The French make everything sound so exquisite. The English translation of Croque Madame is literally Mrs. Crunch. Definitely sounds a bit more refined in French, doesn't it? It is simply a grilled ham and cheese sandwich with a fried egg on top. This dish is so popular in France, that you can order it at almost every restaurant all over the country for breakfast, lunch or dinner. I served it this morning as breakfast with a side of hash browns, but you can serve it later in the day with a simple green salad.
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 pieces of white sandwich bread
2 pieces of thinly sliced ham
2 slices of Swiss cheese
1 egg
Cut the crusts off the bread and discard. Assemble the sandwich by spreading 1 teaspoon of the mustard on each slice of bread. Place the Swiss cheese on the bread, then ham, then Swiss again. It is important that you have cheese touching both pieces of bread because it acts like the glue when you go to flip it.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pan over medium low heat. Place the sandwich in the pan and cover with a lid. Continue to cook the sandwich, turning once until golden brown on both sides and the cheese is completely melted.
Heat remaining tablespoon of butter in another nonstick skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides, then crack eggs into skillet and season with salt and pepper. Fry eggs, covered, until whites are just set and yolks are still runny, about 3 minutes. Top the sandwich with a fried egg and serve immediately.
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