Croque Monsieur. Simplicity at his best and yet cannot stop craving them. One of my dad’s favorite Saturday lunch. Our meal of choice to our favorite bistro in Paris. Croque Monsieur is a fun simple dish that we all love.
I never shared it with all of you until the last “Summer Cooking Camp Class” I had that I decide to show my young chef’s how it was made. My little crew loved them and they could not wait to make them at home for their parents.
Different from the American counter partner, the grilled ham and cheese. The bread for one, and then the white sauce or bechamel with grated melted cheese. Using a fresh French country bread where the crust is crusty and the interior soft and out of this world bursting with flavor.
TIPS:
Butter: do not skip it, this is what makes this Croque Monsieur the savory dish that it is. You either smear it on the bread that will be facing the cooking pan, both sides, or you can place a piece on the cooking pan and place the bread over it.
Crust or no crust? This is optional. Try it both ways and see which one you do prefer. I love the crust but sometimes little one may not.
Bechamel and Cheese: be as generous as you wish and cover the whole slice of bread, you will not regret it. As any fat content be very careful when you place the Croque Monsieur under the broiler as it will burn fast if not supervised.
Croque Monsieur
Ingredients
- 2 slices of white French bread 2 slices of French bread
- butter butter
- gruyere cheese gruyere cheese
- thinly sliced ham thinly sliced ham
- bechamel cream bechamel cream
- gruyere gruyere, grated
BECHEMEL CREAM
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons flour 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups whole milk 2 cups whole milk
- salt and pepper salt and pepper
- nutmeg nutmeg
Instructions
FOR THE BECHAMEL CREAM
- Melt butter in a saucepan. Add the flour and stir together until smoothly blended. Add milk gradually and whisk constantly until a blended and no lumps are formed. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper
FOR THE CROQUE MONSIEUR
- Butter the slices of bread and fill with layers gruyere cheese and ham. On a skillet over medium heat add a dot of butter (or butter the bread) and place the croque monsieur over it and brown lightly both sides.
- Warm the broiler. Place the croque monsieur on a cookie sheet, top with bechamel cream, and some more gruyere cheese. Broil until the cheese melts and gets a golden color.
Nutrition
Giangi's Kitchen provides nutritional information, but these figures should be considered estimates, as a registered dietician does not calculate them.
- Course: Dinners
- Cuisine: French
- Type: Affordable Gourmet, Under 45 minutes
Did you make this?
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Equipment used to prepare the Croque Monsieur:
