Colm O'Gorman: The Monte Cristo sandwich tastes as good as it sounds
Our lovely neighbour Serena introduced me to the Monte Cristo sandwich recently. We often send each other food ideas or recipes that we spot and are eager to try. Serena is a great cook, so when she flags an idea, it is always worth trying. The original recipe uses deli turkey and ham, Swiss cheese and Dijon mustard, packed into a sandwich that is then dipped in an egg mixture and oven-baked — a sort of French toast-style sandwich.
I decided to play around with the idea and used chicken breast freshly pan roasted in butter, Parma ham, Emmental cheese, and fresh pear for my version. I also fried my sandwiches in the pan with some butter before finishing them off in the oven. It gave me a lovely crisp, golden sandwich that was just perfect.
