My friend Kelly came over for lunch the other day.  She was one of my first post-college/real world friends, so we share plenty of fun memories.  Even though we now live 6,600 miles apart (she’s in Beijing, I’m in Chicago) our afternoon together felt like no time or distance had passed.

To welcome her to the Midwest, I made a warming lunch with seasonal ingredients.  Tomato soup, Swiss chard grilled cheese sandwich and cinnamon pumpkin bread.  I found the sandwich recipe on Pinterest, but I tweaked it to suit my own tastes (and considering what I had in the pantry!).

Swiss Chard Grilled Cheese Sandwich (adapted from Sprouted Kitchen)

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, divided

4 leaves of swiss chard, stem removed and thinly chopped

1/3 cup fresh grated havarti cheese

1/4 cup fresh grated mozzarella

1 heaping tablespoon finely minced shallot

4, ½’’ slices fresh bread, I used a lovely French bread

roughly 1/4 cup thinly sliced Granny Smith apple

1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

sea salt

Preheat cast iron pan or griddle over medium heat.

Toss a swirl of olive oil in the pan and add the chard.  Stir around and cook until wilted.  Remove and set aside.

Combine both grated cheeses and the finely chopped shallot.  On two slices of the bread, divide the mustard and spread to all edges of the bread. Lay two to three slices of thinly sliced apple on top. Divide the shredded cheese on top of the apple slices in an even layer. Lastly, divide the sautéed greens on top of the cheese and top with the remaining slice of bread.

Add some olive oil (or butter or bacon grease) to the skillet.  Lay the sandwiches down and cook til the bread is browning and the cheese is starting to melt. Flip and cook until the cheese is melted.

Transfer to plates, slice and enjoy!