Italian Ham and Cheese
Cookbook
Great Grilled Cheese: 50 Innovative Recipes for Stovetop, Grill and Sandwich Maker
Published by Stewart, Tabori & Chang

Fontina cheese is rich and creamy, making it a perfect melting cheese. Although you can use the more readily available Danish Fontina, I highly recommend you seek out Italian Fontina—it's a far more flavorful cheese.
4 sandwiches
Cooking Methodgrilling
CostModerate
Total Timeunder 30 minutes
Recipe Coursemain course
Equipmentgrill, panini press
Meallunch
Taste and Texturebuttery, cheesy, crisp, rich, savory
Type of Dishgrilled sandwich, sandwich
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 large leek (about 6 ounces), white and light green parts thinly sliced, then rinsed and patted dry
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ pound pancetta, cut into 4 paper-thin slices (or buy it presliced)
- 2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
- 8 slices sourdough bread, ¼ inch thick (or for a nuttier flavor, use rye)
- 6 ounces Italian Fontina cheese, coarsely grated
Instructions
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Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are limp but not brown, about 7 minutes, then add the salt. Transfer the leeks to a bowl and let cool.
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Increase the heat to medium-high and add the pancetta to the skillet. Cook for 3 minutes, or until brown. Turn and cook about 2 minutes more, or until the pancetta has turned deep golden brown. Transfer the pancetta to a plate, and when cool enough to handle, chop it into bite-size pieces. Wipe the skillet with a paper towel, but do not wash it.
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To assemble: Butter one side of each slice of bread. Place 4 slices on your work surface, buttered side down. Distribute the cheese evenly over the 4 slices, followed by the leeks and pancetta. Place the remaining 4 bread slices on top, buttered side up.
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STOVETOP METHOD: Heat the same skillet over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Put the sandwiches in the skillet (in batches if necessary), cover, and cook for 2 minutes, or until the undersides are golden brown and the cheese has begun to melt. Uncover, and turn the sandwiches with a spatula, pressing firmly to flatten them slightly. Cook for 1 minute, or until the undersides are golden brown. Turn the sandwiches again, press with the spatula, and cook for 30 seconds, or until the cheese has melted completely. Serve immediately.
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SANDWICH MAKER METHOD: Preheat the sandwich maker. Follow directions for sandwich assembly, and cook according to the manufacturer's instructions.
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GAS GRILL METHOD: Brush the grill rack with oil and preheat the grill to medium-high. Follow directions for sandwich assembly. Put the sandwiches on the grill and follow directions for the stovetop method.
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