Butter, at room temperature
2 slices of bread of choice (I used at thick white shokupan)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
whole grain mustard, to taste
1/2 an apple, sliced thin
Heat up a non-stick pan on medium-low heat. Butter one slice of bread and place in the pan butter-side down. Spread on some mustard to taste and top with half of the shredded cheddar and the sliced apple. Add the remaining cheddar on top of the apple slices, making sure to get to the edges. Butter the other slice of bread and place on top of the cheese, butter-side facing out. Cook slowly on medium-low heat until golden brown and toasty. Most of your cheese should be melted when it’s time to flip. Carefully flip your sandwich and continue grilling. The second-side grills a bit faster, so turn the heat down to low and keep a close eye on it. When toasty brown and perfect, remove from the pan, and enjoy hot!
And, on another note: I’m in Tokyo! It’s a dream come true. We’ll be here for a little while, but don’t worry, I’ve cooked up a storm and am going to be updating on the regular. I’m planning on cooking in my tiny Tokyo kitchen (post about that coming soon!) and doing some general travel posts. If there’s anything you’d love to see, let me know in the comments and if you have any suggestions on where to eat and what to do while I’m here, I’d love to know!

Brie is silky smooth creaminess. It’s mild and melty, which lends itself well to bold flavours and grilled cheese. This sandwich was, as Joy says, is “utterly inspired” and perfect for an easy, breezy brunch. I cut my sandwich up in to teeny-tiny squares and skewered them for fun because if I can put food on a stick, I will. I imagine these guys would be super popular at a cocktail brunch party. Which is totally a thing, right? Please excuse me while I go plan out the menu (and my outfit!) for a fancy, standing room only cocktail brunch party. Happy Sunday!
With a sharp knife, cut the brie straight from the fridge, into even slices. Spread the mustard on one slice of bread and the jam on the other. Layer the ham on the mustard-clad slice of bread and the brie on the jam slice. Sandwich the slices together. Melt about a tablespoon of butter in a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Swirl and add the sandwich and cook, flipping once, until golden brown and gooey, about 6 minutes total. Cut in to desired shapes and enjoy immediately.

It’s a little funny for me to call a grilled cheese brunch food because the truth is, I eat grilled cheeses all. the. time. If I have bread in the house, and I’m hungry, it’s always a toss up between grilled cheese, cinnamon toast, or avocado toast. I have a hard time keeping a supply of avocados on hand (someone –okay, fine it’s me– keeps eating all the avocados before they make it to toast-topping) so it’s usually grilled cheese. Because, grilled cheese.

The other day my mom gave me a bunch of apples she picked out of some random person’s yard (yup, pretty much proves my mom’s a hipster forager) so I put together this little apple cheddar grilled deliciousness. I added some mustard in because mustard and cheese are actually secret BFFs but only when pretzels aren’t around. Gosh, thinking of it, this sandwich would be absolutely amazing on pretzel bread. But, this was really, really good too. The crunch of the apples and the gooeyness of the cheddar with the crisp yet soft butter grilled bread…ugh, writing about it makes me want another one right now. What are you waiting for?! I bet you have apples, cheddar, mustard, and bread in your house right now!

Leftover chicken will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days or freeze in an airtight container for up to three months.

WHAT TO SERVE WITH SHREDDED CHICKEN SANDWICHES
I serve these sandwiches with potato chips, but any BBQ side would work great.
Heat the grill and prepare the chicken: Preheat grill to medium-high heat. To butterfly the chicken, use a sharp knife to slice the chicken horizontally – leaving the edge connected so you can open the chicken breast – making it thinner and therefore faster-cooking. Then drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Pour 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce into a bowl and set it aside. You will add it to the cooked chicken later.

3 Grill the chicken and chiles (if using): Add chicken to grill and spoon BBQ sauce over each piece of chicken. You will use 1/3 to 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce for this part of cooking.

Grill for 5 to 6 minutes on the first side. Flip and add BBQ sauce to the second side. Grill for another 5 to 6 minutes on the second side or until the chicken breasts reach 165˚F. Remove from the grill.

