April 12th is National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day!

Grilled cheese sandwiches easily make the list of America’s
favorite comfort foods and they’re great for camping trips because they’re so
simple to prepare.  And whether you use your pie iron, cast iron
skillet or another type of frying pan to make them, there’s an endless number
of variations you can try. Here are a few of them:

Southwest Campfire Grilled
Cheese

From Treksw.com

For each sandwich you’ll need:

• 2 slices of bread, such as sourdough
• 3 slices of cheese (2 pepper jack and 1 cheddar)
• 1 tablespoon green chiles
• 2 slices turkey
• Butter to spread on front and back of the bread

Butter one side of each piece of bread and place in pie iron,
buttered side down. Add other ingredients and cook until browned and cheese
is melted.

Hawaiian Grilled Cheese
From Alattefood.com

Here’s an easy way to bring a touch of “aloha” to your campsite.
For each sandwich you’ll need:

• 2 slices of bread
• 1 slice of cheddar cheese
• 1 slice of pepper jack cheese
• 2 pineapple rings
• 2 slices of smoked ham
• 2 slices of cooked Canadian bacon (or cooked pork or turkey
  bacon)
• 1 tablespoon butter

Butter one side of each piece of bread, then layer ingredients as
follows on the unbuttered side of one piece of bread:  cheddar,
smoked ham, bacon, pineapple and top with the slice of pepper jack. Add the
other piece of bread, buttered side up, and cook over medium/low heat until
browned, about 3-4 minutes per side.  Helpful tip: If you plan on
dunking your grilled cheese into your soup, cut the sandwich into strips to
make it easier to dunk.

Jalapeno Popper Grilled
Cheese
From Sweetannas.com

One way to spice up your grilled cheese is by adding a few zesty
jalapenos. For each sandwich you’ll need:

• 2 jalapeno peppers, cut in half lengthwise and seeded
• 2 slices of sourdough bread
• 1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/4 cup pepper jack and cheddar cheese, shredded (one or both
  types)
• 1 tablespoon tortilla chips, crushed

Helpful tip: since the jalapenos need to be broiled, you might
want to do this step at home. To prepare them, place the peppers on a
foil-lined baking sheet and broil them until the outer layer of skin is
blackened, about 8-10 minutes. Place the peppers in a zipper-top bag, seal
and let them cool until you can handle them (about 10 minutes). The skins
should easily pinch off.

To prepare the sandwich, butter one side of each piece of bread
and place them butter side down. Spread one tablespoon of cream cheese on the
non-buttered side of each piece of bread. Sprinkle the crushed tortilla chips
on one slice and layer the prepared jalapeno peppers on top of that, covering
the whole bread slice.

Preheat a skillet to medium heat. When hot, place the “piled”
slice of bread, butter side down, into the skillet. Add the shredded cheese
and place the second slice of bread on top, butter side up. Grill for about
4-5 minutes on each side until bread is golden brown and the cheese is
melted.

Photo Credit:
Pixabay.com