Mumbai Toasted Cheese Sandwich

I follow a wonderful cook on Instagram who goes under the moniker @greedyinmontreal, real name Rachel.  I am lucky enough to know her in person too, as she has long been a 'forum friend' from the days of the Nigella.com chat forum, but I also met her when we lived in Canada and she invited me to stay.  Her posts are the highlight of my Instagram feed, and often inspire me to cook something new.  This sandwich popped up on my feed, cooked by Rachel, and I knew that I just HAD to make it.  It was as gorgeous as I thought it would be, and I made it several times.  The recipe was scribbled on a piece of paper...  which I have just found and decided that I need to commit it to my blog so I don't lose it.  Of course it's elsewhere online too (see this Telegraph article) but if I have it recorded here I am less likely to forget it.

Mumbai Spiced Cheese Toastie - Diana Henry

INGREDIENTS 

For the fresh chutney:

• ½ green chilli, deseeded and chopped
• handful fresh coriander, leaves only
• leaves from 8 mint sprigs, torn
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• sea-salt flakes, to taste
• ½ tsp caster sugar
• juice of ½ lemon

For the sandwich:
• 2 slices white bread
• 50g cheddar, Lancashire or Wensleydale, grated or very finely sliced
• 1 medium tomato, sliced
• ¼ small red onion, very finely sliced
• a pinch of ground cumin
• a pinch of ground coriander
• a pinch of ground ginger
• a pinch of ground cinnamon
• butter and oil, for frying (if you don’t have a toastie maker)

METHOD

Put everything for the chutney, except the lemon juice, in a mortar and pound it. You can just chop everything together but the chutney is better if it has had a good pounding. Add the lemon juice.
Spread the chutney over both pieces of bread. Lay the cheese, tomato and onion on one of them and sprinkle over the spices. Top with the other piece of bread.
Use a toasted-sandwich maker, if you have one, or melt a knob of butter and about a quarter of a tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and cook the sandwich over a medium heat for about three minutes on each side, weighing it down (I use a flat saucepan lid with a heavy tin on top). Be careful not to burn the outside, and adjust the heat accordingly.
The cheese should have melted. Serve immediately.

Serves 1