Apr 8, 2010

Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Fig, Honey & Basil

Something has happened. Something wonderful. Magical. Entirely overdue.

Mornings, those awful, horrible, dreadful things, have undergone a drastic transformation. Now that Mother Nature has finally shed her frosty outer layer, I no longer wake up to dreary, pitch-black skies and icy cold floors. Instead, streams of golden sunlight and vivid green tree buds have been bursting through my bedroom window each morning, springing me to life.

With this warmer, happier weather, I, myself, am warming up to the very idea of mornings. And what better way to start them than with a beautiful spring breakfast? 

This sweet little sandwich is perfect with the delicate flavors of goat cheese, honey, lemon, fig and basil. All that between two buttery grilled slices of cinnamon raisin bread? There's simply no better breakfast treat. (Ahem, if you uh, don't count Krispy Kreme donuts and bacon.)



And trust me, if this recipe is easy enough for even me to whip up on a busy barely-have-time-to-eat morning, you'll definitely have time. Simply mix goat cheese, lemon zest and honey, spread that on a slice of raisin bread, top with fig preserves, sliced basil and a second piece of bread and grill! They were done before the hubby could finish pouring a glass of milk. (Granted, I do mornings a bit better than him.)






Delicious. They reminded me of stuffed French toast, but with much more flavor and way less fat. We devoured them in seconds. And since the recipe yields eight and there are only two of us, I was lucky enough to make this breakfast a few days in a row.

Now, if you really want a really flavorful, rich sandwich, adding a little extra goat cheese mixture is the way to go. And while the recipe says to use a second pan to press the sandwiches while grilling, I have to say...I prefer mine unpressed. For some reason, pressing them seemed to hide the flavors. 



But however you decide to make them, I'm sure you'll love them. The sweet, creamy flavor and absolute simplicity make these sandwiches equally wonderful for a fancy brunch or a quick weekday dinner.

So now that icy windshields and snowy driveways are but a faint memory, take a seat on the patio, pour yourself a tall glass of OJ and bite into a sweet taste of spring.


Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Fig & Honey
David Bonom, Cooking Light, June 2004
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)



Ingredients:
2  teaspoons  honey
1/4  teaspoon  grated lemon rind
1  (4-ounce) package goat cheese
8  (1-ounce) slices cinnamon-raisin bread
2  tablespoons  fig preserves
2  teaspoons  thinly sliced fresh basil
Cooking spray
1  teaspoon  powdered sugar

Preparation:
Combine first 3 ingredients, stirring until well blended. Spread 1 tablespoon goat cheese mixture on each of 4 bread slices; top each slice with 1 1/2 teaspoons preserves and 1/2 teaspoon basil. Top with remaining bread slices. Lightly coat outside of bread with cooking spray.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 2 sandwiches to pan. Place a cast-iron or heavy skillet on top of sandwiches; press gently to flatten. Cook 3 minutes on each side or until bread is lightly toasted (leave cast-iron skillet on sandwiches while they cook). Repeat with remaining sandwiches. Sprinkle with sugar.

Nutritional Information:
Calories: 243 (31% from fat), Fat: 8.5g (sat 4.8g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.5g), Protein: 9.8g, Carbohydrate: 33.1g, Fiber: 2.5g, Cholesterol: 13mg, Iron: 2.2mg, Sodium: 326mg, Calcium: 78mg.
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28 comments:

Mhel said...

I love the idea of adding fig with the goat cheese. Your sandwich looks inviting!! Dropping by from SITS!

rosa said...

it's my turn to dread mornings! daylight savings time has ended and it's still dark when we have to wake up and it's getting dark sooner. but maybe i will try this sandwich to make autumn and winter mornings more bearable :)

livinginbetween said...

That looks really, really good!

I've got to go have breakfast, and I wish I could have this!

Joanne said...

Wow these basically look like heaven. They basically have all my favorite things in them. And melted cheese. So you just know they are awesome. Thanks for sharing!

