Welcome To My Blog!

For the past year, I've had the experience of being a part of the Niagara Falls Boys and Girls Club Cookbook Committee. Our committee is in the process of finishing our cookbook, A Stir In The Mist: Tastes and Traditions of Niagara Falls. It is a collection of recipes from the Niagara Falls community and local restaurants. All proceeds from the sale of this book will go directly to the Niagara Falls Boys and Girls Club. Just recently I have relocated to Ohio, but still wanted to be involved with the book. After watching the movie Julie and Julia, I was inspired to share the great recipes from our cookbook and the experience I had making each of them. I hope you will enjoy the journey I will take stirring my way through A Stir In The Mist!

Let the "stirring" begin!

Well I have started this venture through the cookbook. First things first, each recipe I do will only be a little story about the steps it took to get to the final product. There will be no ingredients given out and no steps to how I got every great tasting recipe to turn out so delicious. That is for you to find out when you purchase or when someone else purchases"A Stir in the Mist" for you!!

I will apologize now for any grammar or punctuation mistakes I may make. I know I am coming from a family of educators, therefore I should know better about these things, but I may make a few mistakes. Soo lets get started....

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Grilled Cheese Italiano

This recipe is a very special recipe. It is such a quick and easy recipe, you can add ingredients to it or just keep it the original way it is. 

Diane Quarantello, director of the Niagara Falls Boys and Girls Club , entered this recipe in a contest , “Adventures in Foods”  in 1971, at the age of 14 as a member of the International Center and Girl’s Club of Niagara Falls, New York. 
Her closing statement in this contest entry was,  “ I picked this sandwich because it is a more appealing variation of the grilled cheese.  Also, the ingredients of this sandwich are my favorite, especially the salami.”






The only twist that I put towards the "Grilled Cheese Italiano" was the bread. Now that we are here living in Ohio, in my previous blogs I mentioned how we do not have the delicious Italian bread that we once enjoyed in Niagara Falls!  So for a little change in taste, I stopped by Panera Bread and bought a loaf of there bread. Wow.. what a great choice.

You make this recipe the same exact way you would any sandwich, then to give it that added touch of "Italiano" you season it with some Oregano and a few other mouth watering seasonings.

You can grill this recipe the same way you would make a grilled cheese sandwich. I decided to use my panini press.  The bread that I was using, was thicker than most Italian breads, so the panini press was a great way to thin it out along with toasting it a little.

Wait until the bread is nice and golden brown this way it is toasted all the way through!
What better way to experience an Italian sandwich. I served chili along with this recipe. You can serve soup, salad or just throw a few potato chips on a plate and your lunch/dinner is served. Hope you enjoy and Thank You Diane for submitting this recipe and sharing it with Niagara Falls.