Ultimate Monte Cristo
photo by Zuleika L.
- Ready In:
- 35mins
- Ingredients:
- 16
- Yields:
-
9 pieces
ingredients
-
For the Batter
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1⁄4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1⁄2 cup club soda
- 1 1⁄2 cups dark beer
-
For the Sandwiches
- 6 slices white bread or 6 slices whole wheat sourdough bread, each buttered on one side
- 6 ounces gruyere cheese, sliced into 18 1/16 inch thick slices
- 8 ounces smoked ham, such as black forest, sliced into 9 1/16 inch thick slices
- 8 ounces roast turkey meat, sliced into 9 1/16 inch thick slices
- 5 tablespoons strawberry jam, plus
- extra strawberry jam, to serve on the side
- vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 1⁄2 cup powdered sugar
directions
- To make the Batter: In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, cayenne, and salt.
- Whisk in the club soda and beer.
- The mixture should be the consistency of pancake batter.
- Refrigerate until you're ready to use it.
- To assemble the Sandwiches: Set half of the slices buttered side down, and cover with the cheese slices, folding them over if they extend past the edges.
- Layer the ham and turkey over the cheese, and spread the jam over the turkey.
- Place the top slice of bread on, buttered side up.
- Grill the sandwiches on both sides.
- Pour the oil into a deep heavy-duty saucepan to fill it halfway.
- Heat the oil to 350°F (175°C), measuring the temperature on a deep-fat thermometer.
- Cut the sandwiches on a diagonal into thirds, to make 9 triangular pieces.
- Stir the batter.
- Dip each sandwich piece into the batter, thoroughly coating it.
- Fry the pieces 2 or 3 at a time, being careful not to overcrowd them in the pan.
- Cook them for about 3 minutes on each side, until they're nicely browned, and transfer to a paper towel to drain.
- Allow the oil to come back up to temperature before you fry the next batch of sandwiches.
- Place the sandwiches on a platter.
- Sift a very heavy layer of powdered sugar over them, and serve with a side of jam.
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Reviews
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I love a good Monte Cristo, but have never made one myself, so this was a new experience for me ~ also new to using beer in recipes! A few changes were made, however, including cutting back on the cayenne pepper to almost nothing [After all, really now, what's a pinch?] & using honey-baked ham! Also I WAS TEMPTED to make this a 3-layer sandwich, but didn't! It did take a lot more time to prepare than I'd expected [& I totally lost track of the time, too!], but the result was a VERY, VERY tasty sandwich! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
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This has to be the strangest thing I've ever eaten! My mother said it was lovely and enjoyed the great mix of flavors. I thought the flavors were pretty amazing as well. I don't think I'd make it again though. My stomach can't stand too much fried food. So, I may use the basic recipe and just eat it as a grilled cheese and turkey sandwich, and skip the batter part. This made a lot of batter by the way, and now I need to figure out what to use it on instead of tossing it! :-) I would have given it a 3 1/2, but it's getting a 4 since my mother loved it so much! I'll make it again for her one day! :-)
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
Nimz_
United States
I was one of the original members of Recipezaar that was truly a community of individuals that enjoyed each other in forums and chat rooms. I've been a member of this site since 2003. Made some tremendous friends that I still think of often. I'll continue coming here because my recipes are here and so many more that I tried over the years as a member. It's just a tad boring now and just another recipe site like all the rest. Sad.