Pam said...

Oh, that sounds and looks delicious! Love goat cheese and now I'm hungry!

Gigi said...

OMG. That looks amazing. Goat cheese is heaven, and this combo is too much not to try. Getting the fixins this weekend...and I can use fresh basil from my garden!

Kita said...

That sandwich looks awesome. It's making me hungry. Saw you on SITS!

Cool Lassi(e) said...

That sandwich is a slice of heaven! So many flavors coming from very differnt ingredients is making me yearn for a piece of that.

Wendy (The Local Cook) said...

Oh my, that sounds DELICIOUS. I'm drooling on my keyboard.

Kathleen said...

This is an absolutely brilliant sandwich! I cant believe just how utterly fabulous it sounds!

Unknown said...

yeah..i have all the ingredients for this! I am going to make it for lunch..it just looks so amazing...salty and sweet..oh glory!

Nicole @ WhenDidIBecomeMyMom.com said...

Oh YUM! That looks delicious and doable even for me, and I love the name of your blog! :-)

Here from SITS. Happy SITS Saturday Sharefest.
:-)

Shamrocks and Shenanigans said...

I'm here from SITS and I'm your newest follower. This sandwich looks like heaven! Come stop by my food blog!

Kathleen said...

I already commented but wanted to wish you a happy Saturday Sharefest!

Rachel said...

I'm so glad some of you are going to try this sandwich. It's super super good. And Gigi - SOOO jealous of your garden!

Holly @ Domestic Dork said...

You had me at "goat cheese." I <3 goat cheese! It's one of my favorite pizza toppings! And I love to eat cranberry goat cheese on crackers. Mmmmmmmmmmm. *drool*

Teresa @ ♥ Too Many Heartbeats ♥ said...

That looks AMAZING but it doesn't sound quite as appetizing! :0) LOL! Honestly, I've never in my life had goat cheese and I don't like figs but I'll try most anything once. Now, the Lemon-Honey Drop Cookies, Mashed Potatoes w/Roasted Garlic Butter and Hot Fudge Cakes...now we're talking!!

I wanted to drop by and thank you for stopping by my blog. I hope you will do it again soon. I love to make new blog friends.

Have a great weekend!

Blessings,

Teresa <><

CynthiaK said...

Oh, my goodness but those look delectable! Wow!

Stopping by from SITS - have a great week!!

Tina L. Hook said...

Drooling. We really should do breakfast together more often.

Whatever Dee-Dee wants said...

You are a winner! Stop by my blog and see what you have won :)

the VA foodie said...

I just stumbled upon your blog when looking up recipes from myrecipes.com. Looking through your blog, its so funny to me how many of the same recipes we've made! I'm glad you've chosen such tasty recipes to make so far to spread the word on how easy and delicious CL can be. I was actually thinking about starting my own CL blog since we cook 2-3 recipes per week, but now I'll just track you to see what you make! :)

Just a suggestion---you HAVE to make Nathan's Lemon cake. It is a must. oh and Seared Scallops over Bacon and Spinach Salad with Cider Vinaigrette. Two of our top 5 favorites! There are just so many good CL recipes!

Anne said...

Oh wow this looks absolutely delicious! I'm not the best judge because I'd eat just about anything with goat cheese but really, I'm dying to try this!

CreativeMish said...

Oh yum! I bet these are really delish!

Rachel said...

Meghan - I think we are twins separated at birth! We should definitely swap our faves. Keep them coming! That lemon cake and those scallops sound amazing. I'm adding them to the list. Thank you!

cookies and cups said...

This looks amazing! I love the flavor combo on this ~ yummy =)

Ma What's 4 dinner said...

Oh wow! Oh wow oh wow oh wow. I'm officially rendered speechless....

Alex aka Ma What's For Dinner
www.mawhats4dinner.com

Dorothy at Belle of the Kitchen said...

This looks amazing! I love the combination of goat cheese and figs. Thanks for sharing!

Found you on SITS!

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