Croque Madame, Spicy Tomato Sauce

Croque Madame, Spicy Tomato Sauce

Serves 4
Always looking for ways to use that left over Christmas ham? Here is a traditional French staple and the perfect crowd pleaser. It can be eaten at any time of the day and is made even better with the addition of our very own Spicy Tomato Sauce. Bon Appetit!

Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 50 g butter
  • 12 thick slices good quality white bread
  • 6 slices ham
  • 200 ml mornay sauce (see our cookbook or online for a good recipe)
  • 200 g mozzarella, grated
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 4 eggs, free-range or organic
  • Serve with a salad and Bitton Lemon Dressing and Bitton Spicy Tomato Sauce

Method

Lay out all the bread slices on a board in rows of three. Butter the bread slices

right to the edges. Place the ham on the first and third row of bread. Spread all 12 slices of bread with the mornay sauce and cover with grated cheese. Again, make sure you cover the bread slices right to the very edge, otherwise

the edges will dry out. Layer the bread slices on top of each other to make four sandwiches with three tiers — a layer of mornay sauce and cheese, ham in the middle, followed by another layer of mornay sauce and cheese.

Cut each stack in half on the diagonal so that you end up with eight ‘sandwich’ halves. Place on a baking tray and place under a hot grill until golden brown. In a large non-stick frying pan, melt the butter and fry the eggs. Set aside and keep warm. Combine the salad ingredients in a small bowl. To serve, place a ‘grilled sandwich’ and salad on each serving plate, top with a fried egg. Add a dollop of spicy tomato sauce or tomato relish.

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