This is an absolutely fantastic recipe. However, you HAVE to use quality ingredients. That means using *Heavy whipping cream* (36%+ butterfat), as opposed to light/medium whipping cream or half/half (10%-25% butterfat). The higher butter fat content found in heavy whipping cream is necessary to produce a thick, creamy sauce, so don’t even bother with milk. Also, use real butter, not hydrogenated “butters,” such as Country Crock, or I Can’t Believe Its Not Butter. Preferably, use a cultured butter (also known as European-style butter), instead of common sweet cream butter. Cultured butter also has a higher butter fat content, and makes for creamer sauce. You can buy this type of butter at most high end grocers. Look for Keller’s Creamy’s Plugrá butter at Trader Joe’s and Whole Food Market. Lastly is the issue of cheese. Good cheese = good sauce. Instead of using only four cheeses, I found that using six cheeses adds great depth to this recipe. The easiest way to do this is to buy a bag of already mixed cheese. I suggest Sargento’s 6 Cheese Italian mix, which includes mozzarella, smoked provolone, asiago, parmesan, romano, and fonita cheeses. This blend makes an incredible sauce, especially over pasta.

Reviewed On: Nov. 12, 2006

This is a superb recipe. My fiancée absolutely adored the final product. However, I made several changes. First off, I cut the amount of milk in half; any more would have made the mixture too thin. Also, instead of slicing the tomato, I chopped it up and mixed it in right before scooping the mixture onto the bread. As for the bread, I used sliced sourdough (with mayo); instead of English muffins (it’s what I had). I also did not broil the melt; instead, I put it in the toaster oven for 4 minutes at 450, and that melted the cheese (Provolone and Swiss) just fine. The amount of Old Bay Seasoning was acceptable, though I saw several varieties at the store, so I imagine some are spicier than others. I used the garlic and herbs version and we didn’t find it too spicy. Overall, this is a great recipe. It’s flexible and has a lot of potential.

Reviewed On: Aug. 9, 2006