Monte Cristo sandwiches
Ham, turkey and Swiss dipped in egg and cooked like French toast until golden outside and melty inside, the diner lunch at its most indulgent.
- 25 min total
- 25 min hands-on
- A little more hands-on
- Serves 2
- About $2.72 a serving
- 570 calories
Dolly says: Read the steps once before you start. Everything goes smoother after that.
Ingredients
For 2 servings.
- 4 slices white bread
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 4 slices Swiss cheese
- 3 oz sliced deli ham
- 3 oz sliced deli turkey
- 2 large eggs
- 3 tbsp milk
- 1½ tbsp butter
From your pantry
- 1 pinch salt
Each serving has about 570 calories, 37 g protein, 32 g carbs and 31 g fat, and costs about $2.72 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No milk? Half-and-half works.
- No butter? Ghee works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Spread the mustard on 2 slices of bread, then layer a slice of Swiss, the ham, the turkey and another slice of Swiss. Top with the other bread and press down.
Food safety: Rotisserie chicken, deli meat, canned tuna and cooked shrimp are already cooked. Keep them cold until you use them, and heat them until steaming hot if the recipe warms them.
the eggs, milk and salt in a shallow dish until no streaks of white are left.
Whisk. Whisking means beating quickly with a whisk or a fork to blend things together. It smooths out lumps and mixes eggs, oil or sauces evenly.
How you’ll know: It all looks one even color and texture, with no streaks or lumps.
the butter in a large nonstick over medium until it foams.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium heat
Dip each sandwich in the egg for about 10 seconds a side, so it soaks in without falling apart.
Dolly’s tip: Hold it together with both hands, like a book, and lift it out over the dish so the extra drips off.Lay the sandwiches in the pan, cover with a lid and cook 3 to 4 minutes, until deep underneath.
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Medium heatTimer: 3 min 30 sec
Dolly’s tip: The lid traps heat so the cheese melts in the time it takes the outside to brown. If it browns too fast, turn the heat down a notch.Flip and cook uncovered 3 minutes more, until , the egg is cooked through and the cheese is .
Golden brown. Golden brown is the color of good toast, somewhere between yellow and light brown. It means the outside is cooked and crisp but not burnt.
How you’ll know: It looks like toast and smells toasty; dark brown with a bitter smell means it went too far.
Melt. Melting means gently heating something solid, like butter or cheese, until it turns liquid. Low or medium heat keeps it from browning or burning.
How you’ll know: It’s smooth and liquid, and butter may foam a little but hasn’t turned brown.
Medium heatTimer: 3 min
Food safety: For the safest eggs, cook until the whites are fully set and the yolks begin to thicken. Dishes made with eggs are done at 160°F.
Cut them in half on the diagonal and eat while hot.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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30-minute dinners ›High-protein dinners ›What to make with eggs and Swiss cheese ›