One of my favorite days of the year is finally here! National Grilled Cheese Day is a day to let your imagination run wild and indulge in all the possibilities of fried bread and cheese. This year, how will you celebrate National Grilled Cheese Day?

I like to try a new taste sensation… One year, I concocted a Gruyere and crabmeat on sourdough grilled cheese, and it was spectacular. Another year, I tried fried green tomato and jack on a cornbread focaccia. Let’s just say that that particular grilled cheese did not turn out as I had hoped. But last year, it was pimento cheese and jalapeño on Texas toast. And that one was a keeper.

So this year, I’m trying something completely new. I’ll be grilling up my grilled cheese in a cast iron skillet, as usual, but this year I will also be grilling my bread on both sides. I’ve read that buttering and grilling the bread on one side, then flipping and adding the cheese while grilling the other side, will result in a crispier sandwich. Can’t wait to try that one!

My love of cast iron is, of course, legendary, so now seems the right time to try a double-sided, cast iron grilled cheese. Cast iron makes the best grilled cheese because it makes use of fabulous cast iron, of course, but also because it’s guaranteed to be a melty masterpiece. And, it can help all you “newbies” to continue the seasoning process on your cast iron skillet. Remember, the more you use it the better it gets!

One addition I will try this year is adding a tablespoon of preserves (I’m thinking fig) to my grilled cheese combo of Gruyere and cheddar. I love a bit of salty/sweet action, especially when it’s a surprise as it would be in this sandwich.

Yes, it’s all kinds of wrong, but I do love a good grilled cheese. There is almost nothing more comforting to me than a ooey-gooey, crispy-on-the-outside, melty-on-the-inside grilled cheese sammy. But I’m long past the white bread and american staple of my childhood. And I am certainly not one of those stodgy traditionalists that thinks only pre-sliced bread and store-sliced cheese can make a grilled cheese, either.

So, if like me, you’re into National Grilled Cheese Day, and are going to celebrate with your own creation, here’s to you! And to all the wonderful, oozy, creamy, crunchy goodness that this most special national day represents.

Here are a few good selections from around the web to get your creative juices flowing:

Marla Meridith’s Cast Iron Grilled Cheese.

Vegan Grilled Cheese Recipe

Grilled Parmigiano-Reggiano Cheese Sandwich