.spinach artichoke grilled cheese sandwiches.

have you ever heard the expression, "a day late and a dollar short?" when my mom wished me a happy national grilled cheese day yesterday, i was excited and disappointed at the same time. you see, the night before this amazing holiday, i made the most brilliant grilled cheese- the spinach artichoke grilled cheese sandwich. today, now the day after this astounding holiday, i blog about it. at least i'm not a dollar short.



oh forget it. let's just celebrate it right now, and the next day and the next...start by heating some extra virgin olive oil over medium heat.



toss in several big handfuls of fresh spinach.



let's make it flava flave by dicing one garlic clove and adding it to the spinach. after the spinach wilts and the garlic becomes aromatic, remove the pan from the heat and toss the greenness into a medium-sized bowl.



measure a 1/2 cup of canned artichokes and press the mess out of them with paper towels to remove as much moisture as you can.



add these chopped artichoke hearts to a medium bowl of your wilted spinach and garlic.



throw in 1/2 cup jack cheese and 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese.



before you start mixing it all together, throw in a heaping tablespoon of sour cream and a pinch of sea salt.



oh wait- a secret ingredient! ok, so it might not be a secret, but it sounds way more enticing that way. put in a teaspoon of sriracha and stir it up. i promise not to sing. i lied.

stir it up, little darlin'...stir it up.



uh hem. back to the sandwich. paint the insides of your bread with some cream cheese to serve as a glue to the spinach artichoke dip.



pile on the good stuff for each sandwich. if you are only making one, divide the recipe in half.



on a griddle or in a pan, heat up some butter.



now, let's grill it up, oh baby...grill it up. i'll stop.



this is so good. my favorite dip meets my favorite sandwich. time stood still. pigs flew. i actually made the sandwiches and blogged about them on the actual national grilled cheese day. ok, i went too far. whenever you make these, and you should make them, enjoy!

spinach artichoke grilled cheese sandwiches
from joy the baker

what you need

splash of olive oil

1 small clove garlic

3 cups (or 3 big handfuls) baby spinach

4 slices bread (I used sourdough)

about 2 tablespoons cream cheese

1/3-1/2 cup grated or crumbled jack cheese

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup coarsely chopped canned artichoke hearts, drained

1 heaping tablespoon sour cream

1/2 to 1 teaspoon sriracha

large pinch of sea salt

1 tablespoon butter, for grilling the sandwiches

what you do

In a small skillet, heat olive oil over medium-low heat.  Add garlic and saute for 30 seconds.  Add spinach leaves and saute until wilted.  This should happen quickly.  Spinach just wilts in a hot pan.  Remove spinach from skillet, place in a medium bowl and set aside.

Spread each slice of bread with a bit of cream cheese.  You don’t need much.  We’re using it as edible sandwich glue.

Squeeze or press as much liquid as possible out of the canned artichoke hearts using a paper towel.

To the bowl of sautéed spinach add, jack cheese, Parmesan cheese, chopped artichoke hearts, sour cream, sriracha, and salt.  Stir until combined.

Top two slices of bread with spinach and artichoke filling.  Make sandwiches with the two remaining slices of bread.

Heat butter in a skillet over medium-low heat.  Add sandwiches and grill until each side is golden and the insides are melty warm.  Serve immediately.