Monte Cristo

Recipe courtesy Sunshine Tavern, Portland, OR

• Ready In: 45 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

•  canola oil, for frying
• 3  large eggs
• 2⁄3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 3⁄4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 4  slices  brioche bread
• 4  thin slices swiss cheese
• 6  thin slices turkey
• 6  thin slices ham
• 1  tablespoon olive oil
•  confectioners' sugar, for garnish
•  maldon sea salt, for garnish
• 4  tablespoons  marionberry  preserves

Directions

1. Special equipment: a deep fryer and 4 toothpicks.
2. Heat 5 inches of oil in a deep fryer to 365 degrees F.
3. Whisk together 1 egg and 2/3 cup water in a medium bowl. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture and whisk until smooth. Set the batter aside in the refrigerator until ready to fry.
4. Assemble the sandwiches by placing 3 slices of turkey, 2 slices of Swiss cheese and 3 slices of the ham. Top with a second slice of bread and secure with 2 toothpicks inserted diagonally. Repeat with the remaining bread, cheese and meat to form a second sandwich.
5. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
6. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in an oven-safe nonstick pan over medium heat, then crack the remaining 2 eggs into the pan. Cook in the oven until the whites are set and the yolks are runny, 2 to 3 minutes.
7. Dip each sandwich in the batter so that all sides are coated. Deep fry the sandwiches one at a time until golden brown on all sides, about 4 minutes. Remove the toothpicks and arrange on a plate. Dust with the confectioner's sugar and top with the fried eggs just before serving. Sprinkle a tiny bit of maldon salt over the egg yolk and serve with a ramekin of the marionberry preserves.