The answer to a busy day could be “melt”: sandwiches

Meals in minutes – that’s the answer to those busy days. Add “melt” sandwiches to your arsenal of responses. They are fast and they are good. You can vary them according to your mood or the tastes of your family. If you have guests, make several types and serve a plate of mixed sandwiches, without spending a lot of time. Each is made with toasted English muffins, spread with a filling and topped with cheese. The sandwiches cook for about five minutes on the broil element, the top element of your oven, until the cheese is melted.

Melted Sandwich #1. Crispy Crab Sandwich

If you choose a good crab salad, this one is delicious. Stop by the deli on the way home and pick up your favorite crab salad. You’ll need some English muffins. The preparation time of the sandwiches in the oven is less than ten minutes. That’s how:

1. Toast the English muffins.
2. Load each with the crab salad. Top each with a slice of cheddar cheese.
3. Place your sandwiches on a baking sheet and slide it under the broiler element in your oven. Cook them for about five minutes or until the cheese is melted. Serve them hot.

Melted Sandwich #2. shredded chicken and cheese

When we think of pulled pork, we think of the Carolinas and great barbecue restaurants. These are made with chicken instead of pork. If you choose a good barbecue sauce, it will be excellent, and although it takes more time, it only has three ingredients. This recipe will make four sandwiches.

1 chicken breast
1/2 large sweet onion, sliced
3/4 cup barbecue sauce

Sauté chicken breast in a skillet. Let the chicken cool down. While it cools, fry the onion in the same pan.

Using your fingers and a fork, pull the chicken breast into shreds. Return the chicken to the pan with the onions. Add the barbecue sauce and stir.

Now that the filling is complete, you can assemble and cook the sandwiches as before. We cover the chicken filling with provolone cheese.

Melted Sandwich #3. Chicken Cheddar Salad

They are very good and very fast sandwiches. Make your favorite chicken salad for sandwiches or stop by the deli for a bite to eat. Toast the muffins and load them with the chicken salad. Top with deli slices of cheddar or other cheese and grill until cheese is bubbly.

Of course you can make the exact same sandwiches with tuna salad or canned salmon salad.

Melted Sandwich #4. California turkey, bacon and avocado

Instead of creating a spreadable filling, you can top your sandwiches with meat, vegetables, and seasonings. Next up is a very good sandwich.

Spread the English muffin with a little mayonnaise. Top that with turkey and then a couple half slices of crispy cooked bacon. Top the bacon with avocado slices and tomato slices. Top with the cheese of your choice and grill until the cheese is melted.

Melted Sandwich #5. Rueben melt

If you like Rueben sandwiches, you’ll like this version. Toast your buns and add some thousand island dressing topped with corn beef. Add a thin layer of sauerkraut and top with Swiss cheese. Grill sandwiches until cheese is melted.

We found this sandwich a bit overwhelming if we didn’t keep the ingredients sparse. It was very good with just a couple layers of roast beef and a tablespoon of sauerkraut spread evenly over the meat.

Melted Sandwich #6. Summer tomato, fresh basil and mozzarella

This is a classic summer combination when the tomatoes are ripe and fresh basil is available. Since this is a meatless sandwich, you’ll probably want extra cheese.

Spread a little butter or mayonnaise on your toasted muffins. (The mayonnaise or butter will help protect the bread from the tomato juices.) Arrange tomato slices, fresh basil, and cheese on top of the muffins in that order. Grill sandwiches until cheese is melted and bubbly.

make or buy

You’ll make great sandwiches with store-bought muffins, but homemade ones always seem a little better…and satisfying. English muffins may be the easiest yeast bread to make, they’re not much more of a problem than pancakes. You have to wait 40 minutes for the yeast to kick in and you have to use English muffin rings to hold the dough. Other than that, it’s pretty much like cooking pancakes. Because they are thicker, they take a little longer on the grill.