Frugal Feeds | Delicious French Toast Sandwiches

Now that you have the hang of French Toast, lets take it past breakfast. First up, keep the custard dip on the sweet side. But, instead of serving with powdered sugar or syrup, add a slice of lean ham and a slice of Gruyere between the still hot French Toast, or place a slice of each on the open sandwich and broil briefly to warm. This is your basic sweet Monte Cristo.

Now, lets change it up. This time, when you make the custard dip, don't add brown sugar or vanilla. Prepare the French Toast as usual on the griddle. When all are cooked, remove from griddle and turn griddle down to low. Spread a slice of lean ham with mustard and place a slice of low fat cheese on top. Place the ham/mustard/cheese on a slice of the French Toast and top with another slice of French Toast. Place back on the griddle. Put a lid over it and cook until the cheese is melted--less than five minutes. This is Croque-Monsieur.

You have two basic recipes here. Do them a few times and then try making them your own.

For the Monte Cristo try adding any of these to the sandwich--turkey, low fat breakfast sausage, different low fat cheeses, fat free cream cheese, cranberry sauce, preserves, no meat, several lean meats, a fried egg, apple slices, pear slices, cooked berries, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, or a sweet mustard.

For the Croque-Monsieur try adding any of these to the custard dip--grated cheese, different mustards (without vinegar or lemon in them or the custard will curdle) or powdered mustard, different herbs, different spices, some beer or some white wine. Or just prepare it as it is and add different lean meats, low fat cheeses, A-1 sauce, Worcestershire sauce, tomatoes, grilled onions, grilled peppers or sauteed mushrooms to the cooked French Toast slices.

So, you have a lot of variations now available to you. Lets think this through. You go to your kitchen and you have some stinky cheese, some dried up ham slices, stale bread, an egg and some milk. Sounds pretty depressing for lunch--but if you make a custard dip, dip your bread, cook it, put the stinky cheese on first, then the ham, top with another slice of French toast, cover with a lid and let it steam under that lid for less than 5 minutes you will have a delicious sandwich from things that you would have normally thrown away.

So, next time you see a tablespoon of preserves in the jar, now you have a plan for it. That bit of sauteed veggies that isn't enough for a whole dish? Make a Croque-Monsieur. The great thing about these sandwiches is that you can make different sandwiches for each member of your family, have each serving look similar, and be using up small amounts of odd leftovers--and they will thank you for such a fabulously yummy meal. :0)