Croque Monsieur Ham & Cheese RECIPE & STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS

One of the best things about going to Culinary School was all the unique and yummy recipes that you get to learn. Such as, Croque Monsieur.. which is simply the French version of a toasted ham and Swiss sandwich. Oh my gosh.. when we made this in class.. it was so buttery, so much cheese.. it was heaven!! Gruyère cheese and ham just belong together! The feminine version, a "Croque Madam", includes a fried egg on top.

Another good thing about this French bistro sandwich is a great way to use up leftover ham.. I do suggest on buying the best cheese you can. You can make this with any kind of cheese..but really try the Gruyère..its so good!

TO SEE THE FULL RECIPE AND INSTRUCTIONS CLICK THE - READ MORE - LINK ON THE LEFT!

Let me give you the recipe in full first. ( I have had a few people request it that way.. so hope this helps! )

Croque Monsieur Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Ingredients

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

1 1/2 cups milk

A pinch each of salt, freshly ground pepper, nutmeg, or more to taste

6 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups grated)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (packed)

8 slices of French or Italian loaf bread

12 ounces ham, sliced

Dijon mustard

Instructions

1 Preheat oven to 400°F.

2 Make the béchamel sauce. Melt butter in a small saucepan on medium/low heat until it just starts to bubble. Add the flour and cook, stirring until smooth, about 2 minutes. Slowly add the milk, whisking continuously, cooking until thick. Remove from heat. Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in the Parmesan and 1/4 cup of the grated Gruyère. Set aside.

3 Lay out the bread slices on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven, a few minutes each side, until lightly toasted. For extra flavor you can spread some butter on the bread slices before you toast them if you want.

(Alternatively, you can assemble the sandwiches as follows in step four and grill them on a skillet, finishing them in the broiler with the bechamel sauce.)

4 Lightly brush half of the toasted slices with mustard. Add the ham slices and about 1 cup of the remaining Gruyère cheese. Top with the other toasted bread slices.

5 Spoon on the béchamel sauce to the tops of the sandwiches. Sprinkle with the remaining Gruyère cheese. Place on a broiling pan. Bake in the oven for 5 minutes, then turn on the broiler and broil for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, until the cheese topping is bubbly and lightly browned.

If you top this sandwich with a fried egg it becomes a Croque Madame.

Makes 4 sandwiches.

Step by Step

I am breaking this up a little... Here is the main ingredients..

I like a sour dough round of bread and slice it myself..

I love Gruyère but around here we like to add a little white cheddar too!

I just buy black forest style ham. I buy enough for 3 slices of ham per sandwich..

I also like serving it with

salad a premade with just a tomato and cucumber..

A simple yummy Dijon mustard.

You will also need some

grated Parmesan.. I like this kind..that is already grated for you..

Now on to the béchamel sauce. In culinary school we spent a whole semester on sauces alone. I think I could make all the sauces with my eyes closed at this point..

This one is super simple..

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

1 1/2 cups milk

A pinch each of salt, freshly ground pepper, nutmeg, or more to taste

( I like using whole nutmeg and using my little grater to shave some off.. but ground nutmeg would work too. Nutmeg is essential in any white sauce )

I first started out

Getting the bread sliced and the

the cheese grated. Any little hand grater would work.. or if you the cheese already shredded.. then go for that.

Once those 2 jobs were done I started in on the béchamel sauce.

Melt butter in a small saucepan on medium/low heat

until it just starts to bubble

Then add the

flour..

stirring until smooth, about 2 minutes.

Then

Slowly add the milk,

whisking continuously, .

cooking until thick.

. Remove from heat. Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg.

The fresh nutmeg smells amazing!

Then add

1/4 cup of the grated Gruyère

and

the grated Parmesan cheese..

Stir and set aside.

- Tip -

Don't throw the cheese rinds away.. They are great to use in fall and winter soups. Just toss them in a baggie and store in the freezer until ready to use.

I then started getting the bread ready.