Croque Monsieur (French hot ham and cheese sandwich)

1. Bread choice – Use a bread with decent heft and structure, not something very soft and delicate like basic square loaf bread, otherwise it won’t hold up to the considerable weight of the fillings!

A sourdough that doesn’t have a very thick or too-chewy crust is ideal (I used Bowan Island sourdough from Harris Farms, in case you are interested!). Otherwise a ciabatta, pane di casa or other stone baked bread will work a treat.

If you only have a soft bread (like said standard sandwich bread), toast it first before assembling, that will help keep it intact. Also consider using two slices of bread (glued with an extra sprinkle of cheese) to form one!

2. Cheese choices – Comte and Emmental are popular choices in France. Here in Sydney they can be harder to come by and rather expensive! Gruyere and Swiss cheese are ideal alternatives – excellent flavour, excellent melting qualities.

While these are the most traditional cheeses for Croque Monsieur you could absolutely make this with any good melting cheese (cheddar, Colby, tasty, Monterey Jack etc) and it will still be insanely good. Give mozzarella a miss in this one, as while it melts well it tends to be quite bland in grilled cheeses.

3. Make ahead –These can be assembled ahead, then tightly wrapped in cling wrap and frozen for 2 to 3 months. Thaw before cooking per recipe.

4. Nutrition per sandwich. (I was scared to do this calculation. Itis a lot but I think these values are somewhat exaggerated. Still, diet food this definitely ain’t! Wear loose pants while eating!!😂)