September 9: Croque Monsieur with Greens

4 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup half-and-half or whole milk
2 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
   Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 slices sandwich bread
3/4 pound baked ham, thinly sliced
2 cups shredded Gruyere or Swiss cheese
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon apricot jam or orange marmalade
2 teaspoons dried tarragon
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 cups mixed baby greens, any variety



Heat a heavy nonstick pan or a griddle over medium-low to medium heat.

Heat a small sauce pot over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and melt. Whisk the flour into the butter and cook for 1 minute, then whisk in the half-and-half. Season with 1 teaspoon of the Dijon mustard, the nutmeg, salt, and pepper and cook for 2 minutes to thicken.

Remove from the heat. Spread the bread slices with the sauce and make sandwiches, using a couple of folded slices of ham per sandwich.

Spread the remaining 2 tablespoons of softened butter lightly across the outside faces of each sandwich. Spread the shredded cheese across a plate and gently press each side of the sandwiches into the cheese, then place on the hot pan or griddle. The cheese will brown and form a crisp coating as the sandwich cooks and heats through. Cook for 3 minutes on each side, or until evenly golden.

In a salad bowl, whisk together the remaining teaspoon of mustard, the vinegar, apricot jam, and tarragon. Whisk in the EVOO in a slow stream.

Add the greens to the bowl and toss to dress. Season the salad with salt and pepper and serve on large plates with the hot sandwiches alongside.

4 SERVINGS



This is RR's "French Any-Time Meal, Quand il Fait Froid (When it's cold outside)." This is what she says: "Ah, April in Paris! Word of advice: pack a parka! I have been in France twice in April, once to Paris, once to Bordeaux. Twice I froze. Oh, well. The hot ham and cheese tastes better then."

I really like these sandwiches! The cheese on the outside is just so crispy and delicious. I did change a few things for health reasons. I made the sauce, and I guess you're supposed to use 1/4 of the sauce on each sandwich. But it makes so much that I just spread a little on each slice of bread, and saved the rest for the 2 variations of this meal coming up. It works out well, because it's not so much fat and you don't have to make the sauce 3 times! I also changed the 2 tablespoons fresh tarragon to 2 teaspoons dried tarragon.