Croque Madame

35 min · Medium · Serves 1

680 kcal per serving · 32g protein

The brasserie classic — ham and gruyère on bread, blanketed in creamy béchamel, broiled until bubbling, crowned with a sunny-side egg.

Ingredients

• Thick slices country bread × 2
• 60 g Sliced ham
• 60 g Grated gruyère
• Egg × 1
• 2 tbsp Butter
• 1 tbsp All-purpose flour
• 120 ml Whole milk
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 pinch Grated nutmeg
• 1 tsp Fresh chives (chopped)
• 1 pinch Salt
• 1 pinch Cracked black pepper

Method

1. Melt the butter

   Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.

2. Whisk in flour and milk

   Whisk in the flour and cook 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the milk until smooth.

3. Cook 3-4 minutes

   

   Cook 3-4 minutes, whisking, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

4. Stir in Dijon and gruyère

   Off the heat, stir in the Dijon, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and half the gruyère.

5. Assemble

   

   Spread a thin layer of béchamel on each bread slice. Lay ham across one slice, top with a few pinches of gruyère, then close the sandwich.

6. Toast

   

   Heat a frying pan with a little butter over medium heat. Toast the sandwich 2-3 minutes per side until deeply golden.

7. Transfer to a baking sheet

   Transfer to a baking sheet.

8. Spread the rest

   Spread the rest of the béchamel over the top of the sandwich and scatter over the remaining gruyère.

9. Broil

   

   Broil — cook under the oven's top heat — for 3-4 minutes until bubbling and golden-brown in spots.

10. Fry the egg

    

    While the sandwich broils, melt a little butter in a small frying pan over medium-low heat and fry one egg sunny-side up — don't flip it — until the white is set but the yolk is still runny.

11. Slide the broiled sandwich

    Slide the broiled sandwich onto a plate.

12. Crown

    Crown with the sunny-side egg.

13. Scatter chives and pepper

    

    Scatter chives and a heavy crack of black pepper.