Croque-Monsieur Breakfast Casserole

By Sarah Copeland

Croque-Monsieur Breakfast Casserole
Romulo Yanes for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui.
Total Time
1 hour, plus chilling and setting
Rating
4(2,088)
Comments
Read comments

This French classic needs little introduction, but if you haven’t had it in baked form, you’re in for a treat. Think upscale ham sandwiches drenched in egg custard and cheese, melted to a deep golden-brown. There are no tricks here, save for the addition of two extra yolks for maximum French-toast tenderness. Serve it warm, or at room temperature — a fitting breakfast feast that's welcome any time of the day.

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
    Subscribe

  • Print Options

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings
  • 4tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan
  • 1(10- to 12-ounce) day-old or stale baguette, sliced ½ inches thick
  • 3tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 6ounces French-style or thin-sliced deli ham
  • 1½cups whole milk
  • 1½cups half-and-half or heavy cream
  • 4large eggs
  • 2egg yolks
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 3ounces Gruyère cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
  • 1ounce finely grated Parmesan cheese (packed ¼ cup)
  • Parsley, leaves torn, mustard, and cornichons, for serving (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

403 calories; 24 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 27 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 731 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by
Cooking Newsletter illustration

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 325 degrees and generously butter a 9-by-13-inch (or 1½- to 2-quart) baking pan. Butter the slices of bread on one side and spread a thin layer of mustard on the other side. Arrange, shingled, over the bottom of the pan, buttered side up; you may not need all the bread. Drape evenly with ham.

  2. Step 2

    Whisk together milk, half-and-half, egg, egg yolks and pepper. Pour evenly over the bread and ham. Sprinkle with Gruyère and Parmesan cheeses, allowing the ham to peek out in places. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes (for the bread to sop up the milk) or up to overnight. Bake until the custard is set, and the bread and cheese are golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Remove from the oven and allow to set 20 minutes before scattering evenly with parsley. Scoop and serve warm or at room temperature, with mustard and cornichons.

Ratings

4 out of 5
2,088 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Comments

Theresa Nelson

Very good and leftovers are delicious. Note that the 9x13 pan is way oversized for the amount of bread indicated. Ours used about 75% of the pan without overlapping. For overlap without an empty space at the edge of the pan, I suggest using an 8x8 square glass pan.

Cpt, cook

French toast? Gruyere and Parmeggiano mixing is not recommended. Remember the German Revolution of 89? This was all about no bananas available in East Germany. Imagine if you pit Italians and Swiss against over the most important thing in their lives...cheese. Yes, the fabric of the universe will shatter and Brits will be the cooks. Sincerely, a concerned cook

John

This is an easy receipe. And it does taste somewhat like a Croque Monsieur. And it is a welcome change from the ubiquitous strata receipts. Made this for a potluck brunch. It was well received and I will make it again.

Dlkg

Made this for a Mother’s Day brunch - filled a large (4.2 qt) casserole with 1-1/2 challah loaves (from Trader Joe’s), lots of butter and mustard, shingled the ham with the bread, 2 cups ea of dairy, 6 whole eggs, and as much Gruyère as needed to cover the dish. Most excellent.

mary f

I have made this twice after reading through the comments and both times has been a roaring success. Do you take the time to put the ham between the slices? It is worth it… Use way more mustard than written in the recipe. To make my life easier, I melted a bunch of butter and just very lightly dipped bread into it. Also added herbs and seasoning to the custard, including herbs to Provence, oregano, rosemary, and some other stuff. I did make the béchamel sauce and I just used Greer because I love Greer and life is better with tons of Greer. I graded about 8 ounces of it. Because we were already there so why not… It is very very good and it is worth the effort. Note for readers to come on here to talk about fat/calorie content… This is not a low fat low calorie dish. It is a dish to be enjoyed with friends and family or as I do to hand out to your neighbors who will always be happy to watch your dog for you when you’re out of town if you feed them Delicious enough food. Lol.

Kay

Looks delicious. Can this be frozen before baking?

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

Advertisement

or to save this recipe.