Author and Photographer: Charles Eden

When I was younger, my siblings and I loved watching Cartoon Network’s The Looney Tunes Show. Our favorite aspect of the show was, without a doubt, the “Merry Melodies”; hearing our favorite characters sing ridiculous parodies of famous genres never failed to make us laugh. Of course, we had our favorites — such as Bugs Bunny’s “Long Eared Drifter” and Lola Bunny’s “President’s Day” — but every song had its own appeal. Particularly for us foodies, there was one “Merry Melody” that stood far above the rest: “Grilled Cheese” by Elmer Fudd. This half-soul, half-jazz ode to Elmer’s favorite sandwich was nothing short of a masterpiece for those of us who also loved the classic sandwich.

Now that I am older, however, the animated short does not have the same appeal. And it is not because I am over cartoons, or because, I now realize how uncomfortable the music video is for Melody. (Although I absolutely believe that animating Elmer Fudd in all white pajamas like it’s a scene in a bad rom-com is a terrible artistic choice, especially for a kids show.)

The “Merry Melody” has lost its appeal because I am simply over plain grilled cheese. I will still eat one if it is presented to me, but I cannot remember the last time I was in a well-stocked kitchen and chose to make myself a plain grilled cheese. To me, a plain grilled cheese lacks that “it-factor”—that “umph”—that really makes a food memorable. It just needs more flavor.

So, to put my money where my mouth is, I decided to make four grilled cheeses inspired by global flavors in the hopes of reigniting my love for the grilled cheese. And because I cannot eat that much food alone, I invited some friends for lunch to help me taste test.

Of course, as an avid baker, once I had set my eyes on this grilled cheese experiment, I was going to go all out. So, instead of buying my bread, I made two large loaves of ciabatta (shoutout to Alexandra’s Kitchen for the recipe). And as much as I would have also liked to use homegrown vegetables, I do not have access to a garden in my college dorm, so for the rest of the ingredients, I settled for the products at Trader Joe’s. And once I had all my ingredients purchased and prepped, I was ready to begin.

Italy

The first of the four grilled cheeses was inspired by the classic Italian Margherita pizza with a little extra Mediterranean flavor. It consisted of tomato slices, basil, olives, and, of course, some extra chunks of mozzarella cheese — in addition to the slices of mozzarella cheese that I used as a base for all the grilled cheeses.

Not only was this the fan favorite (although it is not my personal favorite—we will get to that shortly), but it was also the simplest of the four to make. The only real prep required for this sandwich involved cutting a few slices of tomato and mozzarella.

Overall, the different flavors in the Italian grilled cheese worked very well together. The juiciness of the tomatoes really complimented the crunch of the bread, and extra cheese obviously never fails to impress. It makes sense that the tomato, basil, and mozzarella trio is so well liked. For me, however, the fact that I have had this margherita flavor profile so often is my main critique against this grilled cheese — considering my goal was to try and spice up the grilled cheese sandwich in as unique a way as possible.

Rating: 7.5/10; definitely Mr. Reliable, but not out there enough for me

Mexico

The second of the grilled cheeses was inspired by classic taco flavors: beans, Pico de Gallo, and avocado. As for my beans, I used refried beans both because I love refried beans and because you can spread a generous layer onto a piece of bread. To replicate the Pico de Gallo, I just sliced up my tomato and cut my onion into small crescents. I added some avocado slices, and the Mexican grilled cheeses were ready for the oven.

Despite the simplicity of the flavors, I found the Mexican grilled cheese to be quite exciting. The addition of beans to a grilled cheese was something I had never considered before, and it was definitely successful. Without overriding the other flavors, the beans embodied exactly what I was hoping to accomplish with this experiment: adding new flavors to grilled cheeses while simultaneously staying true to the nature of the sandwich.

The onions were also a great addition, especially because of their texture. The crunch of the onion combined with the cheesy goodness was truly a fantastic combination. And of course, avocado will always get a good review from me. The combination of flavors in this sandwich translated perfectly from taco or burrito form to grilled cheese form.

Rating: 10/10, with truly no complaints.

Germany

The third grilled cheese was inspired by German flavors. Putting this grilled cheese together took a little bit of research, but I eventually settled on just two ingredients: mustard and bratwurst. Because I am vegetarian, I substituted real bratwurst for soy chorizo. I admit, the flavors are definitely not the same, but it was the best I could do with the ingredients at my disposal. To compensate for the lack of ingredients (and because who doesn't want their grilled cheese extra cheesy? ), I added some extra mozzarella slices.

While this was definitely the most interesting of all the sandwiches, it was also the least favorite among my friends, and, in this case, I have to agree with the crowd. I do like mustard, but it was incredibly overpowering. After only a few bites of this grilled cheese, I was over it. I do think

that the German grilled cheese accomplished the goal of bringing new flavors to grilled cheese very well, but overall the flavors did not work for me. It wasn’t bad per se, but I am likely never going to make this grilled cheese again.

Rating: 5.5/10; despite everything, the soy chorizo was pretty tasty, and the extra cheesiness was a nice touch.

Philadelphia

The final grilled cheese was inspired by street food in Philadelphia, a city very important to me. My grandparents have lived in Philadelphia my entire life, so I have spent lots of time in Center City, especially over Thanksgiving weekend. The personal connection combined with the fact that the Eagles had made the Super Bowl meant I had to include this grilled cheese in my experiment. (At the point of my writing this article, the Eagles had already lost, but the grilled cheese luncheon took place a week before the Super Bowl.)

The Philadelphia grilled cheese was inspired by the famous Philly cheesesteak. I sautéed pepper and onion slices before assembling the sandwich, and I used the soy chorizo once again as a substitute for the meat ingredient.

Despite the fact that this grilled cheese was the most complicated of the four (because of the sautéing), the extra work definitely paid off. The Philly cheesesteak in grilled cheese form stayed true to its inspiration but also added a nice twist. Usually, a genuine Philly cheesesteak is served on a small baguette, but the thick slices of ciabatta were an upgrade in my eyes. I also decided to add extra mozzarella to the grilled cheese to honor the necessity of cheese in a traditional Philly cheesesteak (it is the name’s sake after all).

My one critique of this grilled cheese is that the peppers were slightly overpowering, although that is likely because I added too many peppers and not because the flavor of peppers is too strong.

Rating: 9/10; would love to make it for my Philly family.

Conclusion

I would say the experiment overall was a smashing success. Besides the fact that my friends could not stop raving about the sandwiches, I definitely accomplished my original goal of reinvigorating the grilled cheese. And while I may not always have the time to make my own bread and truly go all out, I know I can always turn to one of these recipes if I am ever craving a fun and exciting meal.

Worldwide Grilled Cheese