Corny Croque Madame

After a failed attempt at hobak-jeon, a.k.a. Korean squash pancakes, I needed to come up with an alternate plan for breakfast.

I pestered Chris some hoping that he would volunteer to take on the breakfast re-do. “Chris, what do you want to make for breakfast?”

“I made you cornbread for dinner last night. I’ll just have a bagel for breakfast.”

That wasn’t going to work. While Chris is content with his two bagel a day habit, I wanted real breakfast.

“Do you want a croque monsieur? Do you think I can make one with the rest of this cornbread?”

So that is how we ended up with Corny Croque Madames for breakfast. We actually split a Corny Croque Monsieur and a Corny Croque Madame, but the Madame with the egg on top tasted so much better than the plain version that Monsieur did not make the cut.

Ingredients (per sandwich):

• 1 slice corn bread
• 1 slice cheese (I used 1 oz of reduced fat Swiss)
• 3 oz thinly sliced ham
• 2 tbsp sauce (Someone please tell me what kind of sauce this is.)
• 1 egg, over-medium

Ingredients (The sauce…Is it a béchamel? A Mornay? Something else entirely? It is tasty, that’s for sure!):

• 2 tbsp yogurt butter
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 1 1/3 cup almond milk
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan
• 1/4 cup shredded swiss
• nutmeg, salt, and pepper to taste

Directions (The sauce):

• Melt the butter in a small sauce pan.
• Whisk in the flour until the mixture is smooth.
• Add the almond milk and bring to a simmer.
• Simmer for another 10 minutes or so, stirring regularly, before adding the cheeses.
• Stir in the cheeses until they are fully melted.
• Season to taste with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
• An idea to use up the extra sauce: Butternut Squash Gratin

Directions (The Madame):

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Slice a piece of corn bread horizontally to form the top and bottom of the sandwich.
• Layer ham and cheese on the bottom of the sandwich, then top with the top piece of cornbread.
• Place the sandwich on a baking sheet and heat until the cheese begins to melt. (If you use reduced fat cheese like I did, use your best judgement as it may not be as melty as full-fat cheeses.)
• After the cheese has melted, add a few spoonfuls of sauce to the top of the sandwich, then return it to the oven for several more minutes.
• While the sandwich is in the oven, cook your eggs, over-medium.
• Plate the sandwich with an egg balanced on top.

Servings (The Madame w/sauce) ~ 1
Calories ~ 410, Fat ~ 15 g, Carbohydrates ~ 32 g, Protein ~ 35 g

Servings (Sauce) ~ 24
Calories (per serving) ~ 19, Fat ~ 1 g, Carbohydrates ~ 1 g, Protein ~ 1 g
Calories (total batch) ~ 454, Fat ~ 29 g, Carbohydrates ~ 16 g, Protein ~ 31 g