Griddled croque monsieur

To make the béchamel sauce, scald the milk in a saucepan along with the onion, thyme, bay leaf and peppercorns for 3–5 minutes until it starts to simmer. Remove from the heat, strain and set aside.In a clean saucepan, combine the butter and flour, and cook for 2 minutes, then add the flavoured milk, a splash at a time, whisking continually. Once the sauce has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove it from the heat and season.Place a griddle pan over a high heat, brush the bread with olive oil, then chargrill the bread for 1 minute on each side.Preheat the oven grill. Layer slices of both cheeses and the ham over half of the slices of bread, place on a baking tray and grill. Once the cheese bubbles, remove the tray from the oven and spoon approximately 1 T béchamel sauce over each slice. Season and sprinkle over the thyme, then grill again until golden brown and bubbling.Top each slice with the remaining toast and serve immediately.Browse more toasty recipes here.