Monte Cristo Roll-ups

A different take on a classic Monte Cristo Sandwich – this time rolled up! We'll skip the deep frying but keep the other familiar aspects of this ham and cheese sandwich, like the French toast batter, the Swiss cheese, and the jam on the side. I skip the powdered sugar sprinkle but you can add that in if you like. Either way, this is a pretty decadent sandwich recipe.

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A fun take on a classic sandwich recipe

Have you ever had a Monte Cristo Sandwich? It's like a grilled cheese sandwich but bigger, bolder and more fried. The original is a decadent, battered, triple-layered, deep fried ham and cheese sandwich. It's usually served as a main dish and comes with a side of raspberry jam and a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

I've taken this sandwich recipe and simplified it, mid-week-ified it. We still have ham and swiss cheese, and we'll whip up the French toast egg batter. But, we're going to make it easy. We're going to roll it up (it takes hardly any time at all), similar to my Peanut Butter Banana French Toast Rollups which I dip in Maple Syrup. Tasty!

Bonus: Kids will love this fun rolled up sandwich.

You'll only need a few tablespoons of oil for frying this filled and rolled up slice of bread, as opposed to a giant pot of oil for deep frying an entire sandwich.

Ingredients you need

A pretty short list of ingredients. Like all sandwich recipes, you have the bread (I like plain soft store-bought bread for this one) and your filling. You can use leftover ham if you have it, this would be a great way to use it up. You'll need egg and milk for the batter and jam to serve it with.

Ingredient Substitutions

• Ham: Substitute for sliced turkey or chicken instead.
• Swiss cheese: Use a different one if you prefer. (Making either of these changes makes it not a Monte Cristo anymore, but it'll still be tasty)
• Raspberry jam: Try strawberry instead. If you subbed the ham for turkey and used cranberry sauce to dip it would be a pretty great way to use your Thanksgiving leftovers.

How to make this sandwich

First, you'll prep the bread. Cut off the crusts from six slices of bread (Or however many you want to make). Now roll them out. You can use a rolling pin, a bottle, or a large soup can. Roll each slice out pretty flat.

Cut the ham slices into squares that are about the size of your bread slices. You can make the ham and the cheese slices a little bit smaller if you want a seam of bread to be able to close the roll with. I find that they stay closed pretty good without doing that, especially if you set them seam side down once you've rolled them and then also cook them seam side down first. It helps seal in the shape.

Anyway, lay out a piece of bread on your work surface. Add one slice of ham and then one slice of cheese. Now roll it all up. Lay it seam side down on the work surface. Repeat this for all of the bread slices.

Make the french toast batter. Mix together the egg and milk.

Heat a frying pan over medium and add a few tablespoons of cooking oil. I use a non-stick pan, this small Rock frying pan one by StarFrit.

Dip each roll in the batter and then fry over medium, rolling as you go, cooking each side for a few minutes. When the whole outside is golden brown, they're ready. You can keep the finished ones on a cookie sheet in the oven on the keep warm setting if you're making a bigger batch.

Serve the rolls warm, with a side of strawberry or raspberry jam.

Tips and Tricks

Use a really soft, cheap bread for this - they roll out very flat.

Cute the bread crusts in chunks and place them in a small casserole dish with some ham and some egg batter. You'll have a French toast casserole!

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