BRUNCH ESSENTIALS: TURKEY & BACON SAMMIE'S

Brunch Essentials: Turkey & Bacon Sammie's image

This is my take on a French recipe called a: Croque Monsieur. It is typically made with ham, and served on thick country bread. I'm making them with smoked turkey, and bacon. In addition, I'm serving them on bread rounds. These are for a catering event at the country club... Sunday brunch kind of thing. They always get rave reviews. FYI: Be sure to bring extra napkins... you'll need them. So, you ready... Let's get into the kitchen.

Provided by Andy Anderson ! @ThePretentiousChef

Number Of Ingredients 10

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Ingredients

THE CHEESE SAUCE
1 cup(s) béchamel, more on this later
1/4 cup(s) cheddar, freshly grated
4 slice(s) bacon, chopped
THE SANDWICHES
4 slice(s) bread, or bread rounds, or bagels
6 ounce(s) smoked turkey, thinly sliced
6 slice(s) provolone, thinly sliced
ADDITIONAL ITEMS
- spices, such as cayenne, white pepper, salt, paprika, etc., to spice up the cheese sauce. your choice.

Steps:

PREP/PREPARE
THE CHEESE SAUCE
Chef's Note: A Béchamel sauce is very simple to make... it's basically flour, butter, milk, and a few spices. If you want instructions on a basic Béchamel sauce check out my recipe post on Mother Sauces: https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/sauce-spread/sauce-spread-other-sauce-spread/chef-andys-technique-class-mother-sauces.html?r=1
Chef's Tip: WE DON'T WANT A BLAND SAUCE!. A Béchamel can be anything you want it to be... It's a blank canvas ready to be seasoned. I like to give my Béchamel a bit of a kick with some white pepper, a pinch of salt, and a bit of cayenne. But the overall flavor is up to you. Have fun with it. Just remember that this sauce is carrying a lot of the load for this recipe, so make it tasty.
Gather your Ingredients (mise en place).
Add the chopped bacon to a pan over medium heat.
Cook until beginning to crisp.
Drain on paper towels, and reserve.
Chef's Note: Do not drain the bacon fat from the pan, you'll be needing it later.
Heat the Béchamel over medium-low heat, and add the grated cheddar.
Stir until the cheese melts into the sauce.
Add the bacon and stir to incorporate.
Cover and reduce the heat to low.
Chef's Note: The heat should be very low... just enough to keep the sauce warm.
THE SANDWICHES
Gather your ingredients (mise en place).
Place a rack in the middle position, and preheat the oven to 425f (220c).
Heat the pan with the bacon fat over medium heat, and toast the bread slices, about 2 minutes per side.
Chef's Note: If you don't want the additional fat of the bacon grease, then just pop the bread into the toaster.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place the bread on the sheet.
Generously coat the bottom slice of the bread with the cheese sauce.
Add one slice of provolone to the bottom slice of bread.
Distribute the turkey between the bottom bread slices.
Add a slice of provolone cheese to the top and bottom bread slices.
Pop into the preheated oven, and bake until the cheese begins to brown and gets bubbly, about 10 - 12 minutes.
PLATE/PRESENT
Serve on a nice plate, and drizzle a bit more of the cheese sauce on top, and maybe a pickle slice, a side salad, or chips. Enjoy.
Keep the faith, and keep cooking.