The Sandwich that Keeps on Giving: Khary’s Trini Christmas Eggs Benedict + Croque Monsieur

We know you’re wondering, why on earth is this recipe so long? Yes, we know it’s suuuuuper long, but it’s worth that labour of love. The French sandwich gets a Trini twist with its sorrel-glazed ham and sorrel-infused Hollandaise. This croque monsieur is sweet, salty and creamy in all the right ways and feels utterly luxurious when you take a bite. *Pinkies up.*

If you don’t have 2 hours and 40 minutes to spare, have no fear, you can still gain a whole lot from this Christmas sandwich recipe. Each component of the sandwich is a prize on its own. The sorrel-glazed ham can be served as a holiday treat at Sunday lunch. The sorrel-infused hollandaise is still an untraditional twist on your average eggs Benedict (great idea for Christmas breakfast!) or spooned over your favourite fish. And just imagine the rosemary bread slathered with some butter—that would make a scrumptious midnight snack.

The beauty of this recipe is you can pick and choose which parts to make at home and which to wing. Go ahead and swap any of the ingredients for something else that you have on hand and we’re guarantee the sandwich will still be amazing.

Khary’s Trini Christmas Eggs Benedict + Croque Monsieur

YIELDS: 1 Serving

COOK TIME: 2 hrs 40 mins

INGREDIENTS

• For the Rosemary Bread: 
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour 
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  •  1 teaspoon salt 
  • 1 package instant yeast
  •  1 tablespoon chopped rosemary 
  • ¼ cup olive oil 
  • 1 whole egg 
  • 2 cups milk
• For the Sorrel-Glazed Ham:
  •  1 pound freshly-picked sorrel flowers 
  • 1 litre water 
  • 4 cups granulated sugar 
  • Cooked ham (as needed)  
  • Black pepper (as needed)
• For the Sorrel-Infused:
  • Hollandaise Sauce 
  • 1 tablespoon chopped sorrel 
  • ½ cup white vinegar 
  • 5 black peppercorns, cracked 
  • 1 small onion, diced 
  • 1 clove garlic, smashed 
  • Salt to taste 
  • 2 egg yolks 
  • 8 ounces melted butter, clarified 
  • Lemon juice as needed
• For the poached eggs:
  •  4 cups water 
  • ½ cup white vinegar
  •  1 tablespoon salt 
  • 2 eggs
• A Trini Christmas Eggs Benedict/Croque Monsieur Crossover
  •  2 slices Rosemary Bread (see above) 
  • 2 slices Sorrel-Glazed Ham (see above) 
  • 4 slices smoked gouda  
  • 4 slices Mozzarella 
  • 2 tablespoons chow chow 
  • 2 poached eggs (see above) 
  • ¼ cup Sorrel-Infused Hollandaise Sauce (see above) 
  • Softened butter Scallion rounds Pinch of paprika

DIRECTIONS

For the Rosemary Bread:

1. Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, ensuring yeast does not come into direct contact with salt. Mix ingredients thoroughly to ensure even distribution. 
2. Make a well in the centre of the mixing bowl and add all liquid ingredients. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, combine dry ingredients with liquid ingredients.
3. Once the dough has formed, dust your work surface with dusting flour and transfer your dough to the work surface to start kneading. Knead dough, adding dusting flour as is necessary, until dough is smooth and firm to the touch. Form into a ball.
4. Brush a thin layer of olive oil on the surface of the dough, cover with a towel and allow to ferment until it has roughly doubled in size and dough does not readily spring back when poked. (The finger indentation made should remain, when dough has fermented to the correct stage.)
5. When the dough is properly fermented, press down in the centre to release the gases that have been liberated.
6. Form dough into a loaf size suitable for your bread pan. Place in a lightly oiled bread pan, cover with a kitchen towel and allow to rest until dough doubles in size.
7. Gently coat the surface of the dough with egg wash and bake at 340°F for 25 to 30 minutes.

For the Sorrel-Glazed Ham:

1. Add picked sorrel and water to a sauce pot and bring to a boil over high heat. 
2. Reduce to a simmer and allow it to extract for no less than 30 minutes.
3. Strain the mixture and reserve the liquid.
4. Add sorrel liquid to a sauce pot and add the granulated sugar.
5. Allow the sugar to dissolve and the mixture to reduce to a strong syrup consistency.
6. Reserve syrup.
7. Heat a sauté pan and add an appropriate amount of sorrel syrup based on the amount of ham you desire to glaze.
8. When syrup comes to a rolling boil, add cooked ham to the pan and toss in the syrup, turning intermittently to coat the ham with the sorrel syrup. 
9. When the ham is properly coated, sprinkle with black pepper and remove from the pan.

For the Sorrel-Infused Hollandaise Sauce:

1. Add sorrel, vinegar, peppercorns, onion, garlic and salt to a small pan and allow to simmer until it has reduced by half in volume. Strain and reserve resulting liquid.
2. Whisk egg yolks until smooth, pale yellow and has doubled in volume
3. Temper egg yolks over a double boiler, whisking continuously until it begins to thicken and further increase in volume.
4. Add acid reduction to egg yolks and continue to temper until mixture has tripled in volume, removing from heat when necessary.
5. Very carefully, add melted butter, at first drop by drop while continually whisking yolk mixture.
6. Balance the consistency of your emulsion by adding a little lemon juice where needed and interchanging with butter. Note that the lemon juice thins the mixture when added.
7. When all the butter has been incorporated into the emulsion, transfer sauce to a storage container and reserve at room temperature until ready for use. NEVER REFRIGERATE.

For the poached eggs:

1. Combine water, vinegar and salt in a sauce pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
2. Reduce to a simmer. Water currents should be rolling gently.
3. Crack eggs into separate bowls.
4. With a wooden spoon ready, add one egg to the pot and use the back of the wooden spoon to gently roll the egg white to engulf the yolk.
5. Once the egg white has set you may then repeat the process with the other egg.
6. Allow eggs to cook to desired doneness and using a perforated spoon, remove from water bath.
7. Trim excess and unattractive egg white “tail” from the egg before serving.

For the Trini Christmas Eggs Benedict + Croque Monsieur Crossover:

1. Place two slices of bread side by size on a cutting board and cover both with prepared chow chow. Place two slices each of gouda and Mozzarella on both slices of bread. Place the ham on whichever is considered to be the base of the sandwich. Close the sandwich and coat the outside of the slices of bread with the softened butter.
2. Heat an appropriately-sized sauté pan on a medium flame.
3. Sear both sides of the sandwich until golden brown and cheese has melted.
4. Place toasted sandwich on a cutting board and cut diagonally across.
5. Transfer to a plate, place a poached egg on each half, slather with hollandaise sauce, sprinkle with paprika and finally, garnish with scallion rounds.
6. Serve with salad on the side so you don’t feel too bad about yourself.