Fig Grilled Cheese Recipe

Are you in the mood for a fancy grilled cheese? While traditional grilled cheese sandwiches are great, sometimes we need a little more than a few slices of cheddar or American cheese to satisfy us. This recipe is like an adult grilled cheese, but the kiddos are sure to love it as well. It combines toasty sourdough bread with fig jam and Gruyere cheese, and it tastes just as amazing as it sounds. This recipe is excellent for all types of occasions, including a night at home, a lunch with the girls, or even a weekend brunch.

Recipe developer Jaime Bachtell-Shelbert of Wholly Nourished came up with this incredible sandwich recipe, and we should all be thanking her! "This is truly one of my favorite sandwiches. I've prepared it for many friends, and such a simple sandwich has wowed them all," Bachtell-Shelbert raves. "So with that, I'd say that I love how simple this is, but the fig butter makes it unexpectedly interesting and delicious."

Keep reading to find out how to make this fantastic recipe!

The first thing you will need to do is gather all of the necessary items to put this dish together. For starters, you will need a few slices of sourdough bread. We think sourdough is perfect for sandwiches, as it gets the ideal toast when you put it in a pan. Next, you will need a few tablespoons of butter and then fig butter or fig jam. "I get fig butter at Trader Joe's but have seen fig spread or fig jam at World Market and at mainstream grocery stores," Bachtell-Shelbert notes.

The last item you will need is shredded Gruyere cheese, or you can get a block and shred it yourself. Now, it's time to get started.

Take out your loaf of sourdough bread and a cutting board. If you purchased a loaf of bread that the grocery store pre-sliced, you can skip this part. If not, place the loaf of sourdough on the cutting board and slice it to your desired thickness. There's no right or wrong way to do this. Just make sure that you get a bread knife that is sharp enough to do the job.

Then, grab the butter and lather it on each slice of bread. Place the pieces of bread butter-side down on your work surface, and move on to the next step.

Now, it's time to add another layer of goodness to the sandwich. Take out your fig butter and a butter knife. Divide the half cup evenly among the two slices of bread. Continue to spread the fig butter to cover both pieces of bread completely. In our opinion, the more fig butter, the better! 

Once you have finished spreading the fig butter, shred the Gruyere cheese if you haven't already. Then, place it on top of the two remaining bread slices. After that, you're ready to move on to the next step!

Now, it's time to assemble the sandwiches. Since you've done most of the prep work already, this step should be super simple. All you need to do is place the slices with the fig spread on top of the shredded Gruyere cheese. It's super simple, yet so delicious. Now, you have yourself one of the best sandwiches that you will ever eat, and you're one step closer to getting to bite into it.

Next, take out a nonstick pan, put it on your stove, and turn the heat to medium-low.

Now that you've got your pan situated, place the sandwiches in it with the cheese sides down. Cook on the cheese side for five minutes, and be careful not to burn it. Flip and cook the other side for another three to four minutes. You can use your timer or just eyeball the clock.

If the cheese doesn't fully melt, just remove the pan from the heat and flip the sandwich one more time. Then, cover the pan with a lid to trap the heat and let it cook for a few more minutes until the cheese fully melts.

Once the cheese has melted and turns to gooey goodness, take it out of the pan. You can plate and serve these sandwiches however you would like! "I usually serve this with a large green salad. Roasted sweet potatoes pair nicely as well," Bachtell-Shelbert shares.

As for leftovers? They're not great, but you can take a chance with them! "I recommend serving right away," Bachtell-Shelbert notes. "Leftovers do not keep well but perhaps could be re-toasted in a toaster oven or under the broiler."

Now there's only one thing left to do — take a bite!