Croque Monsieur法式三明治
A common French cafe/bar food with simple ingredients. Rich and creamy!
Equipment
- 6“ saucepan
- 12“ saucepan (or electric bread toaster)
- cheese grater
- baking pan
Ingredients
- 6 slices white bread (country bread) slices
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup milk
- 7-8 oz gruyere cheese (210-230gram)
- 5 oz French-style ham (8 pieces bread size)
- 0.5 tsp salt (optional)
- pinch nutmeg (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375F.
- Grate the gruyere cheese.
- Toast all the bread at medium heat (2-3 mins each side) in the large sauce pan (or bake the bread pieces in the oven for 3-5 mins).
- Melt the butter at low heat in the small saucepan.
- Add the flour to the molten butter and stir with a wooden spoon constantly for about 2-3 mins.
- Add the milk into the butter/flour mixture. Keep the heat at low and whisk constantly until the sauce (béchamel) thickens.
- Take the sauce off heat and season with nutmeg (and salt).
- Spread the toasted bread with the butter/milk sauce with a spoon. Sprinkle grated gruyere cheese on top of the sauce.
- Place 2-3 pieces of ham on half of the bread pieces. (Each bread has 2-3 pieces of ham).
- Top the above bread pieces with the other half of bread slices. (cheese is in the middle)
- Slather the tops with the sauce and sprinkle with the remaining gruyere cheese.
- Bake the sandwiches for 8-10 minutes.
- Turn on broiler to low heat (400F) and broil for 3 to 5 mins, or until the topping is bubbly and lightly browned.
- Serve hot.
Video
Notes
-Since cheese and ham are sort of salty, you don't have to add salt to the butter/flour/milk sauce, which is called béchamel in French.
-You don't have to add nutmeg to the sauce either.
-Some recipes use country bread. The bread I used was bought at a local Japanese bakery. As long as you don't use sourdough or whole wheat, I think you are fine.