This fried chicken sandwich from Melt Bar is not for the faint of heart

Prep time: 20 minutes | Cook time: 30 minutes | Serves: 12

Melt Bar and Grilled has made a name for itself in Ohio for creating creatively designed, masterfully executed, calorie-laden sandwiches. Melt Bar calls them "gourmet grilled cheeses," but they're a lot more than that.

For the most part, they're the type of behemoths that your inner drunk college kid would come up with if only your inner drunk college student was a senior at culinary school.

Take for example, The Mighty Macaroni (battered and deep fried mac and cheese layered with cheddar cheese sauce & melted cheese of your choice); The Cowabunga (deep-fried cheese pizza rolls and spicy marinara, rich basil pesto, herb cream cheese, provolone & romano); and the Korean War Pig (Korean BBQ glazed boneless pork spare ribs, kimchi slaw, pear onion cilantro relish, muenster).

Melt Bar even takes already crazy decadent sandwiches and somehow finds a way to level them up a notch. Its version of a meatball sandwich (The Dude Abides), for example, has fried mozzarella wedges in addition to loads of gooey cheese; its Cuban sandwich (Cuban War Pig) is basically just a giant classic Cuban, but with deep-fried pickles; and even its outrageously huge Chicken & Waffles sandwich has sriracha butter and pepper-jack cheese in addition to massive pieces of battered chicken and Belgian waffles.

So it's no surprise that Melt Bar chef-owner Matt Fish came up with this Winner Winner Chicken Dinner – a complete meal between two pieces of bread.

The sandwich has four main elements: fried chicken, creamed corn purée, scalloped potatoes and garlic chicken. All four are piled high atop thick-cut bread and covered in melted cheddar cheese.

Making this 'gourmet grilled cheese' definitely takes some work; it's a lot more than throwing some buttered bread into a pan and adding a slice of American. But it's totally worth the effort. And when you're done, you can scarf it down and happily slip into a food coma.

*Recipe by Matt Fish of Melt bar and Grilled via The Food Channel.

Ingredients

For the sandwich

• 24 slices crusty style bread, cut about 1/2-inch thick
• 24 slices cheddar cheese

For the scalloped potatoes

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (8 ounce) heavy cream
• 1 cup (8 ounce) hot water
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 7 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
• 4 ounces Romano cheese, grated
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) sour cream
• 3 pounds russet potatoes, scrubbed, unpeeled

For the creamed corn puree

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 2 pounds frozen corn kernels
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 4 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, ground
• 1/2 teaspoon hot Hungarian paprika

For the fried chicken

• 12 (4-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded 1/2-inch thick
• As needed Crispy chicken batter of choice, see note**

For the garlic spinach

• To grease pan oil
• 3/4 cup garlic, minced, divided
• 24 ounces baby spinach leaves, packed, divided
• To taste salt
• To taste pepper

Preparation

For the scalloped potatoes

1. Preheat oven to 350F (conventional) or 325°F (convection). Coat a half sheet pan with cooking spray.
2. Heat butter in a medium saucepan. Add onion and garlic; sauté, stirring frequently until softened and translucent.
3. Stir in flour until evenly absorbed. Whisk in cream, hot water and salt; bring to a simmer and stir until thickened.
4. Gradually whisk in cheeses and sour cream.
5. Slice potatoes 1/8-inch thick. (If needed, place in water to prevent browning while preparing; drain well before proceeding).
6. In a large bowl, combine potatoes and cheese sauce. Mix to evenly coat.
7. Spread potatoes in an even layer on prepared pan. Potatoes should be about 5/8-inch thick. Bake 30-40 minutes until potatoes are fork tender and top is golden brown.
8. Cool, then refrigerate. Cut into 12 or 16 pieces depending on portion to fit bread.

For the creamed corn puree

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until softened. Add corn kernels and stir until thawed. 2
2. Stir in flour until incorporated. Add cream, sugar, salt, pepper and paprika. Bring to a simmer; stir until thickened, about 3 minutes.
3. Transfer mixture to a food processor. Pulse to make a coarse purée. Cool. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Measure 4 ounces (1/2 cup) per serving. Reheat on stovetop or microwave.

To assemble

1. Coat chicken with flour. Dip in batter**. Deep fry until cooked through (165°F in center).
2. In a lightly oiled pan, add 1 tablespoon of garlic for a few seconds over medium-high heat. Add 2 cups (packed) spinach and stir just until wilted, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Heat a portion of scalloped potatoes for 1 minute in microwave.
4. Heat a portion of Corn Purée for 1 minute in microwave.
5. Lightly toast bread on both sides; top each slice with ¼ cup corn purée. Place on a heat-proof tray.
6. Place scalloped potatoes over corn on one slice of bread; top with fried chicken and one slice of cheese.
7. Place garlic spinach over corn on other slice of bread and top with a slice of cheese.
8. Heat sandwich halves under salamander or broiler for 45 seconds or until cheese is melted.
9. Put sandwich together with the spinach side on top. Cut in half and skewer with a long pick.

Notes

1. **To prepare batter, stir together 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup cornstarch, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt. Whisk in 1 cup water, 2 tablespoons beaten egg and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Let stand 5 minutes.