The Croque Monster

I am a San Francisco girl, born and raised in the east bay, and my heart is broken over the 49ers loss yesterday. What better way to deal with disappointment than with bacon? I'm making a croque monsieur for dinner tonight, which is basically a fancy, French named for grilled ham and cheese sandwich. I had to make these in culinary school where I started calling it a "croque monster" and the name just stuck.

There are countless varieties of a croque monsieur. Aside from using Canadian bacon instead of ham, I'm going pretty traditional. I've got white bread with crusts removed, a Swiss cheese (Gruyere), and bechamel sauce. It sounds simple, and it is, but it's so delicious. It's crunchy on the outside and ooey-gooey cheesy on the inside. 

Ingredients (makes 4 sandwiches):

• 8 slices white bread, crusts removed, toasted, and lightly buttered on both sides
• 16 small slices/8 oz Swiss cheese (Gruyere or Emmental)
• 8 oz sliced ham (or Canadian bacon)
• 1 tablespoon butter 
• 1 1/2 tablespoons AP flour
• 1 cup hot milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pinch of nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. First make bechamel sauce. Place butter in sauce pan and melt over low heat. Once, melted, add flour and stir for 2-3 minutes. Slowly whisk in milk. Increase heat to medium, stirring continuously until thickened. Season with salt and nutmeg. Remove from heat and cover with plastic film to prevent film from forming until ready for use. 
3. Place a slice of cheese on each piece of buttered toast and put it in the oven until the cheese is meted.
4. Warm the ham either in a skillet or grill top - or a microwave will do too. 
5. Assemble the sandwich, placing 1 oz of ham on one slice of bread and a smear of bechamel sauce on the other. Gently push the 2 pieces of bread together and slice diagonally. Variation: Instead of putting the bechamel sauce in the sandwich, you can pour it over the top, making it a knife and fork sandwich.