Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
What do you get when you combine a classic American grilled cheese with Italian sun-dried tomato pesto? A deliciously crispy and gooey sandwich that delivers bold and tangy “pizza” flavor.
Grilled cheese is my favorite guilty pleasure, and I’ll happily eat light all day so I can indulge in seconds to my heart’s content at dinner. That’s especially true with these Italian-style grilled cheese sandwiches jazzed up with sun-dried tomato pesto. My kids call them “pizza paninis” since they taste like hot, crispy pizza sandwiches. I like to serve them with an arugula salad or vegetable soup for a quick weeknight meal.
“Thank you for the best grilled cheese sandwich we have ever eaten! Fontina cheese melts so easily and the sun-dried tomato pesto adds incredible flavor!”
What You’ll Need To Make Grilled Cheese with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
Step-by-Step Instructions
To make the pesto, combine the sun-dried tomatoes with their oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, sugar, basil, pine nuts, Parmesan and 2 tablespoons of water in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.
Pulse, scraping down the sides as necessary, until the mixture is finely puréed. Note that you’ll have way more than you’ll need; leftover pesto can be frozen or tossed with pasta.
To make the sandwiches, spread one side of each slice of bread with butter.
Then flip over and spread the pesto evenly over the other side of each slice.
Heat a large nonstick or cast iron pan over medium heat. Place the bread, butter-side-down, in the pan. Divide the cheese evenly over the bread, then top the sandwich with the remaining bread.
Cook until the first side is golden brown, a few minutes. Then, carefully flip the sandwich and cook, covered, until the cheese is fully melted and the bread is golden brown, a few minutes more.
Let cool slightly, then slice the sandwiches in half and serve. Enjoy!
You May Also Like
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
What do you get when you combine a classic American grilled cheese with Italian sun-dried tomato pesto? A deliciously crispy and gooey sandwich that delivers bold and tangy “pizza” flavor.
Ingredients
For the Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto (makes 1-1/2 cups)
- 1 (8.5-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 cup packed fresh basil leaves
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- 2 tablespoons water
For the Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
- 8 slices Italian bread
- 4 tablespoons softened butter
- 8 oz Fontina or Gruyere (or any good melting cheese), sliced or grated
- ½ cup sun-dried tomato pesto
Instructions
For the Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto
- In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine the sun-dried tomatoes with their oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, sugar, basil, pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano and 2 tablespoons of water. Pulse, scraping down the sides as necessary, until the mixture is finely puréed.
For the Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
- Spread one side of each slice of bread with butter, then flip over and spread the pesto evenly over the other side of each slice. Heat a large nonstick or cast iron pan over medium heat. Place 4 slices of bread, butter-side-down, in the pan. Divide the cheese evenly over the bread, then top the sandwiches with the remaining bread. Cook until the first side is golden brown, a few minutes. Carefully flip the sandwiches and cook until the cheese is fully melted and the bread is golden brown, a few minutes more. Let cool slightly, then slice the sandwiches in half and serve.
- Note: You'll have plenty of leftover sun-dried tomato pesto. It keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 4 days and can be frozen for up to 2 months. You can also try tossing the pesto with pasta; just keep in mind that the pesto is thick so you'll need to thin it with some of the pasta cooking water and a little olive oil when tossing it with the pasta.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Serving size: 1 sandwich
- Calories: 646
- Fat: 54 g
- Saturated fat: 22 g
- Carbohydrates: 21 g
- Sugar: 2 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 20 g
- Sodium: 733 mg
- Cholesterol: 98 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I have to say that out of all of the recipes I use daily from your site, this is my work horse, quick and nutritious go – to recipe that I prepare for my son’s family. I make the sandwiches and wrap them in plastic wrap and all they have to do is grill them up on their George Forman grill.
I’ve made several variations with cheeses and breads and my favorite is Italian pane de casa whole wheat with fontina. The fontina is just as good as gruyere and not as expensive. I do buy bottled tomato pesto which makes it even easier.
Always great recipes for real kitchens and real cooks and always has that extra special spin on a dish that makes it gourmet.
Thanks, Jenn.
Hi! Is there someway to covert dried tomatoes into oil packed ones? Just soak in oil, or maybe water first then oil? Every recipe of yours that I have tried has been a huge hit with my family and friends. Thanks so much.
So glad you like the recipes! I’ve never tried anything like what you’re suggested, so I don’t have much wisdom to share — sorry!
Sooo Delicious! I used a mixture of swiss and gruyere on sourdough with a swipe of the pesto. Can’t wait to make this when my daughter visits. I have a lot of pesto leftover so I froze it in ice cube trays and plan on using it on homemade pasta.
Thank you for the best grilled cheese sandwich we have ever eaten! Fontina cheese melts so easily and the sun-dried tomato pesto adds incredible flavor! Kudos to the “Chef”!
Made these “boujie” (as my daughter calls them) grilled cheeses last night…served with tomato soup…SOOO good!!! Any suggestions on how to use the leftover pesto? Thinking about making homemade pizza tonight and using, but always up for other ideas!
Glad you enjoyed, Kristie! Pizza is a great idea; it’s delicious good tossed with pasta, too.
is there a way to make a batch of these in the oven for a bridge group? I need to make 8 sandwiches and my cast iron skillet will only hold 2 at a time.
Sure Joni, I think you could get away with it. I’m not sure about the timing, but I’d flip them halfway through. Please LMK how they turn out!
Next month, I’m helping a local organization with an outdoor party and need to bring a large quantity of finger appetizers. Do you think this would taste good if I put this delicious spread and cheese onto flour tortillas to make sheet pan quesadillas? Theses would be baked, not fried. I’m concerned that part of the “yumminess” of grilled cheese is the butter. Thoughts?
Hi Karen, I’m concerned that the whole grilled cheese concept would get a little bit lost in translation if you baked fees. I have lots of finger foods in my appetizer section that I think might work better. You can browse through them here, but a couple that come to mind are:
Candied Pecans
Crab Cakes (You can make smaller versions of these so they can be finger foods.)
Cheddar and Herb Cheese Straws
Cheese Ball
Hope you find some options that work for you!
This was so good! I added a teensy amount of balsamic vinegar to add a bit of acidity and harissa for extra heat. Highly recommended, delish. Thank you. Your recipes never fail 🙂
Made these for a cozy dinner night and these grilled cheese sandwiches with the sun-dried tomato pesto were amazing! My husband just RAVED about these “adult grilled cheeses.” Thank you Jen!!
Just got delivered Sun-dried tomato pesto by mistake in my @tescoirl shop, so this is a sure sign as I love toasties..