Cheese & Ham Toastie

www.shropshirebreakfast.co.uk

Not a conventional breakfast, but I remember going to Brierley Hill Baths most Sundays as a kid with my Dad and having cheese on toast for breakfast in the swimming pool cafe afterwards. I love cheese on toast but I love cheese & ham toasties even more.

I've made this one with my six seed granary bread but, if I'm feeling really indulgent I'll use white crusty bread instead.

The cheese you use needs to be quite sharp for the toastie over the ham can overpower it. I used one of our local cheeses, Little Hereford, but it wasn't quite sharp enough. If you're in Shropshire you might find Oakley Park Cheddar ( available from the Ludlow Food Centre ) a better match.

2 slices thick crusty bread
grated cheese
thinly sliced ham
butter

Make up the sandwich with the grated cheese & ham but with no butter on the bread. Melt a large knob of butter in a frying pan over a medium heat add the sandwich and quickly turn it so you get butter over both side. Fry until golden brown on both sides and the cheese has melted.

You can also butter the outsides of the bread first & put it straight into the pan with no other butter.