1. One of the first appearances of the term "grilled cheese" was in a 1930s luncheon menu published in the LA Times.
2. Throughout history, grilled cheese (frequently called a "toasted cheese") was open-faced and sometimes topped with tomato.
3. Schools quickly adopted grilled cheese and tomato soup in cafeterias as a cheap meal option that fulfilled vitamin C and protein requirements.
4. Despite the popularity of processed factory cheese in the States, it was frequently referred to as "rat cheese" by the English who were dedicated to their delicacy cheddars.
5. After the bread slicer and patent for processed cheese slices came around, the familiar two-slice grilled cheese sandwich emerged and became a staple in kitchens everywhere.
6. An internet search for "how to make the perfect grilled cheese" produces over a million results.
7. But the Royal Society of Chemistry believes they have created a scientific formula for a perfect grilled cheese.
8. During a 2012 eating contest in Texas, a man once set a world record by eating 13 grilled cheese sandwiches in one minute.
9. In 2004, a grilled cheese with a burn pattern bearing the likeness of the Virgin Mary sold for $28,000 in an online bidding war.
10. But according to the Guinness Book of World Records, one of the most expensive grilled cheeses you can actually eat costs $214.
11. While Greece consumes the most cheese per capita, the United States is one of the top producers of cheese in the world.
12. Americans eat approximately 2.2 billion grilled cheese sandwiches a year, according to a market research study.
13. The same study also concluded that grilled cheese fans were more likely to be charitable than their cheese-less counterparts.
