This is the Mexican equivalent to the American grilled-cheese or turkey sandwich, an everyday treat you throw together with what's left in the fridge. In Mexico, that's beans, cheese, and salsa. Though molletes are available in restaurants, they're definitely best made at home, when you can make sure to properly butter and toast the bread, add the right amount of beans and cheese, then melt that queso under the broiler.

Yield: Makes 4

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
2 large rolls, preferably teleras, Portuguese, kaiser, or ciabatta, split
Generous 1/4 cup Refried Black Beans, homemade or canned
6 ounces Chihuahua cheese or provolone cheese, shredded
Generous 1/2 cup Pico de Gallo with Lemon Zest

Preheat the oven or toaster oven to 500°F.

Heat a large pan over medium heat until it's nice and hot. Spread the butter over the cut sides of the roll halves. Place them, cut sides down, in the pan and cook until they are lightly golden brown and crispy, a minute or two.

Spread a thin layer of beans over the toasted side of each roll. Top with a thin layer of cheese. Cook the molletes (open-faced) in the oven just until the cheese has melted and turned golden brown in a few spots, 3 to 5 minutes.

Serve the molletes beside a bowl of the pico de gallo and let everyone top the molletes with pico de gallo themselves.

Source Information
Reprinted with permission from Tacos, Tortas, and Tamales by Roberto Santibañez with JJ Goode, © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.