croque madame

Tonight as we were driving home, E asked for a Scooby Doo story set in Paris (as is one of the ones she's watched a trillion times). Because I was hungry, I guess, I spent time describing all the French food that Shaggy and Scooby ate in a cafe. I would say (butcher) each French name then describe what it was for E. I mentioned Croque Monsieur and Croque Madame, saying the latter was a cheese and egg sandwich. She asked for a Croque Madame for dinner.

Maternally and pedagogically thrilled was I. I looked up the recipe to be sure I remembered it accurately. I wasn't too far off: it's a grilled ham and gruyere (a kind of swiss cheese) sandwich with a fried egg on top and a little more melted cheese. People usually eat it with a knife and fork. So I didn't have sourdough bread, nor gruyere, nor ham, but our honey-wheat-bread/medium cheddar/roast deli turkey version was just fine. E skipped the mustard and turkey on hers.



Having looked up the recipe online I also saw the Wikipedia entry and learned that "croque madame" can be more or less translated as "Mrs. Crunch"! Ours had less crunch and more oil, of course, in true keeping with my brand.