Tag: cheese

  • Croque-monsieur

    Croque-monsieur

    And croque-madame

    I don’t know about you, but there was a time when I’d skip the béchamel. My parents didn’t quite see it that way. It was everywhere – spooned over endives au four until they slumped and browned at the edges, tucked between sheets of lasagnes à la bolognaise, and, of course, slathered thickly over croques-monsieur, bubbling and golden from the oven.

    Dad liked his béchamel thick, creamy, and freckled with more nutmeg than seemed sensible. And croque-madame? I think it might have been one of his favourites – a lacy-edged œuf au plat perched on top, with a crisp salad glistening in vinaigrette on the side.

    Yesterday, standing in front of the fridge, wondering what to make for lunch, I found myself craving that same creamy croque-madame. Dijon mustard spread just so, a generous handful of Comté, melting into golden puddles. I wished for the herbed jambon blanc from the charcuterie window of my childhood – marbled with fat and rolled in herbes de Provence – but settled instead for thin slices of peppery smoked ham. It worked.

    The béchamel? I made it the way I like it now – smooth, with a proper grating of nutmeg and plenty of freshly milled black pepper. Funny how things change.

    Some flavours, it seems, creep up on you with age. The ones you once dismissed as too rich, too boozy, too bitter – they slip back in, softer, gentler, until you start to crave them.

    Things I used to avoid but now can’t quite resist:
    – béchamel, nutmeg-heavy, like my dad’s
    – rum raisin ice cream
    – cognac sabayon, silky and sweet
    – panettone, toasted and buttered until golden
    – orange marmalade on crisp toast
    – a glass of dry sherry, ice-cold from the fridge
    – endives, crisp and bitter, in a salad

    What about you? Are there flavours you once pushed aside that now feel like old friends?

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    Croque-monsieur

    A golden, bubbling croque-monsieur – sandwich bread slathered with creamy béchamel, layered with soft jambon blanc [ham] and a generous handful of nutty Comté, then gratinéed until the edges crisp and the cheese melts into every corner. Pair a simple salad: crisp lettuce and slender ribbons of endive, tossed in a sharp mustard vinaigrette that bites just enough!
    And if you’re after something a little more indulgent, just slip a fried egg on top – the yolk soft and golden – and you’ve got yourself a croque-madame.
    Author: Fanny Zanotti
    Prep Time20 minutes
    Cook Time20 minutes
    Makes 4

    Ingredients

    For the croque-monsieur

    • 4-16 slices jambon blanc [ham] depending on the size of the slices
    • 8 slices sandwich bread
    • 4 tsp Dijon mustard
    • Béchamel sauce see below
    • 200 g Comté cheese grated
    • Salt
    • Black pepper

    For the béchamel sauce

    • 5 dl milk
    • 50 g salted butter
    • 50 g plain flour
    • Salt
    • Black-pepper
    • A touch of freshly grated nutmeg

    For the salad

    • 1 head crisp lettuce
    • 2 endives

    For the vinaigrette

    • 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
    • 1 shallot finely chopped
    • 1 garlic clove finely grated
    • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
    • 1 dl rapeseed oil
    • 0.5 dl olive oil
    • Salt

    Instructions

    Make the béchamel:

    • Preheat the oven to 225°C / fan 200°C. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute until smooth. Remove from the heat and whisk in the milk until fully combined. Return the pan to the stove and cook until the sauce thickens, whisking constantly. Season with salt, freshly ground black pepper, and a touch of grated nutmeg. Set aside.
    • Assemble the croque-monsieur:
    • Spread a thin layer of Dijon mustard over half the bread slices. Spoon béchamel on top, spreading it all the way to the edges. Add 1–4 slices of jambon blanc [ham] to each sandwich, depending on the size of the slices. Season lightly with salt and pepper, then top with grated Comté, saving some for later.
    • Spread a little béchamel on the remaining bread slices and place them on top, béchamel-side down, to form sandwiches.

    Gratinate:

    • Place the sandwiches on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Spread with the remaining béchamel over the tops, and sprinkle generously with the grated Comté.
    • Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until golden and bubbling.

