There are some things that are just WAY too good not to share. Now that I’m free to share some non-Gourmet recipes, I knew that this one had to be my first.

A couple weeks ago I came home from work on a half day, positively ravenous, and in the deepest depths of my love affair with Fall that I seem to go through every year – you know the love affair with Fall when you live in New England, when you day dream of apple-picking, crunching blissfully-colored leaves beneath your feet, dressing in the cuddliest of fabrics and warmest of colors.

Anyway, I wanted something that would stick to my ribs, but that had all the warmth and succor that this season brings – a grilled cheese sounded good, but something really sweet sounded even better… and then it hit me! Sweet grilled cheese!

PT and I had picked up some cinnamon bread from a farm on the North Shore when we went apple-picking, and I still had some left over red wine caramel from the caramel apples that I’d made. A nice cheddar in the fridge, some dried apricots and cranberries in the pantry, and a healthy dose of butter made the perfect, Fall sandwich.

Hearty, savory, and sweet, and, of course, crushingly delicious, this is an absolute must-try sandwich!

Sweet Grilled Cheese, Serves 2

For Sandwich:

4 Slices Cinnamon Bread (or other sweet or sandwich bread)

4 Tbls. Red Wine Caramel (from Red Wine Caramel Apples or see below)

½ Cup Mix of Dried Fruits (apricots, cranberries, apples, etc.)

4 Thick Slices Cheddar Cheesecake

2 Tbls. Butter

For Red Wine Caramel (there will be leftover):

2 Cups Sugar

½ Cup Water

1 ½ Cups Pinot Noir

6 Tbls. Heavy Cream

Preparation:

First, make the red wine caramel….

Bring the sugar and water to boil in a medium-sized sauce pan over medium-high heat, stirring just until the sugar is dissolved, but be sure to let the pan be as the mixture begins to boil.

Meanwhile, set the wine to boil in another small sauce pan over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, until the volume is reduced by half.

After the wine has boiled for 10 minutes, turn the heat down to low to keep warm. Tend to the boiling sugar, swirling the pan, and watching for caramelization – it happens quickly, so keep your eye on it. Once it starts to caramelize, watch for the color to go a deep amber. Once that happens, pour your reduced wine into the pan CAREFULLY – it will bubble up, hiss, and generally make a mess of your stove top, but won’t do any real harm.

Stir the cream into the mixture in well, and put a candy thermometer in the pot. Once the mixture reaches 238°, remove from the heat and let cool until it’s reached 200°.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool and thicken for 5-10 minutes.
Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium heat and then arrange your sandwich.

Smear all slices of bread with a thick helping of the red wine caramel. Arrange two of the cheddar slices for each sandwich on top of the caramel and top with the dried fruit. Put the bread slices together and to form two sandwiches and place in the hot butter in the frying pan.

Cook on each side for 3-5 minutes, remove from the heat, cut in half, serve, and enjoy!