sparkle kitchen: campfire raspberry basil grilled cheese sandwiches
In the By Thistle By Thimble story, “Camp Over the Hills and Far Away”, Frances has a particular camp that she wishes to attend—the only problem is that everyone tells her that it doesn’t exist.
But one morning at the library, she finds a flier on the floor; it is for a camp named “Over the Hills and Far Away”. She soon learns that it is not only the perfect camp, but a place that sees her for who she truly is.
At camp, Frances is sorted into a group of meadow elves, but this week's recipe makes me think of one of the other camp groups, the woodland elves.
With sweet, tangy raspberries, and mellow brie cheese, these grilled cheese sandwiches are a bit more magical then their American cheese cousins. And they're made to be cooked outside over a grill or campfire, which will give the bread a whiff of smokiness that's impossible to replicate indoors.
Oh, and speaking of the bread, while you can use any kind of bread you want, these are amazing on slices of a crusty, country loaf.
We also like to eat them with a side of bright green edamame—which you can also cook right there on your grill—so I've included our recipe for that below as well.
Enjoy this woodland feast!
Campfire Raspberry Basil Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
(makes 4 sandwiches)
8 slices of bread several pats of softened butter 6 ounces raspberries (½ pint) 2/3 pound brie a handful of basil
Directions
Preheat your grill. Once you have lots of hot coals, slide most of them over to one side of the grill.
Generously butter one side of each slice of bread.
Put four slices—butter side down—over the hot side of the grill and leave them there for 30-60 seconds. Quickly move them to the cool side of the grill, and distribute the cheese and raspberries evenly amongst them.
Toast the remaining four pieces of bread in the same manner. When they're finished, place them—toasted side up—on top of the melting cheese and raspberries, pressing down gently to get the sandwich to stick together.
Put the lid on your grill, and let the sandwiches cook for another minute or two, to get the cheese nice and gooey and smokey. Take the sandwiches off the grill when they're done to your liking. Lift off the tops to tuck a few pieces of basil into each sandwich, and cut them in half before serving.
Grilled Edamame
Ingredients
1 pound frozen edamame
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
Directions
In a large bowl, toss the edamame pods with the olive oil and salt. Pop them in a grill basket, and put them on the grill as you're pulling the grilled cheese sandwiches off.
Giving them a quick stir every 30 seconds or so, cook them until they're beginning to blister and blacken just the slightest bit. It should only take a few minutes.
Plate them up beside your grilled cheese, and enjoy them hot.
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About the Author
Meryl Carver-Allmond
The Sparkle Kitchen Series is created by Meryl Carver-Allmond.
Meryl lives in a hundred-year-old house near the prairie with her sweet husband, two preschoolers, one puppy, one gecko, and about ten chickens. While she's been writing since she could pick up a pen, in recent years she's discovered the joy of photography, too. She feels lucky to be able to combine those skills, along with a third passion — showing people that cooking for themselves can be healthy and fun — in her Sparkle Kitchen posts.