    Prepare the salad and vinaigrette:

    • In the meantime, combine the chopped shallot and grated garlic with red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt. Let sit for 5 minutes to mellow. Whisk in the Dijon mustard, then gradually add the rapeseed and olive oils, starting with rapeseed. Thin with a splash of water if the vinaigrette feels too thick.
    • Thinly slice the endives and tear the crisp lettuce into pieces. Toss the greens with the vinaigrette just before serving.

    To serve:

    • Plate the croque-monsieur hot from the oven with a generous side of salad. Top with a fried egg for a croque-madame.
  • Crêpes complètes

    Crêpes complètes

    And my classical pâte à crêpes [crêpe batter] recipe!

    I’m often asked about the difference between French crêpes and Swedish plättar. It’s a fair question – they share, after all, the same simple pantry ingredients: milk, eggs, flour, salt, sugar and butter. But where crêpes spread thin across a wide pan, plättar are poured into a special cast-iron griddle, forming small, perfectly round pancakes.

    In my world, crêpes are meant to be folded, rolled, filled; while plättar are stacked, eaten by the dozen – best with a spoonful of jam and a cloud of loosely whipped cream.

    I’ve shared my plättar recipe in the past, and it’s still an everyday favourite, happening in our kitchen on an almost-weekly basis. Sometimes, I will even make savoury plättar, although I must admit I’m fond of the slightly chewier, sturdier texture of crêpes for this.
    However, since moving to Sweden, I’ve adapted my crêpe recipe: adding more salt and always using my trusted cast-iron pannkakspanna.

    Let’s have a look at the different ratios between crêpes and plättar. While both share the same base ingredients – milk, eggs, flour, butter, and salt – their proportions create distinct textures.

    Crêpes vs plättar

    CrêpesBakers %PlättarBakers %
    Milk500 ml200%500 ml277.8%
    Eggs480%255.6%
    Flour250 g100%180 g100%
    Butter50 g20%30 g16.7%
    Flaky sea salt2.5 g1%2.5 g1.4%

    Crêpes have a higher proportion of eggs and flour to liquid, giving them structure and elasticity. This makes them sturdy enough to be folded, rolled, or wrapped around both sweet and savoury fillings. The added chewiness also means they hold up well.

    Plättar, on the other hand, have more milk relative to flour and fewer eggs, resulting in a looser, more fluid batter. This makes them feel more custardy than crêpes, with a soft, tender texture. They are also cooked in a larger amount of salted butter, which pools around each pancake, creating lacy, crisp, golden edges with a hint of saltiness.

    Bonne chandeleur!

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    Crêpes complètes

    A thin, golden crêpe, crisp at the edges, soft in the center. The kind you fold around ham, cheese, and a runny egg for a classic crêpe complète or stack with butter and sugar, and a drizzle of lemon juice, for something simple and sweet.
    When making crêpes complètes, one has to stand by the stove, making and serving the crêpes one by one. With the leftover batter, I always make a stack of crêpes, later eaten with jam, crème de marron and chantilly (a favourite), or simply sugar and lemon juice.
    More often than not, I use my basic recipe for both savoury and sweet crêpes. However, if you wanted to make only sweet ones – for a goûter – you’ll find what I usually add to the batter in the notes below.

    Notes

    – For a sweet pâte à crêpes, add 2 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp vanilla extract, and 2 tbsp dark rum or orange blossom water to the batter.
    – If the batter thickens too much after resting, whisk in a little water to reach a thin, pourable consistency.
    – To grease the pan, my mémé, grand-mère, and my mum always used a halved potato dipped in melted butter or oil. I still do, and often wonder if this is just something we do, or if more people know about it. It works beautifully – coating the pan evenly without excess fat and keeping the crêpes from sticking.
    – This cast-iron pan by Swedish Skeppshult is my ride-or-die whenever making pancakes and crêpes!
    Author: Fanny Zanotti
    Prep Time10 minutes
    Cook Time30 minutes
    Makes 12 22cm crêpes

