tomato & caramelized onion grilled cheese.

I am in a constant inner turmoil over meat. On one hand, I love it and many meals in which it is an instrumental ingredient. Can I picture my life without juicy burgers, tender roast chicken or heaping plates of my nana's sausage-filled stuffing at Thanksgiving and Christmas time? Not easily, no. I'm also a person who cries over touching animal videos and interrupts my own showers to save a centipede who's crawled up our drain, running downstairs with a towel, conditioner-coated hair and a glass to put him outside. And have you seen those things? They aren't even close to cute and fuzzy. 

On a monthly basis, I tell myself I'm giving meat up, only to be seen chowing down on prosciutto two nights later after a few glasses of wine to the soundtrack of my friends' ridicule (this was this week's episode). The thing is, I've only discovered a few vegetarian-friendly meals that make me feel like I could happily do it. 

This sandwich is one of those meals. Ripe tomatoes, caramelized onion compote and aged white cheddar, melted between two crispy grilled slices of sourdough bread. I mean, come onnnn. 

This brilliant piece of heaven sandwiched between two slices of sourdough was the brainchild of my housemate Gabbs, who immediately informed me that it was something I should make. And so I did, using the ingredients she'd bought because I'm a freeloader, and adding my own touch - a generous slather of dijon-mayo on the insides of both bread slices for some extra tangy, creamy goodness. 

And good it was. I mean really, really good. Pretty sure others felt uncomfortable being in the same room as me as I ate mine. Me and this sandwich had a moment. 

Gooey, tangy, juicy and savory-with-a-hint-of-sweet, this was one of the best things I'd made myself in a long time. I talked about it to friends and coworkers for days. It was all I could do not to tell the person standing next to me on the subway about it. It's messy, so don't even worry about it dribbling down your fingers/hands/forearms as you eat. It's alllll part of the fun. 

 Definitely do the mustard/mayo thing. You may not think such an indulgent sandwich needs any more condiments, but the sharp dijon offsets the sweet caramelized compote in the most wonderful way. You don't have to use as much as I did. Just do it. Trust. 

 And make sure to enjoy it with some great company, such as the two cool cats pictured here: Gabbs (the creator herself!!!) and Dev, an active Love in Spoonfuls reader, who will no doubt be thrilled to see he's been featured on here! 

Did I mention it's messy? Dig in.  My dining companion couldn't grasp the meatless meal concept and went ahead and added bacon to his. But me? I was just fine without it, thank-you-very-much.