Grill your grilled cheese on a real grill.

If you need a simple appetizer that goes together quickly, then look no further than your grill.

What could be simpler and more welcome than grilled cheese sandwiches? But not the simple sandwiches of yesteryear.

Forget the slices of white bread and the chemical taste of American cheese food. Instead, grab a baguette, some butter and an assortment of your favorite cheeses, and you’re all set.

The secret is to give your guests a host of options.

So, cut your baguette into thirds. Then slice each in half and butter both sides heavily.

Layer in your favorite cheeses and finish the sandwiches off with what you have on hand.

For a recent party, that meant using freshly roasted red pepper slices with Colby cheese and using some Hatch green chiles with mozzarella. The third section was a gooey blend of sharp cheddar, Colby and mozzarella. You could also use your choice of olive salad, sun-dried tomato slices, even bacon and match them with the likes of Emmenthaler, Manchego and queso fresco.

Let your guests cut their own bites.

The three sections of sandwich went on the grill and were ready to turn in no time, meaning you shouldn’t leave them to sit while you grab a beer. Even with turning them over, all three were ready to serve in a matter of minutes.

Let your guest cut their own portions. Serve with your favorite sandwich sides, from pickles to cranberry relish, and enjoy the reaction.

SavorSA wasn’t online for an entire year, but we have served enough pleasures to give you a year-end wrap-up of what we consider our best recipes.

They range from a hearty Parmesan bread made from leftovers to a complex recipe from Julia Child for her mouthwatering Boeuf Bourguignon. If you saw the movie “Julie & Julia,” you know just how seductive this recipe is from the visuals alone.

Some of the dishes are quite simple (a grilled cheese), others need a little time but are well worth the effort (a flourless chocolate cake).

Yet all of the recipes are keepers, ones that we return to and hope you will, too. Here, in no order, are the top recipes:

Pickle Recipe: Cucumber Apple Pickles	Recipe: Grilled Shrimp With Piri-Piri Sauce	Recipe: Fruit Tart
Recipe: Grilled Cheese With Tomato, Basil and Garlic	Recipe: Herbed Buttermilk Parmesan Bread	Recipe: Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon
Recipe: Beat-the-heat Gazpacho	Recipe: Flourless Chocolate Cherry Hatch Cake	Recipe: Spicy Pumpkin Soup
Recipe: Rosario’s Shrimp Nachos	Recipe: Tre Trattoria's Italian White Beans With Gremolata	Recipe: Pork Green Chile
Recipe: Sweet Potato Cinnamon Rolls	Recipe: Edith’s Gingerbread	What was the best recipe you made in 2009? Please share it with us.

Grilled Cheese With Tomato, Basil and Garlic

“Turn a grilled cheese sandwich into a gourmet delight with this Italian combination of flavors,” writes Nancy Mair, author of “The Intimate Vegetarian.” “You can also vary the sandwich in a number of ways: Leave out the onion or tomato, spread pesto on the bread instead of basil, or use fresh mozzarella and marinated sun-dried tomatoes.”

4 slices sourdough, French or whole-wheat bread
About 3 1/2 ounces sharp cheddar, sliced
2 to 4 thin slices red or yellow onion
1 medium tomato, thinly sliced
5 large basil leaves, torn into 1/2-inch pieces or generous pinch dried basil, crumbled
1 large clove garlic, thinly sliced
1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons butter

Place cheese on one slice of bread, covering the bread to the edges. Top with onion and tomato. Add basil and finish off with garlic. Spread the second slice of bread with butter and place it buttered side up on top of sandwich.

Preheat grill  to 340 degrees or heat a frying pan on medium heat. Place sandwich buttered side down onto the hot surface. Cover sandwich or pan with a lid to speed the melting of the cheese. Check bottom of bread after a few minutes to measure how quickly it’s browning, and cook until it becomes a rich golden brown. Butter the top side of upper piece of bread, then flip sandwich over. Cook on second side, uncovered, until nicely toasted. Cut in half and serve piping hot.

Notes to the cook:

• Grilled sandwiches are buttered on the outer sides of the bread rather than the inner sides, so you don’t need to butter the pan – the sandwich does it for you.
• The amount of cheese will vary according to the size of the bread slices.

Makes 2 sandwiches.

From “The Intimate Vegetarian” by Nancy Mair

This article is part of the series:  World Vegetarian Day Brings Some Meat-free Surprises