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Croque-Monsieur Bake

Croque-Monsieur Bake

Croque-Monsieur Bake is a scrumptious, make-ahead brunch recipe for lovers of cheesy, gooey treats. You can easily scale up this recipe to feed a crowd!

Croque-Monsieur Bake // FoodNouveau.com

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Nigella Lawson really knows how to get you excited about food. Reading her books, you can hear her voice: her funny and sometimes witty comments, no-fuss instructions, and mouth-watering pictures (in which she’s often featured) all make her recipes incredibly appealing. Somehow, she manages to make you believe she’s one of your friends telling you about a fabulous recipe she just found out about.

Nigella Express, Nigella Lawson's 7th cookbook published in 2007 // FoodNouveau.com

Although it’s been on the market for years and countless more “weeknight cooking” cookbooks have come out since then, Nigella Lawson’s 7th cookbook, Nigella Express, is still a go-to tome for delicious food, fast. At first read, I thought Nigella Express was an enticing book. I found myself wanting to try many more recipes than I had time to. The recipes are generous and indulgent—you don’t turn to Nigella’s book to prepare a refined meal served in dainty portions. This book is great in a ‘weekday’ kind of way: I wasn’t at any point blown away or surprised by the recipes, but there are sure shots that will get you out of your work-week routine. Nigella Express is a great book for novice cooks: the ingredient lists are short, the instructions are straight to the point, and the recipes can really be whipped up pretty quickly.

Many recipes are inspired by Asian and Indian cuisines and feature ingredients that can be a bit harder to find (and unfamiliar to the beginner cook), but substitution options are often given. I thought the last section, “Storecupboard SOS,” was especially useful because it provides instructions on how to prepare many basics from scratch, such as flavored cooking oils and dressings as well as very last-minute emergency recipes like hummus, soups, and salads. But because I think this book is perfect for novice cooks, I thought a pantry section was lacking. People who are just starting out in the kitchen often struggle with organization, and that’s precisely why take-out food so often becomes a go-to option. A section describing what you should keep in the pantry, refrigerator, and freezer to quickly whip up Nigella’s recipes would have been useful.

As I expected, the desserts in Nigella Express are particularly rich. Mrs. Lawson isn’t afraid of cream and butter, and it shows: while all of the dessert options are undoubtedly delicious, I think they are, more often than not, too sinful for day-to-day sweet endings. I preferred the few fruit-based desserts, but if you’re a sugar addict, you will indeed find your fix in this book.

All in all, Nigella Express is a good book to help solve the struggle of weeknight meals. Beginners will feel like stars when they successfully cook great-tasting meals from scratch, while intermediate to expert cooks will want to add their own finishing touches to bring the recipes to a more refined level.

Croque-Monsieur Bake // FoodNouveau.com

Today I’m treating you with my version of a dish from Nigella Express. Croque-Monsieur Bake is an easy, scrumptious, make-ahead-friendly dish for lovers of cheesy, gooey dishes. Although croque-monsieur is a popular brunch dish, you could very well serve this for lunch or a lazy dinner. Simply put this croque-monsieur bake together the night before, bake it when you come back from work, and enjoy its cheesy deliciousness. This dish couldn’t be easier to prepare and you can easily scale up the recipe to feed a crowd.

Croque-Monsieur Bake // FoodNouveau.com

 
Croque-Monsieur Bake // FoodNouveau.com

Croque-Monsieur Bake

Croque-Monsieur Bake is a scrumptious, make-ahead brunch recipe for lovers of cheesy, gooey treats. You can easily scale up this recipe to feed a crowd!
Prep Time:10 minutes
Cook Time:25 minutes
Resting Time:3 hours
Total Time:3 hours 35 minutes
Servings 2 generous servings, or 4 half-servings to serve with sides
Author Marie Asselin, FoodNouveau.com

Ingredients

  • 6 oz grated Gruyère cheese (about 1 1/2 cups), or substitute Swiss, Emmenthal, or Aged Cheddar cheeses
  • 4 slices of sturdy rustic bread (sourdough loaf bread is especially good in this)
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 4 slices smoked ham
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 tsp kosher salt, or fine sea salt
  • Worcestershire sauce optional

Instructions

  • Divide the cheese quantity into two: refrigerate half of the cheese for baking, and keep the other half close to fill the sandwiches.
  • Set the slices of bread side by side on a working surface. Slather each slice with Dijon mustard, then sprinkle two of the slices with half of the filling cheese. Top with the ham, then cover with the remaining filling cheese. Close the sandwiches and cut them in halves.
  • Lightly oil or butter a baking dish that will fit the sandwiches as tightly as possible, such as an 8-in (20 cm) square baking pan (see note). Place the sandwiches in the baking dish and gently press down on them. In a bowl or a measuring cup, beat together the eggs, salt, and milk. Pour the egg mixture over the sandwiches.
  • Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or preferably overnight.
  • A half-hour before serving, preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C) and take the baking dish out of the fridge, removing the plastic wrap. Generously sprinkle with Worcestershire sauce, if desired, then cover with the reserved grated cheese. Bake for 25 minutes, then broil to give the cheese more color, if desired.
  • Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes, then serve with a green salad.
  • NOTE: If you don’t have a baking dish that fits the sandwiches tightly, don’t sweat it: the bread will absorb the egg mixture from the bottom of the dish as it rests in the fridge before baking.
  • MAKE IT GLUTEN FREE: Use gluten-free loaf bread.
  • Recipe Credit: Adapted from the cookbook Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson.

Did you make this?

Tell me how you liked it! Leave a comment or take a picture and tag it with @foodnouveau on Instagram.

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Author: Marie Asselin

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Resting Time: 3 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 35 minutes

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  1. Salut Marie!
    Je suis ton blog avec intérêt, aimant moi aussi bien manger et cuisiner varié!
    J'ai donc fait ces fabuleux croque-monsieur gratiné lorsque j'ai reçu des amis dimanche dernier… ça a été un succès!
    Ils ont adoré et moi aussi!
    Merci pour cette belle idée et félicitations pour ce blog des plus intéressants!

    mélina

    • Allo Mélina! Wow je suis très heureuse et fière de te compter parmi les lecteurs! Encore plus contente de savoir que tu as essayé une des recettes avec succès. Il n'y a pas encore des tonnes de contenu, mais j'ai des idées à revendre et je cuisine tellement, je ne suis pas à la veille de manquer d'inspiration :) Merci pour ton message!