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Croque Monsieur’s hot wife…Croque Madame 🔥 This sandwich is an icon in my book, takes me back to my time in France having it at basically any brasserie and just falling in love, over and over again ❤️😍 This is my favorite brioche sandwich, no questions asked.
Why You’ll Love Croque Madame
A hot ham and cheese sandwich…..but done the French way! This Croque Madame sandwich has the most amazing béchamel sauce with seasoning and dijon mustard. You have melted cheese on the inside and crispy cheese onto the outside paired with the hot ham.
How To Prepare
Bechamel Sauce
- 🧈 Melt 2 tbsp of butter and add the flour. Cook it together for about 4-5 minutes on medium low to cook out the flavor of the flour.
- 🥛 Whisk in your warmed up milk slowly and let it thicken, about 5 minutes on medium low. It should coat the back of a spoon.
- 🧂 Add in pepper, salt, nutmeg & dijon.
Croque Madame
- 🎛️ Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat your oven to 400℉.
- 🧀 Spread bechamel on both sides of 4 slices of bread and set them on the parchment paper. Add some chopped chives, a good amount of shredded gruyère, (measure with your heart) and then 2 slices of ham on each one. Top them with another slice of bread and add more bechamel to the top. To the top of your sandwich, add more shredded gruyère and grated parmasen. (see video)
- 🔥 Add remaining cheese on top of the sandwiches and bake at 400℉ for 10-15 minutes and then broil 1-2 more minutes or until cheese is golden.
- 🍳 Strain your eggs, this will help keep them a smaller size so they will fit on the sandwich better, and fry in a preheated pan with 1 tbsp butter. Top your Croque Madame with your fried egg and some more chives!
🫶 And that is it, subscribe for more!
🔥Chef Nadia’s Tip🔥
- Make sure you cook the flour taste out of your béchamel sauce.
Substitutions and Variations
- Substitutions
- You can use whatever your favorite cheese is instead of gruyère.
- If you want to switch your protein up for oven roasted chicken or turkey, you can pick whatever sounds good to you.
- You can use a different type of bread than brioche for this Croque Madame, just make sure the slices are thick.
- Variations
- Dijon Mustard Variation: If you LOVE dijon and want even more of the taste, you can add more dijon in between the cheese and the ham for an extra mustard pop.
- Vegetarian Variation: You can swap out the ham for sautéed mushrooms to make this an easy vegetarian dish.
The Perfect Pairings
🍜 Sides: The Croque Madame is, of course, is amazing by itself. But if you like to dip your sandwiches in soup, a Tomato Soup or my Tomato, Brie and Honeynut Squash Soup. A crisp salad would also pair well on the side of this sandwich. Some Pommes Frites would also go great!
Common Questions for Croque Madame
This will help keep them a smaller size so they will fit on the sandwich better.
They’re adorable, aren’t they?! They are the Anthropologie Bistro Tile Stoneware Side Plates.
The only difference between the two is the Croque Madame has a fried egg added to the top, making it a little more substantial.
Croque Madame
Ingredients
Béchamel Sauce
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp flour
- 1 ½ cup milk, warmed
- ¼ tsp white pepper
- Salt, to taste
- ⅛ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
Croque Madame
- 8 slices thick brioche bread
- 2 tbsp chives, + more for topping
- 8 oz shredded gruyère, freshly grated, + more to taste
- 4 oz parmesan, freshly grated, to taste
- 8 slices ham
Eggs
- 4 eggs
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
Bechamel Sauce
- Melt 2 tbsp of butter and add the flour. Cook it together for about 4-5 minutes on medium low to cook out the flavor of the flour.
- Whisk in your warmed up milk slowly and let it thicken, about 5 minutes on medium low. It should coat the back of a spoon.
- Add in pepper, chives, salt, nutmeg & dijon.
Croque Madame
- Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat your oven to 400℉.
- Lay 4 pieces of brioche bread on the parchment paper. Spread béchamel the top of each piece. Add some chopped chives, a good amount of shredded gruyère, (measure with your heart) and then 2 slices of ham on each one. Add another slice of bread and add more bechamel. Finish off with more shredded Gruyère and grated parmesan to the top of the sandwich. (see video)
- Add remaining cheese on top of the sandwiches and bake at 400℉ for 10-15 minutes and then broil 1-2 more minutes or until cheese is golden.
- Strain your eggs, and fry in a preheated pan 1 tbsp butter. Top your Croque Madame with your fried egg and some more chives and that is it!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
