{"id":2090,"date":"2011-04-03T07:43:07","date_gmt":"2011-04-03T14:43:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chefmorgan.com\/?p=2090"},"modified":"2012-04-02T11:54:57","modified_gmt":"2012-04-02T18:54:57","slug":"croque-monsieur-a-movable-feast","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chefmorgan.com\/engine\/croque-monsieur-a-movable-feast","title":{"rendered":"croque-monsieur: a movable feast"},"content":{"rendered":"

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croque-monsieur: a movable feast<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Ernest Hemingway said that \u201c[i]f you are lucky to have lived in Paris … then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for\u00a0Paris is a movable feast.\u201d He was right. Even if you are not as fortunate as Mr. Hemingway to live in Paris, Paris does not have to be far from you. This week for me was no exception and it inspired this week\u2019s simple pleasure and movable feast: a croque-monsieur.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is Spring Break for many students, including my children, so I packed up the children, our seventeen year-old Yorkie, my chef\u2019s knife and immersion blender and put them all in a Recreational Vehicle (\u201cRV\u201d) headed for one of the seven wonders of the world: the Grand Canyon.\u00a0 For those of you who know me, please contain your laughter at the thought of me driving and cooking in an RV.\u00a0 I am pleased to say that we did so without incident and had a wonderful time.\u00a0 In truth, however, I did not have to drive 1,200 miles to please the children because they were perfectly content with the accommodations: sleeping in hidden bed they had to climb into (outfit with a privacy curtain) and traveling with a kitchen loaded with their favorite foods.<\/span><\/p>\n

The beauty and grandeur of the Grand Canyon is beyond compare.\u00a0 One day after our excursions, we hungrily returned to our movable, temporary home where I made croque-monsieur. As I watched my children gobble down their sandwiches, I could not help but think of Paris, the first time they enjoyed these sandwiches in Paris, the first time I did, and all the times in my life I have a croque-monsieur.\u00a0 I stopped counting around 30.<\/span><\/p>\n

The croque-monsieur is as synonymous with Paris as the Eiffel Tower, cr\u00eapes, croissants, and baguettes. First served in a Parisian caf\u00e9 in 1910, the croque-monsieur continues to be served in caf\u00e9s, brasseries, and snack bars. Every tourist has tried one at least once. The classic croque-monsieur calls for the use of <\/span>pain de mie<\/span><\/em>, ham, and Gruy\u00e8re. If you top it with a fried or poached egg (giving the sandwich a hat they say) then you have created a croque- madame. It is generally served open-faced.<\/span><\/p>\n

The attached recipe is the one that I have used for events and the one I made in our RV. It can be a main course or cut-up into bite-size squares (garnished with a French-flagged toothpick if you want) and served as canap\u00e9s<\/span>.<\/span><\/em> Typically, I make this as an open-faced sandwich (which also cuts down on the fat content and calories), but the two slices make it easier to eat as a finger food (for children or as a canap\u00e9<\/span>).<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

A croque-monsieur is simple to make, but I have had my share of terrible ones.\u00a0 Here are a few production notes so your croque-monsieur does not end up in the\u00a0 \u201cterrible\u201d category.<\/span><\/p>\n

First, I use a combination of Comt\u00e9 and Gruy\u00e8re cheese, it cuts the higher fat content of Gruy\u00e8re and gives the sandwich a little tang.\u00a0 Both are good melters. Second, although you will be tempted to use fancier breads, the sandwich is best on a pullman or<\/span> pain de mie,<\/span><\/em> a sandwich bread with a thin crust and nice crumb.\u00a0 However, use a quality bread (not that airy, sugary sandwich bread with no substance that will stay fresh for a month sitting on a warm kitchen counter).\u00a0 Also, do not use a baguette or sourdough, the result will be chewy because the crumb is usually too dense and\/or the sour flavor will detract from the sandwich.\u00a0 I leave the crust my croque-monsieur because the extra crunch goes nicely with the creamy fillings and crisp salad.<\/span><\/p>\n

Third, while some versions only butter the bread, in my opinion, b\u00e9chamel is best because buttering the bread can make the sandwich too greasy.\u00a0 I use b\u00e9chamel as a dressing.\u00a0 B\u00e9chamel is a roux-based sauce with infused milk and\u00a0 is one of the foundational sauces of French cooking (use this as your opportunity to learn how to make this simple, and versatile sauce).\u00a0 I do not add the cheese to the b\u00e9chamel because it allows you to control the amount of cheese (as well as sauce) you want on your sandwich.\u00a0 Moreover, when b\u00e9chamel is used as a conduit for the cheese rather than a dressing you end up with a gooey, soggy mess because people are trying to get more cheesy goodness over their ham (and technically speaking adding cheese to the b\u00e9chamel turns it into a Mornay sauce, a daughter sauce, and is no longer considered a b\u00e9chamel anyway). B\u00e9chamel can be made ahead of time, stored in the refrigerator to be warmed before use and used for a croque-monsieur or other things.<\/span><\/p>\n

I always top my croque-monsieur with a lightly dressed green salad. In French caf\u00e9s it is always served with a side green salad and often enjoyed with a glass of light wine such as a ros\u00e9, sauvignon blanc or a pinot noir.\u00a0 This simple and delicious sandwich is one movable feast that can be enjoyed anywhere, even in an RV parked at the South Rim of an American symbol. It is guaranteed to make many \u201chappy campers.\u201d <\/span>\u00e0 table!<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Je vous souhaite un bon app\u00e9tit <\/span><\/em>!<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

LM<\/span><\/p>\n

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croque-monsieur<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span>stats:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

make four sandwiches<\/span><\/p>\n

what you need:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

b\u00e9chamel
\n<\/span><\/span>1 \/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) unsalted butter
\n<\/span>1\/2 ounce (about 1 1\/2 tablespoons) all purpose flour
\n<\/span>8 ounces (1 cup) milk
\n<\/span>sachet ( 2 cloves, 1 bay leaf, <\/span>1\/2 onion, peeled and diced, <\/span>2 sprigs fresh thyme)
\n<\/span>1\/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
\n<\/span>pinch kosher salt<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span>sandwich
\n<\/span><\/span><\/span>8 slices of day old pain de mie or sandwich bread
\n<\/span>thinly sliced Neimen Ranch black forest ham (as needed)
\n<\/span>8 ounces Gruy\u00e8re cheese
\n<\/span>4 ounces Comt\u00e9 cheese<\/span><\/p>\n

how to:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

b\u00e9chamel<\/span><\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n