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Croque-Monsieur

Source of Recipe

From "Saveur: The New Classics"


Recipe Introduction

"The croque-monsieur — on the menu in any bistro worth its salt — is a classic French ham and cheese sandwich covered in béchamel."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
â—¦ 3 tablespoons flour
â—¦ 2 cups milk
â—¦ 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
â—¦ ½ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
â—¦ Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
â—¦ Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
â—¦ 12 ¾-inch-thick slices pain de mie or Pullman bread, toasted
â—¦ 6 tablespoons Dijon mustard
â—¦ 12 thin slices baked ham


Recipe

Melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook, whisking, until smooth, about 1 minute. Whisk in milk and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and let simmer until slightly reduced and thickened, 6 to 8 minutes. Add ½ cup grated Gruyère and the Parmigiano and whisk until smooth. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Heat broiler. Place six slices bread on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and spread 1 tablespoon mustard over each. Top each with two slices ham and divide remaining Gruyère.

Broil until cheese begins to melt, 1 to 2 minutes. Top with remaining bread slices, then pour a generous amount of béchamel on top of each sandwich. Broil until cheese sauce is bubbling and evenly browned, 3 to 4 minutes.

Serves 6



• Cook's Note:
Top a croque-monsieur with a fried egg and it becomes a croque-madame. Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Crack in an egg, season with salt and pepper, and cook until white is opaque but yolk is still runny, about 3 minutes. Place the egg on top of each sandwich and serve hot.