Decadent Croque Monsieur Recipes

CROQUE MONSIEUR

Steps:

• Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Gradually add milk, stirring well until the mixture is smooth. Cook, stirring, until sauce is thickened.
• Season with a little bit of salt and pepper. Remove from heat and whisk in mustard and nutmeg. Set aside while you make the sandwiches, or make the sauce up to 1 week in advance.
• Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a baking tray with parchement paper and set aside.
• Spread each bread slice with a layer of béchamel, spreading it all the way to the edges. Place 4 slices of bread, béchamel side up, on prepared baking sheet.
• Top each with a piece of ham, a handful of gruyere, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. Place remaining slices of bread on top, béchamel side up, then top with remaining gruyere and parmesan cheese.
• Bake at 425 degrees F for about 5-6 minutes, until cheese is melted, and then turn the oven to broil and broil until the cheese on top is lightly golden, 2-4 minutes.

CROQUE MONSIEUR

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Butter a baking sheet; set aside.
• In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add flour, and cook until foaming, whisking constantly, for 3 minutes.
• In another medium saucepan, heat milk over medium heat. Slowly add milk to butter-flour mixture, whisking to prevent lumps from forming. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook 2 minutes more. Stir in 1/2 cup grated cheese, and season with salt, white pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne. Cook until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl, and set aside to cool.
• Place 4 pieces of toast on a work surface and spread each piece with a 1/4 cup of sauce. Cover sauce with a slice of cheese, a slice of ham, and another slice of cheese. Top each sandwich with remaining 4 slices of toast. Spread each sandwich with 1/4 cup sauce and sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 cup grated cheese.
• Place sandwiches on prepared baking sheet, and bake until heated through, about 5 minutes. Preheat broiler; transfer baking sheet to broiler and broil until golden brown and bubbly, 2 to 3 minutes. Serve immediately.

DECADENT CROQUE MONSIEUR

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Whisk in flour until blended but not colored, about 3 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
• Assemble sandwiches: Place all 8 bread slices on a work surface in a single layer. Spread each slice evenly to the edges with Bechamel sauce; all the sauce may not be needed. Divide ham evenly between 4 of the bread slices, trimming if necessary so it is within 1/2 inch from the edges. Top all 8 slices with equal amounts of Gruyere cheese, spreading it evenly to within 1/4 inch of the edges.
• Lift the 4 bread slices with sauce and cheese and keeping the cheese facing up, place on top of the slices layered with ham. Transfer sandwiches to the prepared sheet pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cheese topping is melted and golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.

TRIPLE-DECKER CROQUE MONSIEURS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• To make the sauce: Bring the milk, cream, onion, mustard seed, nutmeg, bay leaf, star anise, and cloves to a simmer in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, taking care that the mixture does not boil over. Reduce the heat to low and heat to steep without reducing the liquid, about 10 minutes. Strain the mixture through a wire sieve into a bowl. Press hard on the solids, then discard them. Wash the saucepan.
• Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and let bubble without browning for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the hot milk mixture and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, whisking often, until no raw flour taste remains, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the Dijon mustard. Season to taste with salt. Transfer the sauce to a medium bowl, cover with plastic wrap pressed onto the surface, and let cool completely. (The sauce can be refrigerated for up to 1 day.)
• To make four triple-decker sandwiches: For each sandwich, spread a bread slice with about 1 tablespoon of the warm sauce, followed by 2 tablespoons of shredded Gruyere, 2 slices of ham, and 1 slice of Muenster. Repeat with a second bread slice, sauce, Gruyere, ham, and Muenster. Top with a third slice of bread. Cover the remaining sauce with the saucepan lid and set aside. (The sandwiches can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature, with the sauce, for up to 2 hours.)
• Spread the butter on the outermost slices of bread of each sandwich.
• Heat a griddle over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Place the sandwiches onto the griddle. Cook, adjusting the heat as needed so the sandwiches don't brown too quickly but the bread has time to toast, until the undersides are golden brown, about 5 minutes. Flip them over to brown the other sides and heat the sandwiches through, about 5 minutes more. Transfer the sandwiches to a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the cheese melts, about 5 minutes.
• Cut each sandwich into quarters with a sharp, serrated knife to avoid pressing the sandwich. Serve warm with any remaining sauce.