Everyday recipes : Entrées

• 16 small slices of sliced bread (Try to find a small canapé loaf, since the inch-square slices correspond to the size of the andouille sausage)
• 32 half slices of andouille sausage from the Vire region of Normandy
• 1 decilitre of Isigny Sainte-Mère AOC crème fraîche
• One well matured Isigny AOC Pont l’Evêque cheese
• fine salt, freshly ground pepper
• a touch of grated nutmeg

Method :

Grate the rind of your Pont l’Evêque with the coarse side of your grater and put it aside in a cool place. With a blender, blend the rest of the Pont l’Evêque to obtain a smooth creamy mixture and season it to suit your palate. Then assemble your Croque-Monsieur entrées on a baking sheet, building up alternating layers of sauce and andouille sausage (two per Croque-Monsieur).

Sprinkle with the grated cheese rind and put them in a hot oven (Gas Mark 7-8) for about 10 minutes.

Tip :

Serve your Croque-Monsieur entrées with a salad and a glass of Normandy cider or take them with you for a picnic to eat cold.

(1) Croque-Monsieur: this toasted cheese and ham open sandwich is a standard bar snack in France, a bit like a Welsh Rarebit but with ham.

(2) Andouille: this cooked sausage is a Normandy speciality from the town of Vire and the valley of the river Vire.