How to up your grilled cheese game

If you like grilled cheese sandwiches or are looking for tips on how to make yours even better, you might want to pop by Sobeys in Stratford on Sunday.

About a dozen Island chefs will be competing in The Great Island Grilled Cheese Challenge, part of the annual Fall Flavours Festival.

There will be entertainment and, of course, samples. A panel of judges will vote on the winner, and the public can cast votes for the People's Choice Award.

A good, well-made grilled cheese sandwich puts a smile on a lot of people's faces.— Chef Irwin MacKinnon

Papa Joe's chef Irwin MacKinnon says grilled cheese sandwiches are one of the "simple pleasures in life."

"A good, well-made grilled cheese sandwich puts a smile on a lot of people's faces."

Mainstreet P.E.I. asked Irwin, who is president of the P.E.I. Chefs and Cooks Association, what he thinks makes a great chilled cheese sandwich — besides the cheese.

Add a fruit element

"The types I like are a nice balance between a little bit sweet, a little bit sour, like perhaps a fruit content, with the cheese, something with a little bit of acidity that helps cut the richness of the cheese," he said. 

"People have used raisin bread in the past in their grilled cheese. You might think that's a little bit strange but depending on how sharp the cheese is and what it is they're using in the sandwich, it can work really well."

Tickets for adults are $21 plus HST and fees. Children's tickets are $7. It starts at noon.

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With files from Mainstreet P.E.I.