Back in the days of our children’s youth, we were always very busy. Between work, school, and kids’ activities, meals often needed to be quick and easy to make. Maybe not weekly, but quite often, we would have appetizers for a weekend lunch. (Or sometimes for a weekday dinner if Eric was traveling and I was rushing between activities with Kelly & Andrew.)
Back then, I would buy pizza bagels, mozzarella sticks, mini egg rolls, and jalapeno poppers at the local bulk buying membership store. Together, these foods comprised our “appetizer lunch” (or dinner) meal. We all picked how many of each appetizer we wanted. Kelly & Andrew usually went for more mozzarella sticks than the other 3 things. Eric was more of a pizza bagel fan. I was always partial to the egg rolls (with hot mustard) and the poppers.
While I no longer buy those bulk appetizers, I do still love jalapeno poppers and (very occasionally) enjoy them when eating out and they “happen” to be ordered for the group. All those wonderful flavors are combined in this grilled sandwich version of the classic poppers. Eric, Andrew, and I indulged in these sandwiches for one of our recent Sunday lunches together.
Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich (adapted from allrecipes.com) Total Time Required: 20 minutes, Prep Time: 10 minutes, Cook Time: 10 minutes, Yield: 2 sandwiches
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 10 pickled jalapeno pepper slices, chopped
- 4 slices of ciabatta bread
- 4 teaspoons butter
- 8 tortilla chips, crushed
- 1/2 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
Directions:
Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, and pickled jalapeno slices in a small bowl. Set the cheese mixture aside. Preheat a skillet over medium heat.
Combine the cream cheese, sour cream and peppers.
Spread 1 teaspoon of butter on each of the top sides of 2 of the slices of bread.
Butter the top sides of the sandwiches.
Place half of the cream cheese mixture, half of the crushed chips, and half of the shredded cheese on the bottom slices of bread.
Spread the bottom slices of bread with the cream cheese mixture.
Layer the crushed tortilla chips and cheese over the cream cheese mixture.
Place the top slice of bread, buttered side up on each sandwich and place the sandwiches on the hot skillet, buttered side down. Butter the top slices of bread of the sandwiches.
Put the buttered side of the sandwich down in the pan and butter the top side.
Grill the sandwiches until lightly browned, about 3 to 5 minutes. Flip the sandwiches over and continue grilling until the cheese is melted and the second side is golden brown.
Flip the sandwiches and continue grilling until the second side is browned.
Serve immediately.
Soooo Good!
The perfect balance of cheesy and spicy! ~Linda
Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich (adapted from allrecipes.com) Total Time Required: 20 minutes, Prep Time: 10 minutes, Cook Time: 10 minutes, Yield: 2 sandwiches
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 10 pickled jalapeno pepper slices, chopped
- 4 slices of ciabatta bread
- 4 teaspoons butter
- 8 tortilla chips, crushed
- 1/2 cup shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
Directions:
Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, and pickled jalapeno slices in a small bowl. Set the cheese mixture aside. Preheat a skillet over medium heat.
Spread 1 teaspoon of butter on each of the top sides of 2 of the slices of bread. Place half of the cream cheese mixture, half of the crushed chips, and half of the shredded cheese on the bottom slices of bread. Place the top slice of bread, buttered side up on each sandwich and place the sandwiches on the hot skillet, buttered side down. Butter the top slices of bread of the sandwiches.
Grill the sandwiches until lightly browned, about 3 to 5 minutes. Flip the sandwiches over and continue grilling until the cheese is melted and the second side is golden brown. Serve immediately.