A Croque Monsieur is the classic French grilled ham and cheese sandwich, and the Croque Madame is a similar sandwich made with chicken rather than ham. This croque is made with Shorey’s favorite ingredients: sharp white cheddar cheese, roast turkey, spinach, and tomatoes, on hearty multigrain bread. The recipe makes a very large, flavorful sandwich. It consists of seven layers—bread, cheese, turkey, spinach, tomato slices, cheese, and then bread. It can also be served unbaked. The sandwich is very good served with a green salad.
It can be assembled way ahead and then baked for about 15 minutes in a 400-degree oven when ready to serve. It takes that amount of time to soften the tomato, melt the cheese, and brown the bread properly. Although the spinach could be added raw, the amount is voluminous (about 2 cups) and would be hard to secure between the bread slices, so I microwave it for 1 minute to wilt it and make it easy to fit into the sandwich.
Serves 1 or 2
Heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Lay the bread slices on the counter and cover one of them with 2 slices of the cheese. Top with the sliced turkey and then the blanched spinach. Cover with the tomato slices, then add the remaining 2 slices cheese and, finally, the second slice of bread.
Pour the oil onto an aluminum foil–lined baking sheet and spread it evenly to about the dimensions of the sandwich. Press the sandwich into it, then turn the sandwich over so it is oiled on both sides. Bake for 15 minutes, until the bread is brown, the tomatoes are soft, the cheese is melted, and the inside of the sandwich is warm. Remove from the oven, cut in half, and serve right away.
To see how it’s done, go to www.surlatable.com/jacquespepin.