Steak and Mushroom Grilled Cheese
Olive oil
4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, sliced thin
Kosher salt and fresh-ground pepper, to taste
2 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press
4 slices of good quality bread. I like sourdough for this.
4 tablespoons softened, unsalted butter, for bread
2 cups of your favorite shredded cheese, like Gruyere and Swiss.
8 ounces of boneless rib-eye or strip steak, grilled to medium and sliced as thin as possible with a very sharp knife.
Place a large, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, and drizzle in a bit of the oil; once it gets hot, add in the mushrooms, and allow them to sauté for a minute or so before adding in a generous pinch of salt and pepper; once the mushrooms become golden-brown, add in the garlic and stir for a minute or so. Spoon the mushrooms out of the pan and set aside.
Grill your steak to medium rare or medium and slice as thin as possible. Set aside.
Butter one side of your bread slices.
In the same skillet, over medium heat, place two slices of bread (buttered side down) in the hot skillet. Cover both slices of bread with half of the cheese. Top one of the slices with half of the mushrooms and half of the sliced steak. Top that with the other slice of bread. Press the sandwich with a spatula, then flip the sandwich over. When both sides of the sandwich are golden brown and the cheese is melted, remove from the skillet and slice on the bias. Repeat for another sandwich.