Fresh Mozzarella Grilled Cheese on Sourdough

With this week expected to bring cooler temperatures and rain, and with flu season in full swing, Belmont Patch thought it was time to provide a recipe for some comfort food.

Grilled cheese is the perfect feel-better-soon-food. It's warm and comforting and gooey (and even better if someone else makes it so that you can stay in bed). And it pairs perfectly with warm soup to dip the crust in.

For kids, basic grilled cheese is about as good as it gets, ranking amongst Fruit Roll Ups, hot dogs and Kool Aid. But for grown ups, clammy, waxy slices of Kraft American cheese just aren't as appealing as they used to be.

Here's where this recipe comes in. It's everything you loved about grilled cheese -- all grown up. Use fresh mozarella from the gourmet cheese case and crusty sourdough, one of the many perks of life in the Bay Area. Use your broiler to get the cheese nice and gooey, then toss it into a pan to get some good color on the bread.

Want to jazz it up? Add some pesto, fry up some bacon, rub a clove of garlic on the bread, toss in slices of avocado or sprigs of watercress. Or just keep it simple. After all, according to your boss you are sick...right?

• Fresh mozzarella, sliced thick
• Sourdough bread
• Butter
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

Instructions:

1. Place a few slices of cheese on one piece of bread. Season with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper.
2. Place bread with cheese along with another slice of bread under the broiler until the cheese is nice and gooey.
3. Heat about a tablespoon of butter in a saute pan over medium high heat. Sandwich the two pieces of bread together, and cook in pan until both sides are golden brown (about 1-2 minutes per side.)
4. Curl back up in bed with a classic movie and enjoy!