Croque-Style Tartine
Open toast with ham, bechamel, and melted cheese.
Ingredients
- 4 slices Baguette
- 120 g Ham
- 100 g Gruyere cheese
- 30 g Butter
- 20 g 00 flour
- 200 ml Milk
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard (optional)
Method
- Heat the grill (broiler).
- Melt the butter in a small pan, stir in the flour, and cook for a minute. Whisk in the milk a little at a time to make a smooth sauce, then stir in the mustard.
- Top the baguette slices with the ham, the bechamel, and the grated cheese.
- Grill the tartines until the topping is bubbling and golden.
- Serve hot.
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About Croque-Style Tartine
This croque-style tartine is an open-faced take on France's beloved croque-monsieur, built on baguette rather than sandwich bread and finished under the broiler. Where the classic croque is a closed, griddled sandwich, the tartine leaves the top open so the cheese browns and blisters directly under the heat. The defining element is the béchamel: a quick roux of butter and flour whisked smooth with milk and sharpened with Dijon, which is what separates a proper croque from a plain ham-and-cheese melt. Gruyère brings the nutty, stretchy melt that ties it all together.
The eating experience is rich and savory, with the crisp baguette holding up a layer of salty ham, creamy mustard-spiked sauce, and molten cheese browned at the edges. It's substantial for a breakfast but reads as a café dish you could eat at any hour, the kind served with a small salad for a light lunch too. Because it comes together in under twenty minutes and needs no assembly beyond stacking and grilling, it's a fast way to get that bistro flavor at home. Watch it closely under the broiler, since the cheese goes from golden to burnt quickly.
Croque-Style Tartine: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Croque-Style Tartine?
A serving has about 735 calories — 35.8g protein, 45g carbs, 45.8g fat, 1.7g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 35.8g of protein, roughly 19% of its calories.
Is Croque-Style Tartine gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains Baguette, 00 flour. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for those ingredients to make it gluten-free.
Is Croque-Style Tartine dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Gruyere cheese, Butter, Milk. Swapping those for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
Do I need every ingredient to make Croque-Style Tartine?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out dijon mustard — it's optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Croque-Style Tartine make?
This recipe makes 2 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.