Italian Scamorza and Prosciutto Grilled Cheese Sandwich Recipe
Andy and I travel a lot, and while on a trip to Italy on a food tour in Rome, one of the cheeses we got to try in a cheese shop was scamorza. It has a smoky flavor, and it quickly became one of Andy’s favorites. When we started making lots of grilled cheese sandwiches, he tried it out with some prosciutto ham, and it’s a good combo. Try our scamorza and prosciutto grilled cheese sandwich recipe.
What goes into the sandwich
If you’ve never tried scamorza cheese, you really should. It might be tough to find in the US, but if you can, you’re in for a unique taste.
It’s a smoked Italian cheese made similar to mozzarella, but since it’s smoked it tastes completely different. You cannot substitute one for the other. It usually comes in large ball shapes that are tied off in one spot. Check with specialty cheese shops or a specialty Italian grocery store.
Scamorza is also a soft cheese, but it doesn’t melt quite so easily. But trust me, it does melt enough to make for a delicious grilled cheese sandwich.
Unlike this cheese, prosciutto is fairly easy to find at your local grocery store. Get the highest quality you can. Real Prociutto di Parma from Parma, Italy is a special thing, but you should be able to find something close enough.
These two ingredients together, melted between two crispy pieces of bread, make for a rich and tasty meal. I think you’ll really enjoy it.
>>For something a little lighter, try the Caprese grilled cheese sandwich recipe.
How to make a scamorza and prosciutto grilled cheese sandwich
This is not an easy cheese to slice up evenly, which is why I can’t tell you exactly how many slices you’ll need. And the size of your scamorza ball could be bigger or smaller than the one I used. But roughly 3 ounces of cheese, sliced as thin as I could get it, is about what you’ll need to cover both pieces of bread.
After layering half of the cheese onto one piece of bread, add the prosciutto. A slice or two of tomato would make a nice addition here if you’d like. Then add the other half of your cheese and the other slice of bread.
Put a slab of butter in your pan and heat on medium. Once the butter is completely melted and starts forming little bubbles, put your sandwich in and start grilling.
Grill the sandwich for 3-4 minutes on each side. This usually isn’t enough time for the bread to get to that perfect golden brown, plus you want to make sure that cheese gets nicely melted. But I like to flip a tiny bit early to make sure I’m not burning the bread. You’ll probably need another minute or two on each side, for a total of about 10 minutes to grill the whole thing.
For an extra bit of flavor, Andy has also sprinkled some garlic powder onto the outside of the bread, so it cooks into the bread on each side. Yum!
Let me know what you think of this scamorza and prosciutto grilled cheese sandwich recipe!
Scamorza and Prosciutto Grilled Cheese Sandwich

The Scamorza and Prosciutto Grilled Cheese Sandwich combines two classic Italian flavors for an interesting twist on the grilled cheese sandwich. You'll love the smoked cheese and salty ham.
Ingredients
- 2 slices of bread
- 3 ounces of Scamorza cheese thinly sliced (or however much you need to cover each slice of bread)
- 2 slices of Prosciutto
- Optional: 1-2 slices of tomato
- butter
Instructions
- Heat the pan on medium.
- Add a slab of butter to the pan and let it melt completely.
- Assemble half of the cheese on one slice of bread. Layer on the prosciutto, and if you're adding tomato, do it here. Add the other half of the cheese and close up your sandwich.
- Once the butter is completely melted, coats the whole pan, and starts bubbling a little, put the sandwich into the pan. Cook for 4-5 minutes on one side, checking to make sure it isn't burning.
- Once the first side is golden brown, flip and cook the other side. Add a sliver of butter to the pan if needed.
- When both sides are a crispy golden brown and the cheese is melty, your Scamorza and Prosciutto grilled cheese sandwich is done and ready to eat.
Notes
Make this gluten free with your favorite gluten free bread.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
1Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 729Total Fat: 47gSaturated Fat: 25gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 154mgSodium: 2481mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 41g
Nutritional information is an estimate provided by a third party app and should not be used in place of the advice of a professional nutritionist.