Croque Monsieur

Croque Monsieur

from tastesbetterfromscratch.com
Main Course
30 min
4 servings
658 kcal / serving

Croque Monsieur is a delicious French ham and cheese sandwich, made with gruyere, parmesan, ham and a simple béchamel sauce, toasted in the oven.

Ingredients

  • ¼ cupunsalted butter ((½ stick))
  • ¼ cupall-purpose flour
  • 1 ½ cupswhole milk
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoondijon mustard
  • ground nutmeg
  • 8thin slices white sandwich breads
  • 5 ouncesgood quality ham (about 8 slices)
  • 6 ouncesgruyere cheese (,or emmental cheese, grated (about 2½ cups))
  • ¼ cupfreshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions

Béchamel sauce:

  1. 1

    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.

  2. 2

    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.

Assemble sandwiches:

  1. 1

    Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a baking tray with parchement paper and set aside.

  2. 2

    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.

  3. 3

    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.

  4. 4

    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.