictures?

I would at least like one of the sandwich, but one with you in a welder's hat and a blowtorch huddled over your cheese sandwich would be be just about perfect.

[Jake]

English cheese better than American? Hmm, I live in NYC about 2 blocks away from an Artisinal cheese store which imports cheeses from all over the US and abroad. We're not all eating Kraft in the states. But - if you want to carry on the stereotype, go for it.

[Sam Aaron]

woah! hold yer hobix! (If you don't know where yours is, and I certainly don't, then improvise).

I'm really sorry if I caused any offence with my previous question. It really wasn't my intention, and I just wanted to state here, that it was done entirely with sarcasm and jest (note the ;-) of sarcasm, and the hehe of jest).

I must readily admit that I have never tasted American cheese, and don't even have the first idea of what it would be like. All I was attempting to do was posit a question based on the daft assumption that you'd never want to burn your cheese unless it already tasted bad in the first place. :-)

Anyway, the fun continues here: http://redhanded.hobix.com/cult/theCheeseOnToastGroundswell.html

[JonRowett]

guys, guys, guys!

it's ALL about the layer of Marmite underneath. and the cheese has to be Cheshire or a Cheshire isotope of some sort.

burned top is, of course, mandatory.

[JonRowett]

...and just to jump into the American cheese VS British cheese debate: the UK has a long and strong history of competent and ubiquitous cheesemaking (see: cheddar, wendsleydale, caerphilly, stilton et al) whereas the USA perhaps has a stronger tendency towards the manufacture of large-scale industrialised cack. Of course industrialised cack is readily available in most British shops too, however I would wager that the British "baseline" cheese quality - the type of cheese purchased by the average lower-middle-class consumer - is demonstrably a bit higher than the American baseline, because here in Britain, we don't *need* to visit specialist or artisan outlets to get access to reasonably decent cheese.

Now that we've settled that, I'm off to purchase my usual weekday lunch: battered fish and thick, bendy "fries" deep fried in animal fat of dubious provenance, wrapped in paper, soaked in vinegar and sprinkled with potentially fatal quantities of low grade table salt.

[topfunky]

Someone made a joke about a blowtorch the other night. Now I know what they were talking about!

Personally, I use a George Forman grill for my cheese sandwiches, but this sounds much tastier.

[Hampton Catlin]

I like all sorts of cheese. Stilton is my favorite with some Pinot Noir.

That being said, I think it depends on the cheese and the person. I personally love slightly seared Cheddar. Though, I respect those who like it served 'wet'. To me, searing Cheddar is like why we sear tuna. Really brings out the flavor.

In fact, I used to fantasize about opening a "Burned Cheese" restaurant which would serve soup in bowls made out of cheese burned. Chicken covered in cheese, served on a 'plate' of burned cheese.

Mmmmmm.

-hampton.

[Hank]

Best

Recipe

EVER!

http://www.cheesetoast.org

IN IT'S HONOR!