Dinner Tonight: Croque-Monsieur

The other night, Andrew wasn’t able to be home for dinner, so I needed to whip up something easy and that could be portioned out for just the kids and me.  So, I decided to make a quick and simple version of a French classic…the Croque-Monsieur (which is a ham and grilled cheese sandwich with bechamel sauce on top!).  My kiddos ate them up!

At first, Ashby was really confused and tried wiping the sauce off of her sandwich with her napkin, but then when we told her it was supposed to be on there, she got on board and ate it.  Smith preferred dipping his sandwich in the sauce and Kensington and I enjoyed ours as pictured.  For a side, I roasted up broccoli florets in a little Extra Virgin Olive Oil with a nice pinch of sea salt…easy peazy!

The next time you feel like making a sandwich…add bechamel and call it a Croque-Monsieur!

The following ingredients are to make four sandwiches.



Shopping List
8 slices of good quality bread (I used a wheat loaf)
8 slices deli ham
8 slices of Gruyere cheese
Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
salt and pepper
chopped parsley for garnishing

Either preheat your panini press or a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Lightly spray with cooking spray.

On the counter, assemble your sandwiches: bread with two pieces of ham, two slices of cheese and spread Dijon on the top piece of bread.  After your sandwiches are assembled, you need to either place them in your panini press or on your skillet.  If you’re using the skillet, lightly press down with a spatula and then flip it over after about 4 minutes to brown up the other side (make sure the cheese is nice and melted).

Meanwhile, in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt your butter.  Whisk in the flour and continue to whisk for a minute.  Next, whisk in your milk and continue whisking until sauce begins to thicken (it takes a few minutes).  Once the sauce is thickened, reduce heat to low and add in a big pinch of salt and pepper with a big pinch of chopped parsley (optional).

To serve, take each sandwich, slice in half and drizzle bechamel down on top.  Garnish with a little extra parsley.

A fancy little sandwich night is sometimes just what the mama ordered.  Enjoy!