As the chicken grills, add 2 to 3 serrano peppers to the grill. Grill them for 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove and let cool.

NOTE: If you do not butterfly your chicken breasts, you will need to grill them for 8 to 10 minutes longer than this.

It is wonderful, it is meatless, it is the epitome of comfort food.
French dips are a type of sandwich that normally contain beef, onions, and cheese (also called beef dips) and their trademark is that they get dipped in an au jus (brothy kind of sauce). According to this nice little history of French dips, they are an American invention, but they’re called French due to the type of bread usually used.

These Grilled Chimichurri Portobellos are OUT OF THIS WORLD. Marinated in a punchy and vibrant chimichurri before heading to the grill, then served on top of a mountain of creamy goat cheese mashed potatoes.

1/2 cup olive oil

red pepper flakes to taste
4 portobello mushroom caps
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro (not traditional) or parsley (traditional)
1 small red serrano pepper, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon kosher salt
red pepper flakes to taste
4 portobello mushroom caps

It’s a little funny for me to call a grilled cheese brunch food because the truth is, I eat grilled cheeses all. the. time. If I have bread in the house, and I’m hungry, it’s always a toss up between grilled cheese, cinnamon toast, or avocado toast. I have a hard time keeping a supply of avocados on hand (someone –okay, fine it’s me– keeps eating all the avocados before they make it to toast-topping) so it’s usually grilled cheese. Because, grilled cheese.

The other day my mom gave me a bunch of apples she picked out of some random person’s yard (yup, pretty much proves my mom’s a hipster forager) so I put together this little apple cheddar grilled deliciousness. I added some mustard in because mustard and cheese are actually secret BFFs but only when pretzels aren’t around. Gosh, thinking of it, this sandwich would be absolutely amazing on pretzel bread. But, this was really, really good too. The crunch of the apples and the gooeyness of the cheddar with the crisp yet soft butter grilled bread…ugh, writing about it makes me want another one right now. What are you waiting for?! I bet you have apples, cheddar, mustard, and bread in your house right now!

Brie is silky smooth creaminess. It’s mild and melty, which lends itself well to bold flavours and grilled cheese. This sandwich was, as Joy says, is “utterly inspired” and perfect for an easy, breezy brunch. I cut my sandwich up in to teeny-tiny squares and skewered them for fun because if I can put food on a stick, I will. I imagine these guys would be super popular at a cocktail brunch party. Which is totally a thing, right? Please excuse me while I go plan out the menu (and my outfit!) for a fancy, standing room only cocktail brunch party. Happy Sunday!
With a sharp knife, cut the brie straight from the fridge, into even slices. Spread the mustard on one slice of bread and the jam on the other. Layer the ham on the mustard-clad slice of bread and the brie on the jam slice. Sandwich the slices together. Melt about a tablespoon of butter in a medium skillet over medium-low heat. Swirl and add the sandwich and cook, flipping once, until golden brown and gooey, about 6 minutes total. Cut in to desired shapes and enjoy immediately.

Recipe:

butter, at room temperature
2 slices of bread of choice (I used at thick white shokupan)
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
whole grain mustard, to taste
1/2 an apple, sliced thin
Heat up a non-stick pan on medium-low heat. Butter one slice of bread and place in the pan butter-side down. Spread on some mustard to taste and top with half of the shredded cheddar and the sliced apple. Add the remaining cheddar on top of the apple slices, making sure to get to the edges. Butter the other slice of bread and place on top of the cheese, butter-side facing out. Cook slowly on medium-low heat until golden brown and toasty. Most of your cheese should be melted when it’s time to flip. Carefully flip your sandwich and continue grilling. The second-side grills a bit faster, so turn the heat down to low and keep a close eye on it. When toasty brown and perfect, remove from the pan, and enjoy hot!
And, on another note: I’m in Tokyo! It’s a dream come true. We’ll be here for a little while, but don’t worry, I’ve cooked up a storm and am going to be updating on the regular. I’m planning on cooking in my tiny Tokyo kitchen (post about that coming soon!) and doing some general travel posts. If there’s anything you’d love to see, let me know in the comments and if you have any suggestions on where to eat and what to do while I’m here, I’d love to know!