Croque méditerranéen – French-style baked sandwich

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 6 slices of whole-grain toast
• 100 g crème fraîche or sour cream
• 3 tsp pesto, red
• 1 eggplant(s)
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 onion(s), red
• 4 slices of bacon
• 8 slices of cheddar cheese
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 10 minutes; Total time approx. 30 minutes

juicy and delicious

Preheat the oven to 220°C (top/bottom heat). Toast the whole-wheat toast on medium heat. Mix the crème fraîche or sour cream and pesto and season with salt and pepper. Add the bacon to a hot pan and fry until crispy. Cut the eggplant into approximately 1 cm thick slices and fry in a little oil. Set aside. Cut the onion into half rings, fry them as well, and set aside. Wash, halve, deseed, and cut the tomato into rings. Fry them as well and set aside. Now assemble the sandwich as follows: Spread a generous amount of pesto cream on one slice of toast and top with the eggplant, tomato, onion, and bacon. Place a slice of Cheddar cheese on top, then top with more toast with pesto cream and the remaining ingredients. Place the third slice on top, spread a thin layer of pesto cream, then top with 2 slices of Cheddar cheese. Repeat for the second sandwich. Bake the sandwiches in the hot oven for about 10 minutes, until the cheese is crispy. A green salad and a glass of rosé or white wine go perfectly with this. For a more stripped-down version, replace the crème fraîche with sour cream and omit the cheese from the sandwich itself.