Mini Croque Monsieur Sandwiches

I organize recipes I have torn out of magazines, or printed off the the internet, by putting them into clear sleeves and filing them by category in a ring binder.  We recently were asked to bring an appetizer to a party and when my husband flipped through the binders he came across the Croque Monsieur Sandwich recipe I put in the appetizer section.  He thought I had placed it in the wrong category, but I had put it there because I thought it would be yummy in a smaller version and it was! To me a mini toasted cheese sandwich is the perfect appetizer! Be sure to pass them with a cocktail napkin, they are finger licking good.

Mini Croque Monsieur Sandwiches
recipe adapted from Meredith Steele 
PRINT recipe

~Ingredients~ 

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 
• 1 ½ cups Gruyere cheese, shredded 
• ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, shredded 
• 1 ½ cups warm milk 
• ¼ teaspoon salt 
• ⅛ teaspoon black pepper 
• ⅛ teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg 
• French Baguette
• 1 lb thinly sliced ham
• Dijion mustard 

~Directions~

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. 
2. To make the béchamel: In a saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add flour, whisk, and cook for 1 minute until smooth. Slowly add milk, whisking continuously and cook until thick, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add ¼ cup Gruyere cheese, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir until smooth. Set aside until needed. 
3. Slice the baguette into ¼ inch pieces.  Lay the bread slices on a baking sheet and place in the oven. Toast until golden, about 3-5 minutes, flip and toast for another 2 minutes. Remove from oven. 
4. While the bread is toasting, cut the ham into 1 inch pieces or the width of baguette slice.
5. Lightly spread half of the bread slices with mustard and top with 3-6 slices of ham. Top the ham with a pinchful of Gruyere (you should have ½ up of cheese remaining). Place a piece of toast on top of the gruyere making a sandwich.
6. Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet covered in foil. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the béchamel sauce over each sandwich and sprinkle each sandwich with remaining Gruyere. Place under the broiler in the oven and broil for 3 to 5 minutes until the cheese is melted and lightly golden. 
7. Remove sandwiches from the oven, carefully put sandwiches on cutting board and place toothpicks on each end of the sandwiches.  Cut the sandwiches in half with a serrated knife. 
8. Place on serving dish and serve warm.

photographs by Ridgely