Fall could not be complete for me unless I have gone apple picking. And I am pretty serious about it, there are quite a few things I look for in an apple orchard, besides just apple trees, as well as some things that my friends look for:
✅ plenty of apples to pick
✅ apple cider doughnuts
✅ giant corn maze
✅ local beers on draft
✅ haunted house
✅ pumpkins and gourds
✅ isn’t too far from the city
So after some extensive internet research we found the perfect place: Barton Orchards they had it all and more! I highly recommend this for children and adults alike. I was completely blown away by everything they had to offer and will definitely go back there next year. We had such an amazing time in the corn maze, drinking beers, eating cider donuts, and of course picking apples.
After leaving the orchard with a 1/2 bushel of apples, and feeling like we may have gotten more apples than we could eat, I started contemplating what to make. Apple pies and crumbles are good but use a lot of apples and lately I have not had much of a sweet tooth. So, with the bag quickly shrinking in size I decided to take the savory route and make something cheesy and comforting for the upcoming cold weather. Grilled apple, bacon, blue cheese sandwich! Yummm, this sandwich hits all the right notes. The blue cheese is tangy, the apples are crisp, the caramelized onions add a hint of sweetness, and the bacon is…well it’s bacon!
There are a few things I believe about grilled cheese in general and I think you will too…they are a comfort food and in order to be done right that means this sandwich is not the healthiest option but will always be delicious. You have to make this grilled cheese if you like the refreshing flavors of fall melted into one cheesy and tasty sandwich. And if blue cheese is not your thing (I get it, some people just don’t love it) then just sub in extra cheddar cheese and it will be less tangy but just as good.
I am also saving some apples to make Slow Cooker Apple Cider for a pumpkin carving party we are throwing next weekend, as well as this awesome way to display chips and dip! ?
- 4 slices of bacon
- ½ onion, thinly sliced
- 4 slices of sourdough bread
- butter, room temperature
- ½ cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 apple, sliced
- 4 oz blue cheese, sliced
- Cook the bacon and caramelize the onions
- Butter both sides of the bread
- Layer some cheddar cheese on each half followed by the sliced apple, onion, bacon, and blue cheese
- Cook in a pan on med-low heat until golden brown on both sides and melted in the middle
This sound terrific and a great idea for using all those apples!