Vegetarian Croque Madame
France was my second international trip when I was 16 years old!
For my Sweet 16, instead of throwing a party, my parents took me to Paris. It was the best decision I made at 16 (lets be honest, probably the only good decision I made at 16).
I was attempting to be ~adventurous~ like the baguette carrying madame’s I saw all around me, and decided to taste some new foods I’d never had before. A croque madame was my first “adventurous” food in France and I remember loving it! It propelled me into trying other French foods - some of which I did not like and some of which I did. Now, looking back on it, I don’t know how 16 year old me would have disliked it…. its literally cream, cheese, bread and an egg… I was clearly scared for no reason.
It is a food I continued to order at restaurants when I lived in NYC before I went vegetarian. After going vegetarian, I missed it. One day, out on a limb, I said “can you do a croque madame with no ham?” and they said they absolutely could. It was still so delicious even without the ham!
I’ve since thought of some other things to add in place of ham (I love caramelized onions and garlic) to amp this meal up even further. You could also add some vegetarian ham in there if you really miss it, but I personally don’t.
I hope you enjoy this extremely decadent meal like you’re in France - maybe even with a glass of bubbly!
Vegetarian Croque Madame
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup salted butter
- 1/4 cup or so all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups of whole milk
- 8 tsp whole grain mustard (1 tsp each slice of bread)
- pinch of ground nutmeg
- salt to taste
- 8 slices of thick sourdough bread
- 2 tbsp salted butter for onions + 3 tbsp for cooking sandwiches
- 2 yellow onions
- 5 cloves of garlic
- pinch of salt
- 2 cups of gruyere cheese + 1 cup for sprinkling on top
- herbs de provence, to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- Chives or parsley (optional)
Instructions
- Melt butter in a pot over low heat. It should foam slightly but not brown. Then add your flour a tbsp at a time and then very slowly add in your milk. You should drizzle it in a little at a time and whisk mixture as you go until everything is smooth and thick (think a little bit thicker than an alfredo sauce). Remove from heat and add nutmeg.
- Preheat oven to 450.
- While oven is preheating, slice onion and add a medium pan to low heat.
- Add your butter to the pan, your onions and a pinch of salt. Allow to caramelize low and slow. This could take up to 45 minutes if you want them really caramelized, but cook to your preference.
- The last 5 minutes or so, slice your garlic and add to the onion mixture.
- Spread each slice of bread with 1 tsp mustard.
- Add about 1/4 cup of your shredded gruyere cheese to one slice. To the same slice add about 1/4 of your onion and garlic mixture and top with another 1/4 cup of shredded cheese.
- Hit with a couple turns of fresh cracked black pepper and a light sprinkling of herbes de provence before you add the second slice of bread on top, mustard side down.
- Repeat with all 4 sandwiches
- Now cook the sandwich how you would a grilled cheese. Add 1/2 your reserved butter to a large pan and cook 2 sandwiches until golden brown on both sides. Repeat with the remaining 2 sandwiches. Remove sandwiches from pan and place on separate plate.
- On the plate, add 1/4 of your bechemel sauce to the top of each sandwich. It should just coat the top and not drip down too much.
- Then top with 1/4 cup more of your gruyere cheese and place in your oven about 10-12 minutes. This time is an estimate so please watch your sandwiches closely!
- Once your sandwiches come out, quickly fry up 4 eggs in oil or butter, add salt & pepper and place on top. Top with a few chopped chives or parsley if you choose.
