Fall arrived with a bang late last week! The bang was the thunder that accompanied the rain showers which dropped the temperature and tons of rain. The high temperature happened before sunrise then it fell throughout the day. I am holding out hope for some Indian Summer weather with temps in the 70s during the day, but I know it may not happen this Autumn.

I’ve already switched over to heartier breakfasts for the Fall. It is time to change the lunch routine, too. Summer salads are giving way to seasonal soups and grilled cheese sandwiches. Over the past week, we’ve been working on the sandwich half of the classic duo. I was excited to try this one out, as Eric & I are both mushroom fans. (And today is National Mushroom Day!) But we both found the sandwich lacking when we followed the recipe as written. We discussed ways to change and improve the sandwich (meal-making has long been a collaborative effort in our home!) but I had a vague recollection of making a similar grilled cheese last Fall. Happily, I discovered that last year’s version of a grilled cheese sandwich was caramelized onions with Gruyere cheese, not the mushrooms that are the basis of this sandwich. So, it is all good! Here’s our grilled cheese sandwich of choice this Autumn!

Mushroom Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Mushroom Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (inspired by a recipe from foodandwine.com) Serves : 4

Ingredients:

• 5 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 pound mushrooms, cut into thin slices
• 1 teaspoon Montreal Steak seasoning
• 2 1/2 teaspoons dried sage
• 8 slices from a large round loaf of country-style bread, or other bread
• 4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (about 1 cup)
• Dijon mustard to taste

Instructions:

In a large saute pan, heat 3 tablespoons of the butter over moderate heat.

Melt the butter in the saute pan.

Add the mushrooms, Montreal Steak seasoning, and dried sage. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl and wipe out the pan.

Add the mushrooms and seasonings to the butter.

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Using a pastry brush, coat one side of each of 4 slices of the bread with melted butter. Put them, buttered-side down, on a work surface. Spread some Dijon mustard on the bottom slices of bread for each sandwich.

Spread some mustard on the sandwich bottoms.

Top the bottom slices with the grated cheese and top the cheese with the mushrooms.

Add the cheese and mushrooms to the sandwiches.

Cover each sandwich with the remaining 4 slices of bread. Brush the bread tops with the remaining melted butter.

Butter the top slices of bread.

Heat the saute pan over moderately low heat. Add the sandwiches and cook them, turning once, until they are golden, about 2 minutes per side.

Grill the sandwiches in the pan.

Cut the sandwiches in half and serve immediately.

Bring on the Fall weather!  ~Linda

Mushroom Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (inspired by a recipe from foodandwine.com) Serves : 4

Ingredients:

• 5 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 pound mushrooms, cut into thin slices
• 1 teaspoon Montreal Steak seasoning
• 2 1/2 teaspoons dried sage
• 8 slices from a large round loaf of country-style bread, or other bread
• 4 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (about 1 cup)
• Dijon mustard to taste

Instructions:

In a large saute pan, heat 3 tablespoons of the butter over moderate heat. Add the mushrooms, Montreal Steak seasoning, and dried sage. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl and wipe out the pan.

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Using a pastry brush, coat one side of each of 4 slices of the bread with melted butter. Put them, buttered-side down, on a work surface. Spread some Dijon mustard on the bottom slices of bread for each sandwich. Top the bottom slices with the grated cheese and top the cheese with the mushrooms. Cover each sandwich with the remaining 4 slices of bread. Brush the bread tops with the remaining melted butter.

Heat the saute pan over moderately low heat. Add the sandwiches and cook them, turning once, until they are golden, about 2 minutes per side. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve immediately.