Before I give you this delicious Monte Cristo recipe, I have to give you a little back story. Last Sunday after church, a very kind lady brought in a bunch of bread and let people take whatever they wanted. This lady, however, did not bring in cheap bread.
She had artisan breads of all blends, sizes and shapes. There were rolls, loaves, bagels, pastries… I’m pretty sure this lady owns a bakery or something.
Anyway, my sister comes up behind me while I am “shopping” for bread.
“Take the sun dried tomato bread; it’s really good,” she said. I shrugged and put it in my bag.
When I got home, I went in the bag and grabbed out a slice. As I took a big bite, I realized why my sister had me choose this bread. It was savory, yet slightly sweet and flavorful. I knew this would be great in something.
And then my eyes were opened; a Monte Cristo would be perfect!
But this was to be no ordinary Monte Cristo, which is usually a ham and cheese sandwich between two boring pieces of french toast. This Monte Cristo was going to have seasoning and Parmesan cheese fried into the bread. I was going to use a sharp cheddar instead of Gruyere or whatever kind of fancy cheese my budget doesn’t afford at the moment.
And let me tell you folks. This was a Monte Cristo above many! There were so many flavors in play. It is all so confusing but tasty at the same time. I even had some tomato soup with my sandwich, and I’m not generally a fan of tomato soup! But dipping my little sandwich pieces in the soup added a whole different tomato flavor to the party.
The one pro tip I could give you is that you should make sure that the Italian seasoning is cut down to very small pieces. If you have a spice grinder, do what I did and pulse it a bunch of times. The last thing that you want is to bite down into a sprig of rosemary or small twig. Plus, it will release some of those flavors that are locked up in the dry leaves! And that, my friends, is a double benny.
This recipe is quick and easy. How could it get any better?
Did you try the recipe? How did you or would you modify it? Let me know in the comments below!
Cheers!
Gem
Sundried Tomato Monte Cristo
Goods you need
- 2 Slices sun dried tomato bread
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup milk
- 3/4 tsp. Italian seasoning, ground or chopped finely
- 2 tbsp. Parmesan cheese
- 2 oz. (or approx. 4 slices) deli ham, any flavor
- 4 oz. cheddar cheese, sliced or shredded (see pro tip)
Let's get to it!
Mix the egg, milk, Parmesan, and Italian seasoning in a shallow bowl. Whisk until thoroughly combined.
Dip bread into the egg mixture, making sure the bread is as soaked as possible. Add more milk if necessary.
Place bread in a skillet on medium low heat and cook until cheese is brown and crispy, or about 2 minutes. Flip to the raw side.
place cheddar and ham on one slice of bread and put the other piece on top. cook for about a minute. Flip sandwich over and cook other side for one more minute. If cheese is not melted enough, take off of heat and place a cover over the sandwich. Eat and enjoy.
Pro tips
Feel free to use Gruyere in place of cheddar, or any flavorful cheese you prefer. As I'm writing this, I'm finding out that there actually was Gruyere in my fridge and I didn't know it! I like the cheddar; however, whichever semi-hard cheese that you prefer would work in place of cheddar.