    Ingredients

    For the batter

    • 250 g plain flour
    • 4 eggs
    • 500 ml milk
    • 50 g melted butter
    • 1 tsp flaky sea salt

    For cooking

    • Butter for the pan

    For a classic crêpe complète (per crêpe)

    • 40 g grated Emmental or cheese of choice
    • 1 slice of ham
    • 1 egg pan-fried sunny-side up

    Instructions

    • In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, flour and salt into a lumpy batter. Blend using a hand blender, until just smooth. Adjust the batter consistency with a dash of water if needed.
    • Add the melted butter, and blend until incorporated.
    • Cover and let the batter rest for 30 minutes.
    • Heat a knob of butter in a pan over medium heat. Pour in a ladleful of batter, swirling to coat the base. Cook until the surface looks set and no wet patches remain.
    • Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the crêpe, then place a slice of ham and a pan-fried egg in the center.
    • Fold in the edges of the crêpe to create a triangle or a square, leaving the yolk visible in the center. Cook for another minute, then serve immediately.

  • Västerbottensostpaj med spenat

    Västerbottensostpaj med spenat

    [Spinach and Västerbotten cheese quiche]

    Spinach Västerbottenpaj, a Swedish quiche

    Quiche crust made with 3:2:1 pie dough

    Spinach Västerbottenpaj, a Swedish quiche

    Spinach Västerbottenpaj, a Swedish quiche

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    Spinach and Västerbotten cheese quiche

    Indulge in a Swedish classic with this Västerbotten cheese quiche, which I almost always make using my favourite: Svedjan cheese, a local artisan cheese made by the ever wonderful Pär And Johanna in Storkågeträsk.
    A buttery crust, creamy spinach filling, and distinctively tangy cheese, this quiche is amazing as part of a lunch buffet or served in wedges with a dollop of crème fraiche and some smoked salmon.

    Notes

    I like to bake my quiches in a 25cm tart tin; it makes for a slightly thicker quiche, although you could bake it in any tart tin 25 to 30cm wide. Just keep in mind that a deeper quiche will take longer to bake, so you might have to reduce the temperature slightly if your quiche gets brown too quickly.
    As mentionned above, I like to use Svedjan hard cheese, although you could easily replace it with Comté, Emmental or another had cheese of your choice. Follow Svedjanost’s instagram: @svedjanost.
    You’ll find my recipe for 3:2:1 pie dough here: https://fannyzanotti.com/321-pie-dough/.
    Author: Fanny Zanotti
    Prep Time25 minutes
    Cook Time35 minutes
    Total Time1 hour
    Makes 1 25-30cm quiche, serving 6-8 people

    Ingredients

    • 1 25-30cm quiche crust of your choice, I like both pâte brisée and 3:2:1 pie dough

    For the filling

    • 200 g fresh baby spinach
    • 2 tsp neutral oil
    • 3 eggs
    • 300 g whipping cream
    • 120 g grated Svedjan hårdost replace with Comté, Emmental or the hard cheese of your choice
    • salt and pepper to taste

    Instructions

    • Pre-heat your oven to 200°C/fan 180°C.
    • Blind-bake your 25-30cm crust using your favoruite method, at home, I'm partial to baking paper and rice, for 15 minutes. Remove the rice and paper and bake for a further 10 minutes, or until matte and light golden brown.
    • In the meantime, make the filling. Sauté the spinach in a hot frying-pan with a teaspoon of oil until it wilts. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and squeeze through a sieve to get rid of excess moisture. Cut into smaller pieces if you wish.
    • In a bowl, combine the eggs, cream and half the cheese, Mix using an immersion blender and season to taste.
    • When the crust is ready, reduce the oven temperature to 200°C/fan 180°C.
    • Arrange the spinach at the bottom of the crust, top with the remaining cheese and place in the oven. Carefully pour the egg mixture on top.
    • Bake the quiche for approximately 25-30 minutes until the filling is set and golden brown. Allow to cool slightly before slicing into wedges.