Mini Croque Monsieurs Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Mix together 100g of the grated Gruyère, crème fraîche and Dijon mustard. Season with salt, black pepper and a pinch of nutmeg and spread half the mixture over 5 slices of white bread. Top with a layer of cooked sliced ham and another slice of bread.
• Spread softened butter over one side of the sandwich and place on a baking sheet, butter-side down. Top the unbuttered side with the rest of the cheese mixture the remaining 50g grated Gruyère. Can be assembled the day before and chilled. To serve, bake in the oven for 20 mins or until golden, then slice the sandwiches into bite-sized pieces and serve straight away.

Steps:

• Starting from the bottom of the loaf, slice bread horizontally into six 1/2-inch-thick rectangles (about 4-by-8 1/4-inches each); discard rounded top. Toast each bread slice in a toaster until pale gold.
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk in flour. Gradually add milk, whisking constantly. Bring to a boil, continuing to whisk. Remove from heat and stir in Parmesan. Let bechamel cool completely. Season with salt and pepper. Divide between 2 bowls.
• Spread half the bechamel from 1 bowl on 1 slice of bread. Top with 2 slices ham and 3 slices Gruyere. Top with 1 slice of bread, then spread remaining bechamel from bowl over top. Set sandwich aside. Repeat layering with ham and Gruyere, and top with 1 slice of bread. Repeat with remaining bowl of bechamel, bread slices, ham, and Gruyere. Wrap each sandwich in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Trim crusts from sandwiches. Cut each sandwich in half lengthwise, then crosswise 5 times to form 10 rectangles from each. Skewer each sandwich. Transfer to a baking sheet and warm in oven until cheese melts, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve immediately.

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.

Steps:

• Arrange the bread on a baking sheet and spread each slice with 1/2 teaspoon mayonnaise.
• Heat a large pan over medium-high heat. Place half (12) of the bread slices, mayonnaise-side down, in the pan and toast until browned, about 3 minutes. Return the toasted bread to the baking sheet, toasted side down, and spread 1 teaspoon mustard on each of the untoasted sides.
• Fold each slice of ham into thirds, as if folding a letter, then cut in half to yield 12 squares. Place the ham squares on top of the mustard.
• Preheat the broiler to high.
• Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until combined; cook until light brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Whisking constantly, slowly add the milk and cook until the sauce thickens, about 3 minutes. Whisk in the salt and nutmeg. Add 1 cup shredded Gruyere; whisk until melted and the sauce is smooth, about 1 minute. Remove the Mornay sauce from the heat, spoon 1 tablespoon over each square of ham, and then top with 1 teaspoon of the remaining cheese.
• Broil for 1 minute to melt the cheese and toast the remaining 12 slices of bread (these are the tops of your sandwiches). Remove from the oven. Top the sandwiches with the toasted bread and serve.

Steps:

• First, make a perfect béchamel sauce. Put the milk, cream, garlic, bay leaves and onion in a small pan over a medium heat and stir together. Heat until nearly boiling, then turn the heat off and leave for 10 mins to infuse. Pass the liquid through a sieve and discard the bay and onion.
• Melt the butter with the flour in another pan and cook over a gentle heat until it smells biscuity. Gradually whisk in the warm milk and bring to a gentle boil, stirring regularly, then add the Dijon mustard, a little grating of fresh nutmeg and some seasoning. It should be a lovely thick creamy sauce with a deep flavour.
• Brush the slices of bread with melted butter. Place them on a baking tray and toast one side under a grill, buttered-side up, until golden. Take them out and heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7.
• Turn the bread over and spread each slice with a thin layer of Dijon, followed by a layer of the béchamel. Cover the sauce with grated gruyère, and then a slice of ham. Form the slices into two sandwiches, spread a thin layer of the sauce over the top slice and sprinkle more gruyère on top. Put the sandwiches in the oven and bake for 10-15 mins or until golden. Mix the mustard and mayo together and serve alongside.