Cheddar & Fig Monte Cristo Sandwiches

In a medium-sized bowl, thoroughly whisk the eggs and milk then pour the mixture into a square baking dish (one that’s deeper rather than long and shallow). Set aside.

Next, assemble the Monte Cristo sandwiches. You will end up with 4 small sandwiches so lay the bread slices accordingly for easy assembling. Spread Dijon mustard on one side of half of the slices of baguette; spread the fig preserves on the other half of the slices. Fold your ham slice to fit the bread then place it over the slice of bread with the mustard. Then add 1-2 cheddar cheese slices (folded if using pre-sliced). Add a top slice of bread (preserves side facing in).

Gently set the assembled Monte Cristos into your baking dish. Let them sit for a minute or so. Once soaked, turn them over in the baking dish to ensure the entire sandwich gets soaked in the egg/milk mixture. After about 5 or so minutes they are ready to cook. If you’re using stale French bread they can soak longer, potentially even overnight. I used fresh bread and didn’t want the slices to get so soggy they fall apart. Just play it by ear.

Preheat oven to 250 F if you would like to keep your cooked sandwiches warm until serving. Melt your butter and olive oil in a frying pan on medium high heat and cook your sandwiches 3-5 minutes per side until golden brown and crispy. They should resemble French toast. This is essentially a French toast sandwich after all. If you are cooking them in batches, store them in the oven on 250 F to keep warm.

Once ready to eat, sift powdered sugar over them, drizzle with pure maple syrup and top with the sliced figs. Enjoy with a warm cup of coffee!

Note: I had a lot of egg/milk mixture. I can’t stand to waste food so I sprinkled the leftover mixture with salt and pepper and made scrambled eggs as a side. You could try to use less eggs but I really wanted the bread to be completely soaked. The result is a nice fluffy yet crisp sandwich. Your call!