Small Croque Monsieurs with Eggs on Top
Rewritten Article:
Ready to impress your guests with a French-inspired, bite-sized delight? Let's whip up some mini Croque Madames, featuring quail eggs and béchamel sauce! This delectable, tiny version of the classic Croque Madame is perfect for cocktail parties or daytime receptions.
What's on hand? Quail eggs are typically found at well-stocked grocery stores, usually near the regular eggs.
Craving more appetizers? Check out our Ratatouille Crostini with Pecorino, Chicken Pot Pie Bites, or Tuna and Cannellini Bean Bruschetta.
- Serves: Up to 16 people
- Complexity: Medium
- Prep Time: Approximately 50 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
Here's what you'll need:
- 1 2/3 cups shredded Gruyère cheese (around 5 ounces)
- 8 slices of white sandwich bread (or small brioche rounds)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick)
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- A dash of kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
- A pinch of ground nutmeg
- 4 ounces thinly sliced cooked ham
- Dijon mustard
- 16 quail eggs
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Now, let's dive in:
- Set your oven to 475°F (240°C) and position a rack in the center. Prepare a small bowl with 1/3 cup of the cheese to set aside.
- Arrange the bread slices (or rounds) on a baking sheet and brush both sides with melted butter. Bake until golden and toasty, around 10 minutes, then set the baking sheet aside.
- To make the béchamel sauce, melt the remaining butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once it’s foaming, whisk in the flour and cook until the raw flour taste disappears, about 30 seconds. Gradually whisk in the milk, add the salt, nutmeg, and stir until it thickens, approximately 3 minutes. Remove the pan from heat.
- Evenly distribute the ham over 4 toasted bread slices, followed by the remaining 1 1/3 cups of cheese.
- Smeared with a thin layer of Dijon, place the remaining 4 slices of bread on top of the cheese, mustard-side down. Press gently to compact the sandwiches.
- Lightly cover the baking sheet with aluminum foil and bake the sandwiches for about 5 minutes or until the cheese starts to melt.
- Discard the foil and whisk the reserved béchamel sauce until it's smooth. Evenly spread the sauce on the tops of the sandwiches, using all of it. Sprinkle the reserved 1/3 cup of cheese on top.
- Bake the sandwiches uncovered until the cheese is melted and bubbly, about 10 minutes. While the sandwiches bake, crack 8 of the quail eggs into a small bowl.
- In a large nonstick frying pan heated with oil over medium heat, pour the 8 cracked eggs, spacing them evenly (you can gently separate any stuck whites with a spatula). Season the eggs with salt and cook until the whites are set, but the yolks remain runny, around 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the fried eggs onto a large plate. Repeat with the remaining 8 eggs.
- Trim the crusts from the sandwiches and cut each sandwich into 4 smaller squares. Arrange the sandwiches on a serving platter, top each with a fried quail egg, and serve immediately.
Enjoy the tiny bursts of the elevated classic Croque Madame at your next event! Your guests will be charmed by these scrumptious and stylish treats!
- For a nutritional breakdown of the mini Croque Madames recipe, consider consulting the nutrition facts for the ingredients – such as Gruyère cheese, white sandwich bread, unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, whole milk, quail eggs, kosher salt, ground nutmeg, ham, Dijon mustard, and vegetable oil.
- If you can't find the recipe for mini Croque Madames in the baking or appetizer section of Aussiedlerbote, you may see it categorized under 'uncategorized' or 'specialties'.
- In the quest for more recipes that are not just finger food but also French-inspired, you can find similar creations like Croque Madame's smaller cousin, Ratatouille Crostini with Pecorino, Chicken Pot Pie Bites, and Tuna and Cannellini Bean Bruschetta.
- The mini Croque Madames can serve up to 16 people, making it a perfect option for various social gatherings like cocktail parties and daytime receptions, ensuring that every guest will be 'ready' to savor these bite-sized French delights.
