The French have their own ham and cheese sandwich
The French have their own ham and cheese sandwich, and because the French do love their cheese, this is one ooey-gooey staple of their cuisine.
Also created over a century ago, the sandwich is served as a quick snack or meal at cafes.
At breakfast, add a fried egg to the top, and you have a Croque Madame.
Croque Monsieur
Ingredients:
- 2 TB unsalted butter
- 2 TB all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup milk (2% or Whole)
- 1 TB dijon mustard
- pinch of salt
- 4 slices 1/2″ thick, chewy bread (not too soft or crunchy)
- 4-6 slices of quality ham (I usually get thinly-sliced black forest ham from the deli)
- 4-6 ounces gruyere cheese, grated
- egg(s), if you desire Madames
- Herbes de Provence, a pinch on each sandwich
- freshly snipped chives, if desired
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
For the béchamel sauce: In a pan, combine the butter and flour on medium-low heat until a roux is formed. Add milk, a pinch of salt, and increase heat to medium-high, whisking frequently until bubbling. Reduce heat to a low simmer, and stir the mixture until thickened. This step happens quite quickly. Once the béchamel is thick, remove from heat, and stir in 1 Tbsp of dijon mustard.
For the sandwich: In a separate pan, brown the slices of ham over just a few drops of olive oil on medium-low heat, turning frequently with a fork until slightly crisp and browned.
Grate the gruyere cheese. Lightly toast the bread.
Build sandwiches on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Spread a thin layer of the béchamel sauce onto one side of each slice of bread with a spatula.
Place a few slices of crispy ham on the slice of bread that will be the middle of the sandwich. Make sure to tuck all the edges of the ham into the perimeter of the bread, to prevent burnt edges. Sprinkle a bit of the gruyere cheese on top of the ham (especially close to the edges), and top with the other slice of bread. Spread a little béchamel sauce around the edges of the crust.
Top with the remainder of the gruyere cheese, purposely allowing the cheese to spill over the edges of the bread. Sprinkle with a pinch of Herbes de Provence.
Bake the sandwiches at 400 degrees for about 5 minutes, until the cheese has begun to melt and everything is warmed through. Remove from oven, and set the oven to broil. Return the baking sheet to the oven, and broil the cheese for about 5 more minutes, until the cheese begins to brown but the crust is not burnt.
Remove from oven, and serve immediately.
If you are making Croque Madames, fry an egg sunny side up and place on top of the sandwich after broiling.
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