My favorite Cafe Sandwich: “Sandweech” à la geneviève
You’re in for a real treat today! I’m sharing the recipe for my cafe sandwich. This is something I eat several times a week for lunch. And it’s a nice little example of my metamorphosis since living in France.
My mom likes to tell anyone who will listen that living in France permanently changed my taste buds. Whereas I only tolerated scrambled eggs before living in France, I came home and began cooking fried eggs everyday: the runnier, the better. And it’s probably true. I can pinpoint the exact moment I fell in love with the fried egg.
Merci, Madame…
My host mother made galettes complètes one night for dinner, which I had never had before. Seeing that it was a version of crèpes, I relaxed a little. And then a little more when I saw her add the ham and gruyere cheese, and folded the crèpe into a neat little square. But I started sweating a bit when I saw her crack an egg on top and let it cook only a little bit before removing the whole thing from he pan and serving it with a flourish.
When we were all served à table, I cautiously ate the perimeter of the galette, which consisted of only the ham, cheese, and buckwheat crèpe. Then I nervously eyed the egg in the middle. I knew I had to try it so as not to offend my gracious hostess. I watched as Madame the used the tip of her fork to poke the delicate casing of the lightly cooked yolk, allowing the golden substance to spill forth onto the galette. She then expertly used her butter knife to spread the runny yolk all over the rest of the galette, thereby coating every inch with the stuff.
I decided to follow suit, and she seemed pleased that I did so. With a light sprinkle of salt, I had nothing left to do but dig in.
How do you say, Délicieux (!)
One forkful of the galette, ham and gruyere, moistened by the richness of the egg yolk, and I swooned. HOW had I missed out on this my entire life until now?? I couldn’t believe how the addition of the egg added such richness and texture to the rest of the meal. And I couldn’t believe how much I loved egg yolk. I was hooked. Every night that madame made galettes for dinner was my favorite night.
I even sought them out in town. Nantes, in the region of Brittany, happens to be known for these beautiful buckwheat crèpes, and so there was no shortage of crèperies to choose from. I ate galettes complètes at every opportunity, savoring the different ways they tasted from the hands of different chefs. And each time they were just as delicious. Sometimes I would even order a dessert crèpe after the galette. I was, how you say, obsessed.
I was also at least 10 pounds heavier after my time in France. I have zero regrets.
My taste buds awakened
This eye-opening experience gave way to many more culinary discoveries during my time in France. I went back home to the US eating all the things. Raw tomatoes, vegetables of any kind, fried eggs all the time, and never complaining about what was put before me. My mother would watch, mouth agape, at how my pickiness had disappeared. To this day, she will say that France is to thank for “growing up” my foody palette.
Bringing the flavors home
Since this magical time in which my taste buds “came alive,” I have recreated the galettes complètes for my family many times. In the States, it can be hard to find buckwheat flour. So when I do, I stock up. The fam is just as crazy about the savory crèpe as I am, and it’s fun to relive the smell of all the butter cooking on the pan, ready to accept the crèpe batter and turn it into a vessel for the toppings to come. Any time I smell butter browning on a pan, I am still transported to those crèperies in Nantes.
I try to recreate these flavors with American ingredients that are readily available, and to put my own spin on them. My love for these crèpes, combined with my love for the French sandwich, created the invention of a terribly delicious sandwich I like to call sandwich à la geneviève.
Galette Complète : Sandwich Complèt
For the purpose of today’s recipe, you must read the word ‘sandwich’ comme ça (like this): sand-weech. Because if you don’t Frenchify the word sandwich, it just doesn’t sound as fancy, or as French. And this sandwich is very worthy of the French pronunciation of the word. It is my French-inspired Café Sandwich, invented by me, and beloved by all who have tried it.
Since I’ve waxed poetic for about 500 words on the galettes, you might be surprised to hear that I was an equal fan of the sandwich jambon, too. Yes, I’ve always loved ham, and I loved it even more the way the French ate it: on bread, in crèpes, always with carbs. And butter. The sandwich jambon was my favorite lunch to grab from a boulangerie on my lunch breaks. I probably ate a hundred of them in France. But the recipe I’m about the share with you marries the ingredients of the galette complète with the sandwich au jambon, my two favorite lunches (or dinners!) in France.
These days I have two versions of the cafe sandwich: the full-fat, no-ingredient-left-out version, and the lighter version that I usually prepare for moi: open-faced and with a little millennial-loving avocado spread. Try them both ways. You know, for science.
Café sandwich à la geneviève
My favorite French cafe sandwich to make at home
Description
Recreate the sandwich flavors of France, with this American version with easy-to-find ingredients. For a lighter, more millennial version (read: avocado), see the notes at the end!
You will need:
Instructions
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Heat pan over medium-high
Heat your favorite egg-frying pan over medium-high heat. Once warm, brown 1 Tbsp of butter.
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Prepare toast
While pan is warming, pop 2 slices of bread into the toaster. Toast to your liking. When toasted, add 1 Tbsp mayo and 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard to each slice. Set aside.
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Fry eggs to perfection
Crack 1 or 2 eggs (however many you want to eat) on the now-warm pan and let cook for 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook another 2-3 minutes. When done, the egg yolk should still be loose or bouncy when gently poked with the end of a spatula. You want the yolks to still be a bit runny when you remove it from the pan (think medium or medium-well).
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Add ham and cheese
While egg is cooking, add your slices of ham, then 1 slice of cheese to the prepared toast.
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Add that beautiful egg
Add the egg on top of the slice of cheese. The warm egg will melt the cheese in the sandwich nicely.
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Sprinkle accoutrements
Sprinkle a pinch of flaky sea salt, like Maldon, on top of the egg. Optionally, and for added flavor, add a few shakes of Trader Joe's 'Everything but the Bagel' seasoning, too. Top with second slice of toast.
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Enjoy the French way
Cut the sandwich in half with a sharp knife. Allow the runny yolk to run onto the plate. Dip the tip of the sandwich into the yolk before each bite. Savor and enjoy, Bliss!
Note
For a lighter, more millennial style version (wink wink), use only 1 slice of bread to create an open-faced sandwich. Instead of mayo and mustard, spread a few Tablespoons of mashed avocado onto the toasted bread. Add the ham, cheese, egg, and seasonings. Eat with a knife and fork. Voilà!
