Food Network Monthly Cookalong: Croque Monsieur Macaroni Grilled Cheese

This one is a bit of two recipes turned on their head and mixed together. It started out with some leftover macaroni and cheese and turned into one of my favourite sandwiches ever! It started with an episode of Eat Street where I saw the Grilled Cheese Truck and how they put mac and cheese in a sandwich then while searching for ideas on Food Network US website, I found Food Network Magazine's recipe for Croque Monsieur Mac and Cheese and Ina Garten's recipe for a more traditional Croque Monsieur. I decided to mash all these ideas together, take out what I didn't need and made the super duper Croque Monsieur Mac and Cheese Sandwich!

So basically I took the cold leftover mac and cheese (our household go-to mac and cheese recipe is the one from Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's book The Vegan Table) and sliced it into squares that were the size of the sandwich bread I was using. I've had it twice now, once with an added cheese slice (Tofutti brand American) and once without and really didn't notice the difference. The mac and cheese warms and gets creamy so I don't think you really need it here. I completely left out the typical ham from this and didn't miss it at all. I buttered the outside of the bread like a traditional grilled cheese but then I sprinkled panko bread crumbs on the buttered bread and slightly pressed them in. Then I sprayed it (cautiously) with some spray oil and laid it on the griddle/frying pan. I start on medium high heat to get the bread and crumbs nice and browned but you will need to turn it down and let it warm the mac and cheese through if it's cold from the fridge. You can alternatively, take it off the frying pan and warm it for 30 seconds in the microwave. I have and didn't sacrifice any of the crunchiness of the exterior while warming up the inside. Dip in Dijon mustard and it make it all taste a million times better and gives it that Croque Monsieur flavour.