serves 2
I recently had a grilled cheese craving strike when I was passing by my local bagel shop. Because cream cheese doesn’t have the gooeyness factor of aged cheese and would simply ooze out in the pan if you tried to grill it, I bought a block of horseradish Cheddar along with my poppy seed bagel.
Back at home, waiting for the bagel to toast, I noshed on salami from the fridge, remembering an old friend who’d fry her salami before making it into a sandwich. I fried up a few slices and added them to my cheesy bagel along with rounds of red onion for crunch. Spicy, rich, and fatty, with a meaty edge from the salami, it was definitely as good as regular grilled cheese, and nearly as good as my regular bagel and lox.
2 bagels, halved
3 ounces horseradish Cheddar cheese, sliced (or substitute horseradish Cheddar spread)
¼ pound salami, thinly sliced
½ small red onion, thinly sliced
1. In a toaster oven or in an oven preheated to 500°F, toast the bagel halves until pale golden. Top each with some of the cheese and continue toasting until the cheese begins to melt.
2. Meanwhile, in a skillet over medium heat, fry the salami slices until golden, about 3 minutes. Place the salami and red onion on the bottom bagel halves. Cover with the bagel tops and serve.