Around the world in cheese toasties

October 25th, 2012

Ovens & Cooking

One of the best parts of travel is eating. It’s great because what might be regarded as ‘greedy’ in your normal life is suddenly transformed into a studious act of cultural education while abroad. And hey, in some countries, it’s downright rude to refuse food! So it’s best you eat those eleven croissants, no matter how much it may pain you to eat large quantities of delicious food. And that bottle of wine too – don’t you know there are some people in the world who don’t have wine? Waste not want not, I say. glug glug glug…

Sadly, travel is an indulgence not all of us can afford. So why not create the experience inside your own kitchen… using cheese! This is a great idea and you should do it today. Appliances Online shows you how:

Australia: Cheese Jaffle

Did you know that the jaffle maker is an Australia invention? Launched by Breville in 1974, this is an appliance that truly revolutionised humankind. It became so popular, that even to this day some people refer to a toasted sandwich as a ‘Breville’. Strewth!

Here is an old ad that features singing jaffle makers, for your enjoyment:

Appropriate jaffle fillings include cheese (Coon Tasty), baked beans, egg, ham, leftover bolognese, leftover taco filling, tomato, and Vegemite.

USA: Grilled Cheese

The main difference between a jaffle and a grilled cheese sandwich is the cooking method. If you want to be boring you could use a sandwich press or an electric frypan, but adventurous spirits could try the ironing method – already covered in our hilarious and informative article Fish in the Dishwasher and Other Crazy Cooking Tips.

See how it’s done:

Mexico: Quesadilla

I don’t know about you, but when it comes to food I believe it’s impossible to go wrong where hot sauce and cheese are involved. Easy and delicious, quesadilla is like the beautiful love-child of pizza and burritos. Plus they’re easy to make – simply smear salsa, cheese, meat and/or beans on one tortilla, whack the other one on top, and fry that mother. You’ll be blissing out on the festive taste of Mexico quicker than you can say “I think I hit up the Tabasco a bit hard, ow.”

Wales: Welsh Rarebit

Apparently, the original spelling of this Welsh specialty was ‘Rabbit’ but it got changed to ‘Rarebit’ because people kept getting confused by the lack of rabbit. It’s made by melting cheese with stout, egg yolk and Worcestershire sauce, and then spooning this mixture onto toasted bread and grilling until golden. Saves you the trouble of drinking a beer while simultaneously consuming a sandwich (so difficult) by combining the two in one easy-to-eat package.

Switzerland: Kaseschnitte

Pictured above is a pimped-out version of the Kaseschnitte, with bacon, egg and chives added for extra health. Traditionally, a Kaseschnitte is bread that is soaked in white wine, topped with garlic and Emmental cheese, and then baked in the oven until brown and bubbly. …Officially adding ‘cheese sandwiches’ to the list of things the Swiss do exceptionally well, alongside chocolate and banking.

France: Croque Monsieur

If you want something a bit more posh than a grilled cheese sanga, the Croque Monsieur delivers. The Croque Monsieur is what you eat at 3am when drunk on Veuve Clicquot – kind of like a cheeseburger but with dignity. Consisting of two pieces of brioche stuffed with gooey Gruyère and cured ham, the key to an authentic Croque Monsieur is butter, and lots of it! A sandwich this bad for you needs to come with a health warning, which is why it’s called a ‘Croak Monsieur’. Dying painfully from heart disease never tasted this good!

See Breville’s cheese expert Will Studd lay down the basics of the perfect cheese toastie, here: