Monday's Menu

A couple of weeks ago, I found myself watching something called "Ten Dollar Dinners" on tv. While I had seen the show title before, I was not terribly interested but a combination of boredom and curiosity got me that day.

The show was okay but I kind of doubted my crew would eat some of the things she showed. And I think most of our dinners probably come in under that price tag anyway. We did however try one thing.

She was making soup and sandwiches. The sandwiches she was making were a French version known as Croque Madames/Monsieurs. They are super easy to make and we had them for lunch a couple Sunday's ago to try them out.

Everyone was a fan. And they were even resurrected that evening for a few of us.

The Croque Monsieur is an open-faced sandwich of ham and swiss cheese placed under the broiler for a couple of minutes. The Madame is the same with the addition of a fried egg on top after melting under the broiler.

I made a loaf of country bread to use for them the night before but you could probably use any thick sliced bread. I also just used slices of Swiss cheese but I imagine the shredded (as in the original recipe) would work better.

Croque Monsieur   (source)

4 large slices country-style bread

1/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
 

4 large slices good quality lunchmeat ham
4-8 slices Swiss (or 1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss)

 

Preheat the broiler on low. Gently dry the bread under the broiler, just until dry and with no browning.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the sour cream, garlic, mustard, salt, and pepper. On a baking sheet, lay out the bread slices. Take less than one-quarter of the sour cream mixture and divide evenly among the bread slices, spreading thinly to coat 1 side of each slice. Next, evenly distribute the ham on top of the bread. Lay Swiss slices (or spoon shredded Swiss) on top of ham.

Place the open-faced sandwiches under the broiler until very bubbly and lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Watch closely and don't let the topping burn. Place each sandwich on a plate. 

 

To make into Croque Madames: Melt 1 Tablespoon of butter in a skillet. Fry 4 eggs in skillet (over easy or sunny side up, depending on preference). Season the fried eggs with salt and pepper and place 1 egg on each sandwich. (If desired, use a biscuit cutter to cut the egg into an evenly round shape.) Serve immediately.