Croque Madame for Sunday Brunch – Recipe

There’s nothing better on a lazy, Sunday morning in spring than a brunch of Croque Madame, served on a bed of freshly picked greens tossed in a light balsamic dressing. We would have included pictures of the dish as it was served, but it was eaten too quickly. So, above is a picture of the leftover piece we had.. and below is how quickly it, too, was gobbled up. The recipe follows… (serves 4)

Ingredients

8 slices of good country-style bread (we used some of our sourdough, though a Vienna loaf would be good, too)
butter
2 to 2 & 1/2 cups grated cheddar
4 eggs
salt & pepper to taste
Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Butter the bread on all sides.
3. Put four slices on an oven tray. Top each slice with grated cheese, then top with the remaining four slices of bread.
4. Place in the oven for a few minutes, or until they are well browned.
5. Meanwhile, melt some butter in a frying pan and cook the eggs just enough to hold their shape.
6. Remove sandwiches from oven. Place an egg on top of each and top with more cheese and a sprinkling of salt and pepper.
7. Place under a grill and cook until well browned.

Serve on a bed of greens (we used baby green mignonette) topped with balsamic vinaigrette.