A while ago I mentioned that I was given some vegan “cheese” by Never Better Foods and used it to make a kosher “cheese burger.” The product was excellent and I used it for several other dishes, bought some more and also bought some of the company’s “mozzarella,” which is also quite good (more on that some other day).
There’s a sandwich/panini that I love and have made many times, basically grilled cheese, but with other items such as roasted bell pepper, tomato slices, flat fried egg, avocado and the like.
Here’s the latest version — using the vegan “cheese” instead of dairy cheese. It was fabulous!
GRILLED CHEESE, EGG, ROASTED PEPPER AND AVOCADO SANDWICH
1/2 sweet red bell pepper, deseeded, optional
2 teaspoons butter
2 large eggs, beaten
1 ripe avocado
A few drops of hot sauce, if desired
4 slices homestyle multigrain bread
3 ounces cheddar “cheese”
4-6 tomato slices
1 tablespoon butter
If including the bell pepper, preheat the oven to broil. Place the half pepper on a piece of foil and broil for about 5 minutes or until crispy and tender. Remove from the oven and wrap the foil around the pepper to enclose it. Let cool, then peel the pepper and set it aside. Melt the 2 teaspoons butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the eggs and cook until set. Dish out, cut in half and set aside. Mash the avocado, mixing in hot pepper sauce if desired. Spread equal amounts of the avocado on two of the bread slices. Top the avocado with equal amounts of cheese, tomato, egg and roasted pepper, if used. Cover with second piece of bread. Melt half the remaining tablespoon of butter in the sauté pan over low-medium heat. Place the sandwiches in the pan. Cover the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes or until the underside is crispy and the cheese is beginning to melt. Lift the sandwiches with a spatula and add the remaining butter to the pan. When the butter has melted, place the sandwiches back in the pan, uncooked side down. Weight down the sandwich with a heavy pan and cook for about 2 minutes or until second side is golden brown and the cheese has melted. (If you have a panini grill, even better!)
Makes 2 sandwiches