Q: If you've seen the movie It's Complicated maybe you can help me. In the scene where Jane cooks for Adam she makes a French dish. She says she learned to make it while living in Paris.
I can't catch what it is — I'd like to know so I can attempt making it. It looks like cheesy toast...
Sent by Amy
Editor: Amy, according to the blog below, it's a Croque Monsieur, a hot ham and cheese sandwich.
• Chocolate Croissants - "It's Complicated" - At Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen
Readers, can you offer any more details on this dish? Did you pick up any details from watching the movie?
Also, doesn't this remind you of that other recent famous movie sandwich? Do you think the Croque Monsieur is about to become the equivalent of Keller's amazing creation?
Related: Work-from-Home Lunch: Meatless Croque Madame
(Image: via Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen)
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Hi Amy,
Yes it's a croque monsieur which is the French equivalent of a grilled cheese and ham sandwich. Basically it is two pieces of white bread (they use pain au levain in the movie, but believe me, here in France they use white bread or "pain de miel", one of the few things they use this kind of bread for) with ham, topped with cheese and bechamel sauce and then grilled in the oven (or you could use a toaster oven).
what she said ;)
and may i add, yum!
one of my favorites.
top with a fried egg and you have croque madame.
Thanks!
The character Jane says so as well!
I love this movie!!!
Yes! After I saw this movie I made my own version of the Croque Monsieur and have been hooked ever since! It's SO easy to make, but so incredibly tasty. Just make sure to use good quality ingredients to begin with.
hate-hate-hated the movie but thought the food (and home decor) the only star that emerged unscathed. such is the blight known as nancy meyers films.
I love ordering croque monsieurs wherever they're served! I could do a review on who has the best.
L<3VE
this french person will give you my mom's recipe for croque monsieur. Basically, it's 'the real deal' with a shortcut: the bechamel is replaced by light cream. So it goes: you take two pieces of white wonder-bread-type bread (really!). In French, it's called "pain de mie", eg, "Bread of crumb" because it's got a lot of crumb. You pour some light liquid cream ("creme legere" or "creme liquide") in a soup plate, and dip the two slices of white bread in them. Just a quick dip so they soak in the cream, not enough that they come apart. Between the two slices of bread, a slice of good cooked ham and some grated gruyere cheese (grating it means it will melt more evenly). Salt and pepper to taste. You close up the sandwish, and cover the top slice with more grated gruyere. More salt and pepper. Put in the oven on broil until the gruyere cheese has melted and gotten golden. And voila. Un croque monsieur! And if you fry an egg and slide it on top of the croque monsieur, it becomes a croque madame.
I have also seen (I don't know if this is ACTUALLY French as well or a play on the dish done over here) Croque Madam, which is a Croque Monsieur with a poached egg on top. Yum!
The croque monsieur hot sandwich probably appeared in France around the 1910's. Marcel Proust mentionned it in one of his novels in 1919...
Here in France, some brasseries use Poilane bread to make croque monsieur... It's nice too but it's not the traditionnal croque monsieur which is made, as been said, with 'pain de mie'. Personnaly, I NEVER use an oven to make a croque monsieur ! I always fry it gently in a pan after I lightly buttered the bread on both sides. of course, cheese shouldn't be put ON but IN the sandwich ! One of the secret of a good croque monsieur, is as always, ingredients : I don't like Gruyere which is too acid therefore I use Comte cheese. Top quality ham is also required. Bechamel is used by some but I find it gives the croque monsieur a sponge-like texture I don't like. Sometimes, I indulge myself with some pickles but it's not traditional... Croque Madame is topped with a sunny side up egg, not a poached one. Bonsoir.