cheesy does it

There are people who love cheese, and then there are people who love cheese. For those of us in the latter category, the Grilled Cheese Invitational is a full-scale cheese extravaganza where entrants craft cheese, butter and bread into works of gastronomic art. (See above my second place  "Requiem for a Cream ... Cheese Quesadilla," which was beaten by a sandwich served by girls in bikinis. Yes, I am still bitter. No, I will never ever get over it.) These days, the GCI is held in an outdoor venue with numerous stations, but once upon a time, the cheese-fest took place in someone’s L.A. loft.

Here are some tips for running your own contest — perhaps with fewer people and fewer grilled cheeses than GCI’s, but just as much fun.

• Announce categories on your Evite invitation. Traditional, alternative and sweet categories are good places to start.

• Supply the butter, the stove and the cookware — tell competitors to bring their own bread and cheese.

• Assign an order for grill use by grillers, with competitors grouped according to category.

• Create a ballot so tasters know which sandwich is in which category. (To create a ballot, you’ll need people to commit to grilling and categories in advance.)

• Have grillers grill four sandwiches and cut them into fourths so more people get tastes.

• Require each griller to have a runner so someone can bring the sandwiches to the hungry masses while the other just keeps on grilling.

• Assign grillers numbers and make sure their numbers appear on the plate presenting their grilled cheese.

• Consider borrowing a ton of George Foreman grills if you want to have a whole bunch of grilling going on at once.

• Provide paper and pencil so attendees/judges can take “tasting notes.”

• Supply salads and vegetables so that guests’ arteries don’t revolt.

• Ventilate the place well if you don’t want your place smelling like butter and cheese the next day.

• And a word to the wise, courtesy of GCI organizer Time Walker: “Never allow somebody with a flamethrower to come into your loft and cook grilled cheeses with one.”

Comments

Sigh, no flamethrowers?

i sooooo want to have this party! ...or a mac & cheese cook off.

any recommendations on grilled cheese varieties to try? the most creative i've ever gotten is pepperjack on pumpernickle.

I was at a restaurant the other day that served a grilled marscapone cheese sandwich with Nutella and raspberry "ketchup." I couldn't eat it because I don't eat bread during Passover, but it seemed simple enough and delicious enough to warrant some experimenting at home.

This really sounds like fun I wish I had more foodie friends.

Stephanie: At the last GCI I came across pecorino on sourdough, Muenster (I think) on cinnamon swirl bread and Brie on grilled angel food cake. I say pick a cheese that interests you and see what happens!

Congrats on placing at the GCI!

Thanks. This may be one of the best ideas for a party I have heard in a long time! I am thinking it is a perfect Memorial day weekend party!

Are you willing to share your recipe?

SR:The recipe is yours. Here you go: http://thecookingcritic.com/index.php?s=grilled+cheese.