I’m kind of nerd about the whole French cooking thing. I love Julie & Julia. I used to watch Julia Child on PBS when I was little. The the SNL skit…priceless! Maybe it’s the years of studying French or the fact that they put lots of butter in everything. I don’t know. But when Tony Bourdain has a Paris episode of The Layover or No Reservations, I watch it a million times imagining the taste of what is probably the best food ever.
I’m also a big fan of grilled cheese. One of my favorite blogs is Grilled Cheese Social. Christina does magic with bread and cheese. Since a Croque Monsieur is basically a really fancy French grilled cheese, I figured I would make one at some point in my life. I haven’t. I’ve been totally lazy about the whole thing. The flavors sound wonderful though, so when I found this strata with all the goodness of my French grilled cheese…I was in. I dialed back the amount of thyme in the originally recipe because it kind of took over, but this strata is the bomb. It’s a great make-it-the-night before recipe for when you have company in town and pairs beautifully with my Overnight Blintz Bake. Let’s get French!
Hungry for more #BrunchWeek?
Croque Monsieur Strata | Biscoff Walnut Granola Parfaits | Overnight Blintz Bake
Biscoff Coffee Cake Muffins | Strawberry Lemongrass Martini | Croissant & Chocolate Bread Pudding
Croque Monsieur Strata
Ingredients
- 1 loaf day old French bread cut into 1" cubes
- 2 cups cooked ham cut into small pieces
- 2 cup shredded Munster cheese {or tear sliced Munster into small pieces
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 clove garlic chopped fine
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 8 eggs
- Chopped fresh chives, for garnish
- Coat a 9" x 13" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Place bread cubes in baking dish. Top with diced ham, and then cheese; set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add onion powder, flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Cook until mixture is bubbly, whisking constantly. Slowly pour in milk while whisking, until combine. Bring mixture to a simmer; cook until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in thyme and mustard.
- In a medium bowl, beat eggs. Add 1/4 hot milk mixture to eggs, while whisking, to temper the eggs. Pour eggs into pan with hot milk mixture, whisking constantly. Cook over low heat for 1 minute. Pour milk mixture evenly over bread, ham, and cheese. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight, but no more than 24 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Uncover strata.
- Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until golden brown and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes. Cut into squares and garnish with chives, if desired.
See all the other #BrunchWeek recipes being shared today at the blogs below.
Brunch Drink Recipes
Mango Lime Bellinis by Cook the Story
Strawberry Sangrias by Kokocooks
Breads, Grains, Cereals and Pancake-type Yums
Souffle Pancakes with Bacon Flowers by Jane’s Adventures in Dinner
Mini Breakfast Pizzas by Sweet Remedy
Turkey , Brie and Raspberry Waffle Bites by Vanilla Lemonade
Glazed Doughnut Pancakes by The Domestic Mama & The Village Cook
Whole Wheat Blueberry and Sour Cream Pancakes by Sarcastic Cooking
Meat, Poultry, Fish and Legume Brunch Recipes
Thai Orchid Salmon Salad by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Egg Recipes
American Girl Chip and Ham Scramble by The Vintage Cook
Sausage, Egg, & Veggie Casserole by Katie’s Cucina
Potato Recipes
Poutine Hash by The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen
Brunch Dessert Recipes
Vanilla Bean Cookie Bars by Rachel Cooks
Candied Bacon Brownies by {i love} my disorganized life
