This simple gourmet sandwich takes leftover ham and makes it the start of a star ensemble. We toast up our brown sugar ham and emmenthal cheese between two thick slices of brioche, layer on the cheese, fire it up. Pro tip: poach your egg in reduced ham stock to drop an extra flavor bomb on your taste buds.
Ingredients
- 454g (1 lb) Ham, Sliced
- One Recipe of Modern Béchamel
- 60g (2 oz) Emmental Cheese (grated, for Mornay)
- 166g (6 oz) Emmental Cheese (sliced for sandwich)
- 454g (160z) Gruyere Cheese (grated, separated in two)
- 60g (2 oz) Gruyere Cheese (for Mornay)
- 394g (14 oz) Gruyere Cheese (for sandwich)
- 60g (4 tbsp) Mustard (preferred type)
- One Recipe Brioche Bread
- 4 Eggs
- 1 Quart Ham Demi-Glace (optional)
- 30g (2 tbsp) Neutral Flavored Oil
Equipment
- Oven Safe Skillet
- Pastry Brush
- Searzall (optional)
Timing
Active time: 20 Minutes
Total time: 20 Hours
Yield
4 Sandwiches
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Prepare Cheese and Bread
Preheat an oven to 450°F or preheat a broiler.
Heat the bechamel in a small pot and whisk in 60g/2 oz of gruyere and 60g/2 oz of emmental cheese until smooth. Allow it to cool while prepping other ingredients.
Slice the brioche in one inch slices.
Place a heavy gauge skillet or cast iron pan over low heat. If you have the ability to heat the pan to a specific temperature 315°F works beautifully.
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Assemble Sandwich
Assemble the sandwich but layering like this; Bread, mustard, sliced emmental, ham, sliced emmental, mustard, and bread. This will help keep everything from falling out.
Gently brush the exterior of the bread with neutral flavored oil. Do not put butter on this sandwich, the brioche will absorb the butter and make the bread soggy. We control this by adding an extremely small amount of oil to the outside.
Place the sandwich in the dry pan and allow it to cook. This will take about 2 minutes per side.
Scoop about 2-3 oz of the bechamel on top of the sandwich and spread it to the edges.
Top each sandwich with a large portion of the gruyere (about 90g/3oz) and place the entire pan in the oven on the bottom rack for 2-3 minutes. The residual heat from the pan will continue to crisp the bottom of the sandwich.
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Broil Sandwich, Serve
Once the sandwich has heated through, move it to the top of the oven near the broiler. Watch the broiler to make sure the sandwich doesn’t burn.
Optional; use a searzall to create the perfect crust if you don’t have a broiler.
At this point this sandwich is ready to eat. The final step to turn this Croque monsieur (Crispy Mister) into a croque madame (Crispy Misses) is to add a poached egg. We like to poach an egg in reduced ham stock but you can poach an egg in any liquid you want.
To poach an egg heat the ham demi-glace or poaching liquid to 185°F and crack the egg into the liquid. Cook the egg for 2-3 minutes depending on the doneness you prefer.
Remove the egg and place it on top of the sandwich and serve immediately.
Summary
Recipe Name
Ultimate Leftover Ham Croque Madame
Author Name
Modernist Pantry
Published On
Preparation Time
Total Time
Average Rating
Based on 1 Review(s)
