Croque Madame and the Monte Cristo

Canadian Monte Cristo (Left) poached egg Croque Madame with Hollandaise (Right)

Written and Cooked by: Taylor Holmes

Photographed by: Katelyn Marnoch

What is a Monte Cristo? A Croque Madame? Both are variations of the French sandwich, the Croque Monsieur. Invented in the early 1900s to be a quick and easy cafe snack, the sandwich has taken flight in a way no one could have anticipated. It is the deliciously ooey gooey cheesy progenitor of one of the west’s favourite classic dishes. The grilled cheese.

The Croque Monsieur, and therefore the grilled cheese, is a popular fried cheese sandwich. Typically fried in butter, the outside of the bread forms a crispy crunchy crust that has an unmistakable desire worldwide. The cheese melts in such a fashion that it becomes gooey and stringy. The result is a sandwich that is beloved not just in France, but has also become an American staple.

There are so many variations on the classic Croque Monsieur, which contains cheese (typically Emmental) and ham. Usually you would find melted cheese over the sandwich too. If fried egg is thrown on top they call it a Croque Madame. The difference with a Monte Cristo, is that instead of being fried in butter with cheese melted over it, it’s soaked in egg wash and fried (similar to French Toast).

For my version of the Croque Madame, I’ll be doing a poached egg, smothered in Hollandaise sauce, instead of a fried egg, and for my take on the Monte Cristo, I’ll be putting a Canadian spin on it, by adding maple syrup to the egg wash, using bacon instead of ham, and by mixing double smoked Cheddar in with my Emmental.

Ingredients:

Left to right
Top: smoked Cheddar, Emmental, Grana Padano
Middle: bacon, ham, Brioche, egg wash
Bottom: butter, bacon fat

Croque Madame Ingredients:

1. Brioche (2 thick slices)

2. Grana Padano cheese (1/4cup finely shredded)

3. Emmental cheese (1/3rd cup shredded)

4. butter (1/4 cup, softened, but not melted)

5. sliced ham (2-4 slices)

6. egg (1 poached)

7. Hollandaise (1/4cup)

Canadian Monte Cristo Ingredients:

1. Brioche (2 thick slices)

2. double smoked Cheddar (1/4cup shredded)

3. Emmental (1/4cup shredded)

4. cooked bacon ( 3 strips coarsely chopped)

5. fresh apple (1/2 Apple, julienned)

6. bacon fat (about 1tbsp) or oil/butter

7. egg wash (2 eggs, 1/4cup water, 3tbsp maple syrup, 1tsp salt, spices to taste)

Creating the Croque Madame

Croque Madame, with a poached egg in Hollandaise!

I love the idea of having the cheese melted on the outside of the bread of a grilled cheese, but there’s something so amazing about that crusty seared effect cheese gets from direct exposure to the heat of the pan. To take full advantage of having a diverse profile of cheesy goodness, I like to mix my finely shredded full flavoured hard cheese (such as Grana Padano, or Parmigiano-Reggiano) in copious amounts in to the butter I apply to the pan side of the bread. This creates that amazing complex cheesy crust, that adds an incredibly unique flavour and enhances the crispy texture of the outside of your sandwich.

I always like to ensure my grilled cheese sandwich of any kind is bursting at the seams with cheese. To attain this when making the sandwich, I like to put cheese on either side of any fillings I choose to use, meat, vegetable, or otherwise. Nothing but cheese should touch bread! The cheese not only carries the flavour and character of the sandwich, it also holds it together

Once filled with your choice of additional cheeses, meats, or veggies, and buttered with that cheesy butter we made earlier, you’re ready to fry this bad lady up. Make sure to get the pan hot before hand, then throw the sandwich in, cooking over medium-low heat, nice and slow. The heat of the pan beforehand will help form a crusty seal, and the medium-low heat will help prevent the cheese from burning. Once the bread stops sticking to the pan, you know the crust has properly formed, and you can flip it. At this point, you can either throw it in to the oven to bake it, or finish it in the pan.

The final step for the Croque Madame, that separates it from it’s male counterpart, is the hat, which is the egg! I personally love poached eggs, but it’s more traditional to do a fried egg, typically sunny-side up, but there’s no reason you can’t cook it over easy, medium, or hard. If you choose to do a poached egg, as I have, you can start a small pot of vinegar water over high heat to bring it to a boil as you prepare your sandwich. Bringing the water to a boil will take the most time, so be sure to begin this when you first start cooking. Once the water boils, reduce to a medium-high heat to keep it at a nice simmer, create a gentle swirl in the center with your slotted spoon, and crack the egg in. The swirl helps the hot water and vinegar to surround the egg without too much contact to the pot itself, to ensure that the outside whites cook first. Once it starts to turn white, you have no issue with it sticking to the sides. Keep the egg in the pot for about 2 minutes, until the whites are cooked (or longer if you prefer a more well done egg, about 4 minutes for medium, or 8-10 minutes for hard poach).

Once your delicate little poached buddy is ready to achieve the ultimate glory of becoming a fancy hat, you may remove it from the pot and set it on a plate with a little bit of paper towel to dry. You won’t want that poached egg water all over your sandwich, that’s for sure!

With your elegant lady all dressed up, Croque Madame is ready for the show! You can further accessorize her with Hollandaise sauce, Bearnaise sauce, ketchup, or whatever you love with your eggs and grilled cheese!

Creating the Canadian Monte Cristo

The Monte Cristo is a classic evolution of the Croque Monsieur. The key difference is that instead of the bread being infused with melted cheese, the sandwich is soaked whole in egg wash, and fried, very accurately emulating French Toast as the bread!

For my take on the Monte Cristo, I added the Canadian flare of having it filled with double smoked Cheddar, and bacon as well as Emmental. I also added a Canadian twist on the egg wash by adding maple syrup. You can add any traditional French Toast spices in to the egg wash to kick it up a notch too! cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground clove find themselves right at home, and you could even add a dash of vanilla extract, or fresh vanilla bean if you want to add an elegant touch to this breakfast delight.

After filling between the Brioche slices with smoked Cheddar, bacon, and Emmental, gently press the sandwich together, so it will hold it’s shape, then gently soak it in the maple egg wash. Once soaked, I fry it in a pan with bacon fat instead of butter, to really enhance the bacon flavour in the sandwich.

Having now earned a solid crust on the first side of your Monte Cristo, flip it and throw it in to the oven, a step I highly recommend. The reason being that to really get the flavour and consistency of French Toast, you want to ensure the bread thoroughly soaks up the egg wash, and to ensure that it cooks fully, baking it will make the insides of the bread cook evenly, and aid in the cheese reaching it’s delicious melted consistency!

Now that the Monte Cristo is baked, the cheese melted, and the Bread cooked through (but not too dry!) remove it from the oven, cut it in half, and garnish with fresh granny smith apple! You could also put the apple INSIDE the sandwich for a nice crunch, and zesty flavour, but I like to have it on the side to maintain a nice contrast of mouthfeel. It also serves nicely to drizzle a little bit of maple syrup over the sandwich, or serve it with a side of ketchup. Bon appetite!