The French name Croque Monsieur translates toï¿½ ï¿½Crisp Misterï¿½ and is basically a cooked cheese and ham sandwich, traditionally made with gruyere cheese and thinly sliced ham.ï¿½ The name is sometimes shortened to Croque.

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The First Croque Monsieur

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The first Croque Monsieur was simply a hot ham and cheese sandwich which was fried in butter - one step further than what some believe was the original which was accidentally created when French workers left the tins containing their lunches ofï¿½ sandwiches onï¿½ hot radiatorsï¿½ whilst they worked.ï¿½ By the time they came to eat them, the heat of the radiators had melted the cheese.

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It's not known who had the idea of embellishing the recipe by frying the sandwich until crisp and golden,ï¿½ however they firstï¿½ appeared on menus in Parisian cafï¿½s in 1910, and the earliest written reference is thought to have been by the novelist Proust ï¿½in his 1918 work titledï¿½ ï¿½ la recherche du temps perduï¿½ (In search of lost time).

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Today's Croque Monsieur

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Over the years, further changes were made to the basic recipe, in particular the addition of mustard and a bï¿½chamel sauce. Whilst this complicated an otherwise simple recipe, versions made this way are sumptuous and relatively fillingï¿½ and well worth the extra attention.ï¿½

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Then came the variations including:-

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The addition of a fried egg served on top - a Croque Madame

The addition of tomatoes - a Croque Provenï¿½al

The substitution ofï¿½ blue cheese for Gruyere - a Croque Auvergnat

The substitution of smoked salmon for the ham - a Croque Norvï¿½gien

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Croque Monsieur Recipes

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Below is a recipe for a full blown version of a Croque Monsieur which is fabulous for lunch served with French fries and a dressed salad.

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A more simple version would be to make a cheese and ham sandwich in the usual way, then fry in butter until crisp and golden on both sides.ï¿½ Alternatively, spread the outside on your sandwich with plenty of butter and cook under a very hot grill until well browned on both sides.

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Croque Monsieur Recipe ï¿½ HTï¿½ MCï¿½ Frenchï¿½ 20mins

Serves 4 ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ï¿½ Hotï¿½ Porkï¿½ Lunchï¿½ Main Courseï¿½

Ingredients
8 slices Sandwich Bread

2 tbsp Dijon mustard
8 thin slices of Ham
176g/6oz Gruyere cheese, grated
2 tbsp Butter, softened

120ml/4fl.oz. COLD Bechamel or Thick White Sauce

Instructions

1. Preheat the grill to hot.ï¿½ Spread 4 slices of bread with the mustard then top each with a slice of ham.

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2. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the cheese and divide the remaining cheese between the ham topped slices of bread, sprinkling it evenly over the ham.

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3. Place the 4 remaining sliced of ham on the cheese and top with the remaining 4 slices of bread to make a sandwich.

4. Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet, butter the top slices with the butter then grill for 4- 5 minutes until well browned and crisp.

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5.ï¿½ Turn them over, and grill for a further 3-4 minutes until well toasted .

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6.ï¿½ Remove from the grill, turn them over again then spread the top of each with the cold bï¿½chamel sauce, sprinkle with the reserved cheese, place back under the very hot grillï¿½ and cook until golden and bubbling. Serve immediately.

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