Substitution Sundays - Mayo Grilled Cheese

I am a college student, and as such I have both a limited budget with which to purchase food and  limited cabinet space in which to store that food. Figuring out how to substitute the products that I already have in a variety of cooking and baking experiments is therefore essential. Additionally, these substitutions allow me to try new things and really get creative in the kitchen, which, if you have yet to have figured out, is something I love.

Today's inaugural edition of Substitution Sundays will focus on a simple substitution I tried several years ago. I'm sure most people know how to make a grilled cheese sandwich: slather some butter on one side each of two slices of bread, place one butter-side down in a heated pan, add slice(s) of cheese, top with the second slice of bread, and grill on each side until golden brown with oozing cheese.

However, what do you do when you run out of butter? Using oil wouldn't work because the bread would soak all of it up, leaving you with an extremely greasy sandwich. Mayonnaise, on the ot

her hand, has a significant oil component, but is too thick for bread to absorb particularly quickly. So it works quite well in place of butter! In fact, I prefer it to butter because I think it lends a slight flavor enhancement to the bread. The mayo also works better than the stick butter I buy because it spreads more evenly and browns very nicely.

Now, I understand your skepticism. When I told my friends that I did this, they turned their noses up in disgust. Apparently I am not the only one who has found this to be a great substitution though: BuzzFeed has dubbed it the secret to the perfect grilled cheese! Point proven, thanks BuzzFeed.