Ina Garten and Martha Stewart's grown-up grilled cheeses are both delicious but the easiest to make has the edge

Rachel AskinasiSep 30, 2020, 16:24 IST

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I made both Martha Stewart and Ina Garten's recipes for a fancy grilled cheese to see which was better.
Stewart's felt more like a choose-your-own-adventure journey whereas Garten's laid out specific ingredients right down to cheese brands.
I think Stewart's recipe is great for people who are already comfortable in the kitchen.
Garten's is better for the more timid home cook, in my opinion.

Let me start by declaring with absolute conviction that there is no age limit for eating a grilled cheese sandwich.

That said, home-cooking gurus Martha Stewart and Ina Garten have both developed elevated recipes for the ever-classic sandwich. Their respective Grown-Up Grilled Cheese and Ultimate Grilled Cheese recipes encourage swapping white bread for a heartier sourdough and American cheese for Gruyère, fontina, Parmigiano-Reggiano, or a handmade combination.

While the "Barefoot Contessa" star's recipe is extremely precise, Stewart's leaves a lot of room for creativity. Because of all the wiggle room and optional ingredients — Stewart recommends greasing the bread with either butter or mayonnaise and suggests fruit preserves or Dijon mustard inside — I made two versions of Stewart's recipe and followed Garten's to a T for a total of three sandwiches.

I came away from the experiment with three different grilled cheese recipes in my repertoire and an extremely full belly.

I channeled both my inner child and my adult-ish palate to tackle Ina Garten and Martha Stewart's elevated grilled cheese recipes.

Ina Garten (left) and Martha Stewart (right) are both known for their prowess in the kitchen. Noam Galai/Contributor/Getty Images and Cindy Ord/Staff/Getty Images

For my first attempt at Stewart's recipe, I leaned into my sweet tooth and chose fig preserves and pear as fillings.

I gathered sourdough bread, unsalted butter, half a pear, fig jam, and Gruyère cheese. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I followed her step-by-step instructions and assembled this sweet, jammy, sandwich.

First I covered the bread in respective spreads (far left), then I layered the cheese (center), and topped it with pear (far right). Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I had to resist the urge to squash this sandwich in the pan with my spatula.

I was able to smell the butter cooking on the pan. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

The gooey sandwich was even better than I had hoped it would be.

The flavors of fig, pear, and Gruyère complemented each other well. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

For my second Martha Stewart sandwich, I used Dijon mustard, tomato, and bacon.

Still using sourdough bread, I subbed in mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, bacon, and tomato. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I chose mayo for the bread this time because I was using fillings that reminded me of a deli sandwich.

I covered one side of each slice with mayo and the other side with Dijon mustard (far left), then layered the Gruyère (center), bacon, and tomato (right) onto the bottom slice. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I didn't see much of a visual difference between using mayo and butter to grease the bread.

Mayo made less noise on the pan than butter did. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

This savory version satisfied my craving for grilled cheese but also my craving for nostalgia.

Dijon mustard was the star of this show. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Ina Garten's recipe was the more complicated of the two.

There were a lot of ingredients and steps for assembly. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

The first thing I had to do was cook the bacon.

I used a parchment-lined baking sheet. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Next, I made Garten's cheesy, mustardy spread.

I'm glad I added a little too much Dijon mustard. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

After making the spread, I grated and combined the two other kinds of cheese.

I used a box grater to shred equal parts cheddar and Gruyère. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I was sure to be precise when assembling this sandwich.

I covered both slices of bread with butter on one side and cheese spread on the other (far left), added the bacon (center), and then finished it with grated cheese (far right). Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I didn't have a panini press so I had to make my own.

I used the heaviest can I had as a weight. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Garten's recipe required a lot of work for a good grilled cheese sandwich.

I don't know that I'd make this recipe again as-is. Rachel Askinasi/Insider

Both Garten and Stewart have recipes for grilled cheese sandwiches good enough for even the most pretentious adult eater, in my opinion.

Garten's sandwich (top) was more oily than Stewart's sandwiches (bottom two). Rachel Askinasi/Insider

I tried Martha Stewart's one-pan pasta dish and had dinner on the table in 20 minutes

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