Recipe: For nights when energy is low, you need the cheesy carbs in grilled Gruyere sandwiches with sauteed mushrooms
Serves 4
This vegetarian nod to the Patty Melt is a hearty meal for a night when energy is low and schedules are packed. You need hearty rye or sourdough bread, Gruyere or Swiss cheese, a large skillet, and a baking sheet lined with a wire rack. In this version, which makes four sandwiches, you put sauteed mushrooms with thyme on four slices of bread, cheese on the other four. Fry them open-faced in butter, then press them together once the undersides are golden. To keep them warm, and to make sure the cheese is fully melted in the centers, slide them onto the rack-lined baking sheet and they'll stay cozy without turning soggy till the other sandwiches are done. This recipe uses sliced cremini mushrooms, also called baby bellas, but you can substitute one or two whole portobello caps in each sandwich (sprinkle them with olive oil and roast them in a hot oven until they are tender). Add a salad to the sandwiches and dig into the cheesy carbs we all love. 2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound cremini mushrooms (leave stems on), sliced
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 shallots, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
8 slices hearty rye or sourdough bread
¾ pound Gruyere or Swiss cheese, grated (3 cups)
4
tablespoons butter 1. Have on hand a large skillet and a rimmed baking sheet lined with a metal rack.
2. In the skillet over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the mushrooms and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic. Lower the heat to medium. Continue cooking for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft. Stir in the thyme.
3. Set the oven at 200 degrees.
4. Lay 8 slices of bread on a work surface. Divide the mushrooms among 4 slices. Divide the cheese among the other 4 slices. Don't sandwich them yet.
5. Wipe out the skillet. Set it over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter. When it melts, place 1 mushroom bread and 1 cheese bread in the pan. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the bottoms of the bread are golden brown, and the cheese is mostly melted. Use a spatula to flip the cheese bread onto the mushroom bread, sandwiching the fillings in the middle. Lift up the sandwich and set it on the rack-lined baking sheet; transfer to the oven. Cook the remaining sandwiches in the same way.
6. With a serrated knife, cut the sandwiches on the diagonal. Serve with salad.
Karoline Boehm Goodnick
Serves 4
This vegetarian nod to the Patty Melt is a hearty meal for a night when energy is low and schedules are packed. You need hearty rye or sourdough bread, Gruyere or Swiss cheese, a large skillet, and a baking sheet lined with a wire rack. In this version, which makes four sandwiches, you put sauteed mushrooms with thyme on four slices of bread, cheese on the other four. Fry them open-faced in butter, then press them together once the undersides are golden. To keep them warm, and to make sure the cheese is fully melted in the centers, slide them onto the rack-lined baking sheet and they'll stay cozy without turning soggy till the other sandwiches are done. This recipe uses sliced cremini mushrooms, also called baby bellas, but you can substitute one or two whole portobello caps in each sandwich (sprinkle them with olive oil and roast them in a hot oven until they are tender). Add a salad to the sandwiches and dig into the cheesy carbs we all love.
2 tablespoons olive oil 1 pound cremini mushrooms (leave stems on), sliced Salt and pepper, to taste 2 shallots, thinly sliced 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 8 slices hearty rye or sourdough bread ¾ pound Gruyere or Swiss cheese, grated (3 cups) 4 tablespoons butter
1. Have on hand a large skillet and a rimmed baking sheet lined with a metal rack.
2. In the skillet over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the mushrooms and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic. Lower the heat to medium. Continue cooking for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft. Stir in the thyme.
3. Set the oven at 200 degrees.
4. Lay 8 slices of bread on a work surface. Divide the mushrooms among 4 slices. Divide the cheese among the other 4 slices. Don't sandwich them yet.
5. Wipe out the skillet. Set it over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter. When it melts, place 1 mushroom bread and 1 cheese bread in the pan. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the bottoms of the bread are golden brown, and the cheese is mostly melted. Use a spatula to flip the cheese bread onto the mushroom bread, sandwiching the fillings in the middle. Lift up the sandwich and set it on the rack-lined baking sheet; transfer to the oven. Cook the remaining sandwiches in the same way.
6. With a serrated knife, cut the sandwiches on the diagonal. Serve with salad. Karoline Boehm Goodnick
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