Croque Monsieur Bake Recipes

CROQUE-MONSIEUR CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease 13- x 9-inch (3 L) baking dish; set aside.
• Whisk together eggs, milk, Parmesan cheese, chives, garlic, salt and pepper; pour 1 cup (250 mL) of the egg mixture into baking dish. Spread mustard over one side of each slice of bread. Arrange 4 bread slices in bottom of pan, mustard side up. Layer half of the ham slices, ½ cup Gruyère cheese and half of the spinach over top. Repeat layers once. Top with remaining bread, mustard side down, and Gruyère cheese.
• Pour remaining egg mixture over top; press gently to allow bread to soak up egg mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and set.

CROQUE MONSIEUR CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Cut half of the baguette slices into ½ inch chunks. Toss the bread chunks in a bowl with the melted butter.
• On the remaining slices of bread, spread the dijon mustard.
• Overlap the slices of bread in the casserole dish and sprinkle ½ cup of the cheese over the top.
• Fold the ham slices in half and place them in an even layer over the bread and cheese. Sprinkle half of the remaining cheese on the ham.
• Scatter the buttered bread chunks on top and sprinkle over the remaining cheese.
• Whisk the eggs and milk together in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Pour the egg mixture over the casserole. Allow to rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
• As the casserole rests, preheat the oven to 400˚F.
• Bake the casserole in the upper third of oven for 30 minutes until it puffs up and the top is golden-brown and slightly crispy.
• Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving.

BAKED CROQUE MONSIEUR

Steps:

• Butter a 9x13-inch baking pan.
• Remove the crust from the bread, if you wish. Place them into the greased baking dish, cutting slices in half, as necessary, to completely cover the bottom of the pan.
• Top with half of the cheese, the ham, sliced onion, and the remaining cheese; and the remaining bread.
• Press the sandwiches together.
• Beat the eggs, milk and seasoning together. Pour slowly over the bread.
• Cover and place in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight.
• About 1 hour before serving, preheat the oven to 400ºF. Mix the breadcrumbs with the melted butter and grated cheese. Sprinkle over the sandwiches.
• Bake for 42 to 48 minutes, until the top is golden brown and the eggs set.
• Remove from the oven and allow to rest 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

CROQUE MONSIEUR BAKE (NIGELLA LAWSON)

Steps:

• Spread the mustard on the bread slices and make sandwiches with the fine slices of cheese and ham; place each slice of cheese against the mustardy bread, and the ham between them.
• Make the sandwich and cut each one in half, making two triangles.
• Squish the sandwiches into a baking dish, approx 10 ½ inches x 8 ¼ inches and 2 ¼ inches deep.
• Beat the eggs, salt, and milk together; then pour over the sandwiches tightly packed into the dish.
• Cover the dish with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator overnight.
• In the morning, preheat oven to 400°; take the dish out of the refrigerator and remove plastic wrap.
• Sprinkle over the grated cheese and Worcestershire sauce; bake for 25 minutes.

CROQUE MONSIEUR CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Butter a 9-by-13-inch (23-by-33-cm) casserole dish.
• Slice the croissants lengthwise and spread with a bit of mustard.
• Tuck 2 slices of ham and about 1/4 cup cheese inside each croissant.
• Cut each croissant into quarters, and fit the pieces in the dish. Turn them different ways, so some have frilly slices of ham showing.
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, then pour in the milk and whisk to combine. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Evenly pour the egg mixture over the croissant pieces. Press down with your hands to make sure all the liquid is absorbed. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm the milk just until a skin begins to form on top, but the milk isn't boiling.
• Meanwhile, in another medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and stir constantly until the mixture bubbles, about 2 minutes.
• Slowly pour the hot milk into the pan with the flour-butter mixture, whisking the whole time. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to low and simmer until the béchamel thickens, 2 to 3 minutes more. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
• Pour the sauce into a container, press plastic wrap against the surface to prevent a skin from forming, and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate overnight.
• The next morning, remove the casserole and béchamel sauce from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Crank the oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Uncover the casserole and place it on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Using a whisk, stir the béchamel to loosen it. Spread the sauce over the top, and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
• Bake the casserole until puffed and golden brown, 50 to 55 minutes.
• Serve immediately.

CROQUE MONSIEUR PIE

Steps:

• Grease a casserole dish and line with 6 slices of the bread. Top with half of the folded ham.
• Melt the butter in skillet over medium heat, add the flour and whisk 1 minute. Add 1 1/2 cups of the milk and some nutmeg, and then season with salt and pepper. Cook to thicken, the sauce should coat the back of a spoon. Stir in the mustard. Spoon half of the thickened bechamel evenly over the ham, top with the remaining 6 slices bread.
• Whisk up the eggs and the remaining 1/2 cup milk, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the eggs evenly over the casserole dish and then add the remaining ham and bechamel.
• Top with the gruyere, then cover and store for a make-ahead meal.
• When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and bake the casserole from room temperature until golden and firm, 30 to 35 minutes. Cut the casserole into squares and serve garnished with finely chopped parsley and mixed greens dressed with lemon juice and vinegar. Pass additional mustard at the table.

CROQUE MONSIEUR

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan and add the flour all at once, stirring with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes. Slowly pour the hot milk into the butter?flour mixture and cook, whisking constantly, until the sauce is thickened. Off the heat add the salt, pepper, nutmeg, 1/2 cup grated Gruyere, and the Parmesan and set aside.
• To toast the bread, place the slices on 2 baking sheets and bake for 5 minutes. Turn each slice and bake for another 2 minutes, until toasted.
• Lightly brush half the toasted breads with mustard, add a slice of ham to each, and sprinkle with half the remaining Gruyere. Top with another piece of toasted bread. Slather the tops with the cheese sauce, sprinkle with the remaining Gruyere, and bake the sandwiches for 5 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the topping is bubbly and lightly browned. Serve hot.

CROQUE MONSIEUR CASSEROLE

Steps:

• Melt butter over low heat. Add flour and mix w/ wisk for 2 min. Gradually add 2 ¾ c milk, continuing to wisk briskly. When sauce boils, season w/ salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add ½ cup of Gruyere. Season to taste. I always use lots of lemon juice (usually most if not all the juice from one whole lemon), Tony's, more nutmeg, a dash or 2 of dark Lea and Perrins and a slightly larger amount of white Lea and Perrins. Make sure the finished sauce is thin enough. If it's thick like gravy, thin it out a little with milk - you want to have plenty of sauce and you want it to seep into the bread some. Combine ¼ c milk and beer in a bowl. Add the remaining Gruyere to this liquid. Soak for 2 min, then drain. Spread some sauce on bottom of lasagna pan. Layer with bread/sauce/ham/sauce/beer-soaked cheese. This should make 3 layers, finishing with cheese. Bake for about 30 minutes and then broil until top is golden. You can make ahead and refrigerate before baking, in which case you need 45-60 min cooking time. Leftovers also microwave pretty decently.