At least once in your life you find yourself stuck at home with some left over bread and scant pantry supplies. Say, your mum simply forgot that you were sleeping in your room and left no money for you to get some grub delivered and it's raining outside and you got yourself a Sandwich Situation.
Of course, having a stash of instant noodles somewhere in your kitchen is a game changer. For the culinarily-challenged, anything that only requires them to add hot water is a life saver.
If you are not one of them, you could try whipping this up during one of those Sandwich Situations.
I first got acquainted with this sandwich during the university International Cultural Night; while I was cosplaying to promote the Japanese food booth. The French booth was next to us and I got curious with the buttery sandwich that they were cooking.
I suppose, 'buttery' shouldn't be how le croque should be described. But, that was how I first encountered a croque-monsieur. I was too busy to grab a bite so when I went home, I was bent on learning more about this distant cousin of the American grilled sandwich.
Croque-Madame
There's an ambiguous origin to the sandwich's monicker--croque-monsieur, which literally means "to crunch" (croquer) and "mister" (monsieur). According to Larousse Gastronomique, this popular café item had its debut in 1910. Its feminine counterpart is what you see above; which first got popular in 1960.
The most obvious difference between the monsieur and madame versions would be the addition of the fried or poached egg on the latter. I don't have any idea why having an egg on top=female. I have my own speculations such as us girls are egg-carriers while guys just have white sauce all over the place (okay that sounded NSFW)... on a more wholesome note, Wiki says the egg resembles the old fashioned wide brimmed hats that women wore. The egg could either be fried or poached. That glorious shiny thing on my croque-madame is fried :D
Since yours truly is a girl, it's only fitting that I make a croque-madame :D
This recipe yields 2 croque-mesdames. For left over bèchamel sauce (or Mornay), you could store it in an airtight container and keep it for 3 days.
Ingredients
2 tbsp flour
1 1/2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup milk
a dash of (around 1/4 tsp; adjust ratio according to taste):
thyme
cayenne pepper
Spanish paprika
ground nutmeg
1 bay leaf (optional)
grated Gruyère or Emmental
4 slices of loaf bread
2 slices of cured meat (I used forest ham)
2 eggs
2 tbsp olive oil for frying the eggs
Directions
Making the Bèchamel Sauce
1. In a small pot, simmer milk under low heat. Infuse this with bay leaf and spices. Once it bubbles, simmer for 5 more minutes then remove from heat.
2. In a saucepan, melt butter under medium heat.
3. Add flour and mix until the roux forms golden-colored clumps.
4. Gradually add milk and whip with a wire whisk (aka egg beater or balloon whisk) until the sauce is smooth. Then remove from heat.
5. To make this a Mornay sauce, add 4-7 tbsp of grated Gruyère.
Assembling the Croque-Madame
1. In a pan, add 2 tbsp of olive oil. When oil is hot, gently crack the egg over the pan.
2. Lightly baste the egg with some of the oil until the thin clear film of egg white that covers the yolk turns a translucent white.
3. Carefully scoop the fried egg out of the pan with a spatula and fry the other egg.
4. Place the fried egg on a bed of paper towels and gently pat the top part of the egg to remove the excess oil. Do the same with the other egg.
5. After the eggs are cooked, fry the ham slices until the fat parts are caramelized. Also place on paper towels and pat out the excess oil.
6. Spread a tablespoon or two of bèchamel (or Mornay) on the bread slices.
7. Sprinkle a generous amount of grated Gruyère; then add the ham on two bread slices. Place the egg on the other two.
8. Toast them in an oven toaster or regular oven (preheated to 150-180 degrees C) for 5-6 minutes or until the edges of the bread are golden brown and cheese is melted to it gooey glory.
9. Assemble them like so in the picture. And enjoy with a side of salad or hearty tomato-based soup (like minestrone).
I prefer my bechamel sauce to have the consistency of a marshmallow crème (a ganache made of melted marshmallows)--fluffy but spreadable. That sort of consistency goes well with the mozzarella-like stringiness of gruyere when it melts on top of the bechamel.
The tang of tomato cuts the richness and creaminess of the bèchamel, Gruyère and fried egg. If you prefer to have poached eggs, you may do so :D My brother enjoys this with a side of baked beans or a generous slathering of ketchup.
The next time you're stuck in a Sandwich Situation, keep your options open.
Feel free to enjoy this however you want :D
bonne nuit mes chéris♥
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