Monte Cristo!

Oh, I am in trouble. Today coming home from grocery shopping,I took a different route and came through town instead of getting on the highway. I haven’t been this way in over a month or two, the highway is much quicker than hitting a stop light every 500 feet.

I knew there was a new building going up on this road, but I never thought it would another restaurant. But there it was sitting on the side of the road, parking lot full of cars, streamers, balloons and a banner announcing the grand opening of Cheddar’s. It was a good thing, the back of my car was full of perishable food otherwise I would have had to stop. Why you ask? For a Monte Cristo sandwich.



What is a Monte Cristo? The only description that pops in my head is pure sin with a side of myocardial infarction. Imagine a sandwich with two different kinds of meat, cheese, dipped into batter, deep-fried,sprinkled with powdered sugar and served with raspberry preservers. My mouth is watering as I speak!



 When we werestationed in Texas, we lived about forty-five minutes to the closest Cheddar’s.This was a good thing since after tasting a Monte Cristo; I knew that I could only allow myself have one of these beauties a year. Now less than five miles down the road is temptation calling to me; sigh. Will power is going to have to prevail here… guess I have to stick to the highway and stay off the surface streets!



Don’t have a Cheddar’s near you? See below for the recipe! I am writing the recipe for two sandwiches, one for you and one to share, because you cannot eat more than one of these!

Ingredients:


Batter for dipping

1 quart oil for frying, or as needed   
2/3 cup water   
1 egg   
2/3 cup flour   
1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder       
1/8 teaspoon black pepper   

Sandwich

4 slices of white bread   
2 slices of baby Swiss cheese    
4 slices of Turkey lunch meat   
 4 slices of Ham lunch meat   
1 Tablespoon powdered sugar for dusting   

toothpicks to secure

raspberry preserves for dipping



Directions:

Heat oil in a deep fryer or pan deep enough to submerge sandwich

In a large bowl whisk together batter ingredients until smooth, set aside

Assemble sandwiches by placing one slice of turkey on one slice of bread, a slice of ham on another, then sandwich them with the Swiss cheese in the middle. Secure corners with toothpicks.

Dip each sandwich in the batter so that all sides are coated.

Deep fry in the hot oil until golden brown on both sides

Remove toothpicks, slice into quarters

 Place on plate dustwith confectioners' sugar and serve with raspberry preserve on the side for dipping

The Oven Omelet…

There are many names for this dish. I have seen it called a crust less quiche, gluten free egg bake, for me it will always be an oven omelet. This was one of those quick and easy breakfast dishes my mom when we had company or it was a holiday.

I remember one of the first times she made dish was when my sister’s Girl Scout troop did an overnight tour of San Francisco. The troop came to our house for breakfast afterward and I got to hear all about “The City” at night. The most interesting was hearing about the freeze-dried food plant they visited and of course the fortune cookie factory.  

This dish works well for any meal, travels real well if you need a quick and easy potluck contribution!

If you do not have a gluten allergy feel free to use regular Bisquick.

Ingredients:

1 package (16 oz) bulk pork sausage

 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cups frozen hash brown potatoes

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz)

3/4 cup Bisquick® Gluten Free mix

2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon pepper

6  eggs

 

Directions:

Heat oven to 400°F. Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish with cooking spray. In 10-inch skillet, cook sausage, bell pepper and onion over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Mix sausage mixture, potatoes and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese in baking dish.

In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, milk, pepper and eggs until blended. Pour over sausage mixture in baking dish.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake about 3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

This recipe is from Betty Crocker