You can use leftover panettone bread to make savory sandwiches such as these Croque Monsieur and Croque Madame. We love them! The rich and slighlty sweet panettone is perfect to make croque monsieur or croque madame. The combination of sweet and savory makes them delicious!
You can slice the panettone bread in half lengthwise and then cut into about 3/4-inch thick slices and cut into serving size. You can also cut the panettone bread into about 3/4 inch thick slices horizontally, so it will be a circle and then you can cut into half or quarter (depending on the size of your panettone)
Prepare bechamel sauce:
Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan. Add the flour in, all at once and keep stirring. While doing that, slowly add the hot milk into the saucepan and whisk until it is smooth and thickened. Off the heat and add the salt, pepper, nutmeg, and half of the grated Gruyere cheese and Parmesan cheese. Keep it warm at the lowest heat possible
To assemble Croque Monsieur:
Spread the toasted bread with butter on one side and some bechamel sauce on the other side. Put the buttered side down. Then add two slices of ham to each, and a slice of Gruyere cheese. Top with another slice of toasted bread spread with some butter.
Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the sandwich, buttered side down and cheese side down on the skillet, about 2 minutes, or until the cheese are melty then turn to the other side and cook until the bread is golden brown
Spoon some bechamel sauce on top of the bread,top with another thin slice of Gruyere cheese. Turn on the broiler and broil on low for 3-5 minutes until the cheese is bubbly and lightly browned. Serve while they are pipping hot
If you don't want to use an oven, you can lower the heat on the stove to low and then cover the pan with a lid and cook until the cheese is melty but take care not to burn the bottom of the bread by controlling the heat
To assemble Croque Madame:
Follow the same step above. We just need to add a fried egg to each sandwich
Preheat a bit of oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat. Crack two eggs and fry the eggs until the egg white is cooked through but the yolk is still runny but maintains its round shape, about 2 minutes or so. For over-easy, slide a wide spatula under the egg and then flip it over and cook for another 30 seconds
Top each sandwich with the fried egg and serve while they are pipping hot