Fontina and Sausage Melt

Whenever my kids came home from college they would eat standing next to a counter in the kitchen and I would tell them to sit and enjoy what they were eating. Well, over the years we have started to adopt some of their eating habit without even realizing we were doing it. When we have company over we always seem to gather around the island in my kitchen eating appetizers and drinking wine. As a result of this I now try to come up with appetizers that enhance this mode of eating.

Now this dish takes a while to prepare but it is worth it. It can be prepared ahead of time and kept covered in the refrigerator overnight – just bake and serve when you company gets there. My melt is a combination of sweet carmelized onions, savory sauteed leeks, spicy hot Italian sausage and creamy melted cheese on top of grilled Italian bread – a melded cocophany of flavors.

Ingredients

3 links of Hot Turkey Italian Sausage *

2 TBS Olive Oil

3 Large Yellow Onions

2 tsp Kosher Salt (or 1 tsp Table Salt)

2 Leeks (sliced)

2 cloves Garlic (minced)

1/3 C Dry White Wine

8 oz Fontina Cheese (grated)

Cooking Spray

Bruschetta Ingredients

1 French baguette

1/8 C Olive Oil

Remove the casings from the turkey sausage and break it into clumps. Place the sausage into a large frying pan and cook over medium high heat. Keep breaking the sausage into smaller pieces as it cooks. Cook until the sausage is cooked and you see no more pink. Remove the sausage to a bowl using a slotted spoon. Leave the juices in the pan.

Cut the onions in half and then cut them into ¼ to ½ inch slices. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the juices remaining in the pan and heat over medium heat. Add the onions and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Once the onions have started to simmer lower the heat to medium low and continue cooking until they turn a golden brown color. This will take 20-30 minutes. Stir continuously. If you walk away from the onions they will burn. This will caramelize the sugars in the onions and make them sweet. Remove them from the pan and place them in a bowl.

Remove the green leaves and bottom of the leeks and cut them lengthwise in half. Cut the leeks into ½ inch slices. Break apart the layers of the leeks and place them into a bowl with cold water. Leeks will frequently have dirt between the layers and it’s important to wash them before cooking. Drain thoroughly. Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the pan and add the leeks with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. When the leeks have wilted and are soft add the 2 cloves of minced garlic and cook for an additional 30 seconds. Add the white wine and cook until the wine has evaporated and you have scrapped up the brown bits on the bottom of the frying pan. Transfer to a bowl.

Shred the Fontina cheese using the large holes on a box grater.

Heat you oven to 425°F and your grill to high.

Slice the baguette on a diagonal into ¼ inch slices. Brush olive oil on one side of each slice.

Building the Melt:

1.  Spray an 8X8 baking dish with cooking spray.

2.  Layer the caramelized onions on the bottom of the baking dish in an even layer.

3.  Layer the sautéed leeks over the onions

4.  Layer the sausage over the leeks

5.  Cover the top with an even layer of the shredded Fontina cheese.

Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Note: if you prepare the melt the night before and they are cold it can take up to 30 minutes to bake.

While the melt is baking, place the side of the baguette slices that have been brushed with olive oil on a hot grill using long tongs. Cook until grill marks appear. Do not grill the unoiled side of the bread. Remove to a platter to serve. Note: this can be done up to 1 hour before serving if desired.

Let your guests spoon the melt onto the baguette slices themselves.

* Pronto Substitutes

Fontina Cheese – You can substitute shredded mozzarella for the fontina but it will have a milder flavor.  

Turkey Italian Sausage – I use turkey Italian sausage in many dishes to reduce the fat which can overwhelm some dishes and is healthier for you. You can substitute regular Italian sausage for the turkey sausage but make sure that you drain the grease before you sauté the leeks.

To print a copy of this recipe go to Fontina & Sausage Melt