I enjoyed this recipe very much and so did my company. If people would like a thicker batter try: 1 1/2 c flour, 1 tbsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 1/3 c water,1 egg. Makes enough for 6 sandwiches. Serve with jam and powdered sugar. Rio R.
It must be a regional thing with the folks who say they like their Monte Cristo deep fried. All I've ever seen in my life are ones dipped in an egg/milk mixture and cooked on a griddle like french toast. This recipe is good at duplicating what I've had at restaurants. You definitely can't cook them on too high a heat or the outside will burn before the sandwich is warmed all the way through. Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar and a side of strawberry jam for dipping. Sounds bizarro but is excellent! Now if I only had those crisp restaurant french fries to go with it!
This is a family favorite. I worked 2nd shift and made a bunch of them and put them on a cookie sheets so that they could warm them up right before they ate them. There were none left for me when I got home from work! I think the problem that people were having with them being soggy is because they were trying to cook them too quickly. It is basically french toast. If you cooked french toast at too high a temp it would also be browned to fast and soggy. Turn your heat down and cook them slower. The cheese meltinf should make them stay together. This is a great treat that you can make ahead.
tradtional monte cristo are deep fried in a much thicker batter. I personally havent made this person recipe cause i have my own version of doing it. I used thick egg bread like Challah or a Brioche bread that can hold the batter. I use whole-berry cranberry sauce on the inside of the bread ham turkey swiss of course and a few slices of good applewood bacon. You can also experiment with a different chesse.... but my batter is made from 1/2 & 1/2 (1/4 cup) and eggs(4 large) to your batter add a dash of nutmeg and black pepper and cook it as if you are cooking fench toast but in a sandwich form.... Plate it with some warm maple syrup for dunking!!! I hope this info helps some1...enjoy!!!
Great recipe. Made this for dinner last night and it turned out great. Do not soak the sandwich too long in the egg dip do it very quickly. Daughter loved this so much she requested a second sandwich for her lunch today. She is a big fan of Bennigan's Monte Cristo as well. Used grape jelly instead of strawberry and it was yummy. My daughter preferred the grape anyway.
I think this taste like the bennigans Monte Cristo without as much breading (which I prefered) plus it isn't all greasy. We have seven in our family so by the end of making these I figured out why some were soggy. I used a pie pan for the liquids and a slotted metal spatula. Build the sandwich then place in the liquid QUICKLY scoop flip and quickly remove allowing the excess to drip off. The sandwich shouldn't stay in the liquid for more than half a sec or else it gets soggy. I used sourdough bread of a regular thickness and munster cheese because my family doesn't like swiss. I didn't use mayo or mustard but powdered sugar over top and seedless raspberry jam for dipping are a MUST-yummy. I also failed to mention that I used leftover ham fro or baked hame from easter- a great way to use leftovers!
i agree with the other review, this needs a "thicker" coating. this is basically a deluxe grilled cheese/french toast (without the syrup). it is very easy and quick to make, and very tasty. i'll try it again with a modified "batter."
Everywhere that I have eaten a Monte Cristo the sandwich has always been deep-fried. This recipe is a nice alternative and the sandwiches are still just as good with a side of jam. I also experimented with using another meat and cheese combination; smoked turkey and cheddar worked well. Thanks for the recipe
These were good. My husband's only complaint was that there was something missing. I did take another reviewer's advice to make a thicker batter and it worked really well. I will make again but I think I will expirament a bit to find that something missing...Thanks for posting.
