Memphis Monte Cristo

~SarahBeth~'s Note:

Monte Cristo -- Memphis BBQ Style -- recipe courtesey of Down Home with the Neely's. The orginal recipe calls for Neely's Dry Rub and BBQ sauce -- and you probably won't be able to get that if you don't live in or around Memphis -- try KC Masterpiece or make your own.

• Total Time: 30 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 4

Yield: 4.0 sandwic ...

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• ¼ cup neely's barbecue sauce
• 8 slices thick white bread
• 8 slices smoked gouda cheese
• 8 slices honey-roasted ham
• 8 slices smoked turkey
• neely's dry rub seasonings , for dusting (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Over medium heat, in a large griddle pan, heat vegetable oil until hot.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, cream, sugar, salt, and cayenne until blended. Pour into an 8 by 8-inch baking pan.
4. Spread some of the barbecue sauce onto each slice of bread.
5. On 4 pieces bread, add 1 slice each of cheese, ham, and turkey, and repeat layer.
6. Top with the other pieces of bread and press the sandwiches together with your hands.
7. Dip sandwiches into the wet batter; turn to coat.
8. Add the battered sandwiches to the hot griddle and cook until golden brown on 1 side. Flip and continue cooking the other side until golden.
9. Remove to a rack-lined sheet tray. Put into the preheated oven and bake until the cheese melts, about 5 more minutes.
10. Remove to a cutting board and slice into triangles.
11. Dust with Neely's dry rub, if desired, and serve.

Reviews

[Michelle S.]

I guess DH and I are not too thrilled with the texture of a Monte Cristo type sandwich. We LOVED the flavor of this, but the bread was soft and started falling apart while we were eating it, even though the outside was crunchy. We decided we would try this again more as a toasted panini on a firmer bread. I used Sweet baby Rays BBQ sauce and used Penzeys BBQ 3000 as our dry rub blend. 5 stars for flavor, 3 stars for "eatability".

[Kat Harris]

I haven't tried this recipe as of yet, but just to let you know, the Neely's BBQ sauce and rub recipes are both on the Food Network website. Do a search for "Memphis-Style Hickory-Smoked Beef and Pork Ribs" at Foodtv.com and both recipes are listed!