Grilled Cheese and Ham Sandwiches Using the Waffle Maker

 

I don't know about you, but in our home, it has been VERY busy.  It's already a busy time of year for most people, but then you add in marking, writing deadlines, and home renovations, and it suddenly gets a little overwhelming.  This is where I am so thankful for those make-ahead meals. We have been living off of those for a while, and pulling our a frozen meal is a god-send when I have no energy left.

 

 

I was having my Mom over for lunch after church on Sunday, and I wanted to make something that she would be able to eat.  I often try to make things like baked or grilled sandwiches or quesadillas for her, as it is easy to hold and you don't lose the fillings.  The previous Sunday we went to Senor Froggy Restaurant and my Mom was able to eat an entire quesadilla.  A couple of weeks ago, I had seen a video from Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman, who demonstrated how to make grilled sandwiches using her waffle maker.  I had never tried this before, but thought I could give it a try for our lunch with Mom.

Ingredients

Good quality bread (I used store-bought cheese bread)

Cheese (I used smoked Gouda, but you could use any: Havarti, Cheddar, etc.)

Black Forest Ham (or other variety)

Mayonnaise

Dijon Mustard

Butter

This was really easy to make.  I really like the combination of mayonnaise and Dijon Mustard, so used that in the sandwich. You can skip this step, too.  For four sandwiches, I used approximately 1/4 cup mayonnaise and 2 tsp. Dijon mustard.  I combined this in a small bowl and then spread the one slice for each sandwich.

 

From there, it was very easy.  I put a slice of cheese on top of one slice of bread, followed by two slices of ham, and another piece of cheese.  I brushed melted butter on both sides of the bread and placed in my already warm waffle maker.

 

Once the sandwiches were loaded in, I pushed the waffle top down on them, in a way you might do with a panini press.  You don't need to keep the pressure on, though.  My waffle maker beeps when it is ready, so I checked and then let the sandwich cook longer.  It comes down to personal preference, too.

These were absolutely delicious!  And I will definitely be making them again.  I did want to take this photo, to show you that the cheese did melt from two of the sandwiches, onto the waffle maker.  This does mean some extra cleaning, which you may or may not have time for...I know that my waffle maker sat on the counter until today when I got around to cleaning it.

Oh, and in case you are wondering why all of these photos are so cropped, I was trying to cut out all of the painting supplies like paint cans and paint brushes, which were all over the place in our kitchen, which was one of the rooms getting painted.

 

I hope you enjoy this easy comfort food :)