Today, we’re featuring a variation on the French bistro classic croque-monsieur: the croque madame.  The croque madame is basically a croque-monsieur with a fried egg sunny-side up on top.  This croque madame recipe is as simple as can be and makes for a wonderful quick dinner.  Check our detailed recipe and Art of the Home suggestions below.  Enjoy and bon appétit!

French Cafe Menu: Croque Madame Recipe

Croque madame recipe with the slice of gruyère on top

Croque Madame Recipe
by Art of the Home

Ingredients (for 4 servings)

• 8 slices of bread
• 8 slices of thinly sliced gruyère
• 4 slices of ham (not too thin)
• Soft salted butter
• 4 Eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 °F.
2. Stack up the slices of gruyère and cut to the approximate size of the bread.  Do the same thing with the slices of ham.
3. Butter up 4 slices of bread and stack up ingredients in the following order: 1 slice of bread (butter side facing up), 1 slice of gruyère, 1 slice of ham, 1 slice of gruyère.
4. Butter up the last 4 slices of bread and place on top of the last layer of gruyère with butter facing up.  The butter will melt down into the top slice of bread.  Optional: you can save the last slice of gruyère from Step 3 and place it on top after closing your croque madame.
5. Put a sheet of aluminum foil on the center oven rack.
6. Grill in a hot oven for about 10 minutes.   During the last 1-2 minutes, put the broiler on high (but monitor closely to avoid overcooking).  This will make for a nice color on top and add to the crunch.
7. Fry the eggs sunny-side up, salt & pepper to taste, and place one egg on top of each croque madame.
8. Serve on individual plates with a green salad if you wish.

Art of the Home Suggestions:

1. Béchamel sauce: in the winter, for a heartier meal, you can add a few spoon of béchamel sauce in Step 4 instead of butter.
2. Cheese substitution: if you don’t have gruyère, you can use emmental or Swiss cheese.
3. Oven alternative: a croque madame can also be made on the stove top or in a panini press.