Monte Cristo

A new Christmas tradition in the making! For several years we have supplied the Christmas Eve meat (prime rib) which turned into Christmas Day french dips. They were one of my favorites! But, in leau of only a few people actually enjoying the prime rib, last year we opted for a traditional ham on Christmas Eve. That left us in quite the quandry. Besides funeral potatoes, how would we make Christmas Day's linner a delicious feast with ham. In comes the Monte Cristo....
I first experienced a Monte Cristo while eating in the bayou in Disneyland and oh. my. heavens. It was soooooo good! Because of that still relatively vivid memory, I jumped in with both feet first. I looked at a few recipes and decided this one sounded like the most appetizing. Really, what can go wrong with a meat and cheese sandwich BATTERED and DEEP FRIED, sprinkled with SUGAR, and dipped in HOMEMADE JELLY?! There are no words...

Appetizer Monte Cristo for my gourmet dinner. Adorable, right?

MONTE CRISTO

Ingredients

• 6 slices of bread (need a sturdy white like challah or artisan french)
• 6 slices Provolone Cheese
• 6 slices Swiss Cheese
• 6 slices turkey
• 6 slices ham
• 1 Cup flour
• 1 egg
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 Teaspoon salt
• 1 cup of water
• powder sugar for topping
• raspberry jam for dipping (on Christmas we used the leftover homemade cranberry sauce and it was AMAZING!)

Instructions

In a deep fryer, heat oil to 350 degrees 
To assemble sandwich, layer one slice of bread, ham, provolone cheese, turkey, and swiss cheese, and then another slice of bread. Secure all 4 corners of the sandwich with toothpicks.

For the batter, in a bowl beat the egg. Add flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and water and mix until all smooth.Dip sandwich in batter, coating all edges and sides.Carefully fry sandwich until golden brown on each side.Remove from oil and place on a paper towel covered plate to soak up the extra oil. 

Sprinkle with powdered sugar, remove toothpicks, and serve with your favorite raspberry jam or other sweet-tart jelly.

*To make mini appetizer Monte Cristos, use a 2-inch cookie cutter and push through the already assembled sandwich. Using a turkey skewer, poke all the way through the center. Dip sandwich in batter until covered. Then place upside-down in fryer (loop side down). The loop prevents the sandwich from falling off while frying.

Inspired by
http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2016/03/disneylands-monte-cristo-sandwich.html#_a5y_p=5400581