The Indian Summer - Apple Garlic Smoked Gouda, Summer Sausage, and Honey Mustard Pickles Grilled Cheese

When I was a little kid, I never really knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. Sure, I had a ton of ideas, but I wasn't one of those brilliant 4 year olds that knew they were going to be a doctor in 20 years. Nah, not at all. I always wanted to be like a million things... One day I knew I was going to be a dolphin trainer, the next, I was going to be a water fountain designer (seriously), an opera singer, and a veterinarian all at the same time. Then when I was in high school, I thought I was going to grow up and be an artist... And in college? Well I suddenly found myself on the path to be an activist for elderly people's right. Then came grad school when I realized that there was no way in hell that I was going to have 1 job forever. Ew. No. Gah, I couldn't even image that lifestyle and I quickly realized...as GZA taught me..."I needed to diversify my bonds".

When I started Grilled Cheese Social, I didn't really have a purpose for the blog, I just knew that I needed an outlet to be creative, to cook, and to share my love of cheese with the world. Since then, I've had about a million jobs. I got my masters in psychology from Columbia U, I worked as an intern for a million years, I was a cheesemonger, a social media specialist, a caterer, a travel writer, and of course as what many of you know me as - a food writer and photographer that specialized in cheese. But even though my life felt shaky, the most rewarding thing out of those years of uncertainty were all of your emails, tweets, and comments that thanked me for opening up and sharing my struggles of figuring out my life on the blog.

That being said, I used to feel embarrassed and ashamed that I didn't have a real job because I figured people thought that I was a slacker and that I couldn't handle "growing up". It's weird how we all develop these needs to fit into social norms and are pressured into abiding by stupid societal expectations. Now when people ask me what I do, I'm proud to say I'm a jack of all trades. Sure, I don't have one real job, but because of that, I'm free to do a bunch of awesome shit. And because I'm fortunate enough to have this sort of lifestyle, I want to give back and do something awesome that inspires others to do exactly what they want to do as well.

That's why I'm launching a brand new venture - Brooklyn Babes Club. It's a pop-up social club for creative budding babes who want to come together to change the world. My bestie, Jess Assaf (who's a badass activist - you gotta read what she does), and I are raising money through seductive bakesales (think Girl Scouts grown up and hot as f*ck) but big picture-wise, we aim to create a platform for like-minded chicks to come together and elevate ideas and empower one another. Eventually we want to have a space where we host events like drink and draw, cooking classes, inspirational talks, dance party workout sessions, and the like... but until then, we're taking over women-run businesses with fun events filled with food, excitement, creative vibes, and of course, hot dudes handing out our signature ladyfruit pineapple mimosas. We're redefining girl power, making it more sexy, grown up, and more adventurous. I have a really good feeling about Brooklyn Babes Club and I hope that you all want to join the cause!

And of course, there will be sexy grilled cheeses at the pop-ups... like this one. It features Wisconsin's Apple Garlic Smoked Cheddar, Underground Butcher's Summer Sausage, and Homemade Honey Mustard Pickles on some good ole' fashioned white bread.

Ingredients

- Apple Garlic Smoked Cheddar
- Summer Sausage (I rec Underground Butcher)
- Honey Mustard Pickles
- White Bread
- Salted Butter (I'm obsessed with Kriemhild)

So I've got a million things to do for Brooklyn Babes Club, so I'm gonna keep this post short and sweet, and savory, and you get the point. Start by slicin' up some of that Wisco cheese and throwing it on. This cheese is savory, slightly sweet, and smokey. It's so dang good and it melts like a dream.

Now slice up some summer sausage. This is the stuff that you usually get in your stocking at Christmas... But since my homies at Underground Butcher made it, it's like 1000 times better. You gotta get your hands on it. It melts in your mouth. FOR REAL.

Then I added some homemade honey mustard pickles. If you don't feel like picklin' these for yourself, you could totes use some fresh honey butter pickles and then add a smear of honey mustard to the bread.

If you want to make 'em yourself, make a simple sweet brine with honey, a shot of whiskey, and a ton of mustard seeds. I always do refridgerator pickles so they only have to sit for like 2 weeks but they're so good. The flavor is deep, complex, sweet, and there's also a bite. It's so nice and the acid cuts through the fat of the cheese and the summer sausage.

Almost done! See
how quick and easy? Grab the other piece of bread, smear some butter on it and place it on top.

Next, place ur GC in a pan and turn the heat to medium. Let it grill til the cheese melts and the bread looks irresistible. Flip, repeat.

Once it's equally golden on both sides, take your sandwich off the grill, let it chill for a sec, then dig in. You can also stack them like this if you're feeling playful.

So I gotta go spread the word of Brooklyn Babes Club, but if you're feelin it, we'd be so happy if you joined our cause. We just want to change the world and inspire chicks to be the best they can be. Times are changing and if Beyonce taught us anything, we can do whatever we want. We WERE born like this so WHY NOT take advantage and use our powers for good?

Be our best friend? Click [HERE or HERE] to join us.

xoxo,

GCS