Grown-Up Grilled Cheese with Crispy Prosciutto, Tomatoes, and Basil

Say goodbye to the one-note grilled cheese of your childhood - this decadent recipe will beat it every time.

Here is a grilled cheese that will put the white bread-Kraft Singles-toaster grilled cheese of your childhood in the archives forever. Because we all deserve a grown-up grilled cheese.

Grown-Up Grilled Cheese with Crispy Prosciutto, Tomatoes, and Basil is a template of a recipe. Use it as a starting point, then make it what you like. Prosciutto is thin and crispy, but you might prefer slices of thicker, smokier bacon. Or you might want to forgo the addition of meat altogether. Tomatoes get juicy as the sandwich toasts, but if you aren’t a tomato person just leave them out. And the cheese is entirely up to you. We love the combination of cheddar, Manchego, and prosciutto, but you might prefer fontina or gruyere or even smoked gouda. You get to pick. 

The key is the thin layer of mayonnaise on the outside of the bread – it gets the sandwich toasty and golden without being charred. Also a little butter in the skillet. After all, this is a grilled cheese, and a little decadence is never a bad thing.

Grown-Up Grilled Cheese with Prosciutto, Tomatoes, and Basil
2 thin slices of prosciutto
2 slices sourdough bread
Mayonnaise
Shredded cheddar cheese
Shredded Manchego cheese (or whatever cheese you prefer)
Several large basil leaves
Thin slices of tomato
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon butter

Heat a skillet over medium. Add the prosciutto slices flat into the skillet, and cook for about 2 minutes on each side, until they are crisp. Transfer the crispy prosciutto to a paper towel.

Lay the bread slices on a cutting board, and spread the outsides of the slices with a thin coat of mayonnaise, all the way to the edges. Top one of the slices of bread with half of the cheddar and half of the Manchego cheese, then layer in the crispy prosciutto, basil leaves, and tomato slices. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Top with the remaining cheese and slice of bread, mayonnaise side out. 

Melt the butter in the same skillet over medium-low heat. Carefully place the sandwich in the skillet and cook for about 5 minutes, until the bread is toasty and golden. Flip the sandwich, pressing down on it just a bit, and cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the bread is golden and the cheese is melty. Transfer to a cutting board and cut in half.