Grilled Ham & Cheese
What Is Your Hardness? The Reason You Have Hard Water
Ingredients
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8 ounces ham, thinly sliced 1/2 pound Swiss cheese, sliced 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1/4 cup apricot preserves
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8 slices of bread (Pullman works best) 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (preferably Parmigiano- Reggiano)
Jeff Longspaugh explains the hardness in water.
What is your water hardness?
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What does that even mean? Well, it’s interesting — it all comes down to where we live and minerals in the water. It’s so interesting to me that I took and passed a test years ago that licensed me as a Class III water treatment specialist. As plumbers, we don’t necessarily need this certification. Most plumbers know how water passes through pipes but not anything about that water or how to fix it if water breaks the plumbing. According to a 2017 water quality report, the total hardness of the City of Fort Worth’s water is 7–9 grains per gallon. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers that to be hard water. What does hard water mean? Well, when water is hard, it means that there are dissolved minerals in the water, like calcium and magnesium. If you have well water, your water hardness is anywhere from 1–40 grains per gallon. Hardness won’t kill you, but it does dry out your skin and leaves deposits that negatively affect the ability of your soaps to work on your dishes, laundry, and even your skin and hair. There are other minerals in your water that are worth mentioning too — trihalomethane, chlorine, chloramines, iron, sediment, and hydrogen sulfide. In our service area, I would guesstimate that 90 percent of our customers have hard water and don’t even know it. It would be classified by the EPA and United States Geological Society (USGA) as hard water. Guess what? We are water treatment specialists and are happy to help if you want to benefit from softer water.
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Directions
1. Butter each slice of bread on the outsides and sprinkle with Parmesan.
2. Layer ham and cheese evenly on top of 4 slices of bread.
3. Spread apricot preserves and mustard across the other 4 slices. Press sandwiches together. 4. In a cast-iron skillet or large sauté pan over medium heat, grill sandwiches until golden, about 3 minutes per side.
5. Cut in half and serve.
Inspired by Food & Wine magazine
SUDOKU
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ClearWater Plumbers | 817-296-0670 | clearwaterplumber.com
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