Harry's Bar Pierini - Grilled Ham and Cheese

Ok, I have been to Harry's bar in Venice and forked our an exorbitant amount of money for a tiny Bellini served by a rude waiter in an environment with zero atmosphere. For most of those of have been there you'll know what I mean.

But, one thing I did take away from this blatant tourist rip off was the Ham and Cheese grilled cheese, I was recently reminded of this by one of the army of celebrity chefs on a TV show recently.

So here goes, really really yummy cheese toasties. Serve them up as canapes with bellinis at a dinner party, your guests will be  lot better off and so will your bank balance.

Any left over mixture can be kept in the fridge of up to 3 weeks

250 g Fontina, or Gruyere 
1 tbsp Dijon  Mustard
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 fried red chilli or 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 egg yolk
 tbsp double cream
sea salt (optional)
12 slices of sourdough bread, i actually used wholemeal
6 slices of ham such as prosciutto crude, or speck di Va d'Aosta 
Olive oil

▶ Trim the crusts off the bread and spread the cheese mixture over one side of each slice. Lay the prosciutto or speck over six slices and cover with the remaining slices, cheese side down. Press sandwiches together firmly and cut each one into three pieces.

▶ Heat a large frying pan. Pour in enough oil to cover the surface. When the oil is smoking, add as many sandwiches as will fit. Fry for about 3–4 minutes, until light brown and crisp, then turn over and fry the other side. Drain on kitchen paper. Repeat until all the sandwiches are cooked

▶Serve hot, thank the chef and don’t tip the waiter.