I can remember the first time I had a Croque Monsieur vividly. I was 8 years old, had just moved to Tokyo with my family, and come back from school orientation and while waiting for my mother in lobby seating area my father ordered one for us. He was so excited to see it on the menu. I think to this day it is still the best croque monsieur; I have ever had. Recently, in the past year I have been on the quest to find one that compares. I have found one that competes but thought I would indulge and try it on my own. I have seen them cut up small and served as hors d’ oeuvres. Which I think is an awesome idea.
What makes this different from just a ham and cheese sandwich? The Béchamel Sauce. I never would have thought to put a sauce in a sandwich, but oh how it makes it delicious!
Pre Heat 350 degrees
Croque Monsieur
4 slices of Sandwich Bread
4 ounces of Slice Ham
11/4 Cup of Grated Gruyere Cheese
1/4 Cup of Grated Parmesan Cheese
2 Tablespoons of Butter
1 Tablespoon of Dijon Mustard (optional)
5 to 6 Tablespoons of Béchamel Sauce (See Below)
Lightly and evenly butter on both sides of bread and toast both sides in sauté pan over low heat until just golden brown. If you decide to use Dijon Mustard spread one side of each toasted slice with mustard. Evenly place the ham slices and about ½ cup Gruyère cheese on two of the bread slices. Top each with one of remaining bread slices, mustard-side down. Spread béchamel sauce to cover the top of each sandwich including the crust. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining Gruyère cheese and Parmesan Cheese. Place on a pan and bake for 5 minutes, then place under broiler until cheese is bubbling and lightly browned, about 3 minutes.
Bechamel Sauce
1 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons flour
½ cups warmed milk plus 1 Tablespoon
Salt and ground pepper to taste
1/4 Cup of Grated Gruyere Cheese
Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the paste cooks and bubbles a bit, about 2 minutes, do not let it turn brown. Add the hot milk, continue to stir, the sauce will thicken and bring to a boil. Add salt and pepper, lower the heat, and cook, stirring for 2 to 3 minutes more. Remove from the heat and stir in the Gruyere Cheese.
This past holiday weekend I went home with some friends. Since having people over to my tiny apartment is really not an option, I thought I would take advantage of space at home and I do enjoy cooking with my mom. One of my friends who came had just finished business school, now I know she worked very hard but I also know she become enriched from her travels. Her suggestion was that we grill some rum soaked Pineapple for the BBQ. That this is what she had done every/one night on one of her vacations in school. While it was served as a snack at this bbq – it also serves as a great topping for burgers and grilled chicken sandwiches. What we also found out that some people liked the burned wedges since some of our slices were not perfectly cut. This was a brilliant idea and a huge success they were loved by all!
1 Whole Pineapple (with skin removed and sliced ½ inch thick)
1 Cup of Dark Rum
¾ Cup of Brown Sugar
Fresh Ginger Zest about 3 Teaspoons
½ Cup of Water to dissolve the sugar in
Combine all ingredients into Pyrex dish and let pineapple marinate for at least 1 hour. Grill pineapple on each side for 1 minute.
Other ideas for flavoring: Honey, Lemon, Lime, Cinnamon, Ground Cloves, and Vanilla.
I was in South Carolina last week and when I was on the highway, I saw baskets of peaches on a truck. I was tickled pink about this sighting because I had totally forgotten I was in peach territory. Of course now I was on the lookout for where I could buy my own basket of peaches. Alas right before heading back to the airport I found a farmers markets and literally got a basket of peaches and took them back with me to NYC.
Now what to do with my peaches! I didn’t want to make a cobbler had done that last week with some strawberries and rhubarb. Salsa is what came to mind. I was also told that grilled peaches were great…but I didn’t have access to a grill.
2 Peaches (diced into small cubes)
½ Green Bell Pepper (diced into small cubes)
½ Red Onion (diced into small cubes)
2-3 Tablespoons of Chopped Cilantro
Juice from two Limes
Jalapeño Pepper (that depends on the level of spice you would like…I got a little too aggressive when I made this Salsa!)
Mix all of the ingredients together and ready to serve. What I loved were all the colors together, I thought it looked so fresh and absolutely beautiful.
Cheers! Sandra. R.
Croque Monsieur Recipe
