Monte Cristo Skillet
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With all the goodness of a classic Monte Cristo sandwich, enjoy this easy Monte Cristo Skillet recipe to make Monte Cristo flavors easy and accessible for the whole family!
This Monte Cristo Skillet was the Grand Prize Winner of the 2006 National Cornbread Festival. It caught my eye because I recently had my very first Monte Cristo Sandwich and absolutely loved it. Southern Living sent me to Charleston to do some presentations for the Taste of Charleston Festival. Have you ever been to Charleston? Oh my goodness gracious, is that a beautiful town! With every sight and sound I became more determined to bring my family back there someday so I could experience it with them (it is hard to enjoy a trip without the folks you want to share it with beside you).
As I’ve started traveling from time to time I’ve taken a queue from my adventurous counterparts at SL and started making it a point to try something new in each place if possible. In Charleston, I had my first Monte Cristo Sandwich and it was right up my alley. I ate it in the cafe of a beautiful hotel right downtown. The flavors were a unique combination for me: Ham, cheese, battered and toasted bread drizzled with a sweet fruit preserves and sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar. It was part lunch, part breakfast, part sandwich, part dessert, and all the way good!
So when Martha White offered to guest post I got to nosing around for what recipe I thought would appeal the most to everyone and as soon as this skillet came before my eyes, my heart just settled on it.
This recipe is quick to throw together and feeds six people. I like strawberry preserves with mine but feel free to use whichever you like best.
What You’ll Need to Make the Monte Cristo Skillet:
- Martha White Cotton Country Cornbread Mix
- cooking spray
- chopped cooked turkey
- chopped cooked ham
- shredded Swiss cheese
- eggs
- milk
- mayonnaise
- honey mustard
- salt
- pepper
- currant jelly
- powdered sugar
How to Make a Monte Cristo Skillet:
Prepare the cornbread batter according to the instructions on the package.
Bake cornbread mix in a 10 1/2 inch cast-iron skillet.
The cornbread will be thin and should look like this when baked.
Remove the cornbread from the skillet, and cut it into cubes when cooled. Wipe out the skillet with paper towels and spray the skillet generously with non-stick cooking spray.
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the cornbread cubes in the bottom of the cast iron pan.
Top the cornbread cubes with the turkey, ham, and Swiss cheese.
In medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon mustard, salt and pepper until well blended.
Pour evenly over ingredients in skillet. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set and lightly browned.
Melt the currant jelly by warming it slightly in the microwave. Add one tablespoon of the honey mustard and whisk until blended.
Remove the Monte Cristo Skillet from the oven.
Cut it into wedges…
…sprinkle with powdered sugar…
…and serve with the currant jelly/honey mustard mixture! ENJOY this delicious cast-iron-skillet recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 6 oz. package Martha White® Cotton CountryTM Cornbread Mix
- Crisco® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
- 1-1/2 cups chopped cooked turkey
- 1/2 cup chopped cooked ham
- 1-1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons honey mustard divided
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup Smucker's® Currant Jelly
- Powdered sugar
Instructions
- PREPARE cornbread mix according to package directions, except bake in a 10 1/2-inch cast iron skillet (cornbread will be thin). Remove cornbread from skillet; cool and cut into cubes. Wipe out skillet with paper towels; spray generously with no-stick cooking spray.
- HEAT oven to 350°F. Place cornbread cubes in skillet. Top with turkey, ham and cheese. In medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon mustard, salt and pepper until well blended. Pour evenly over ingredients in skillet. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until set and lightly browned.
- MELT currant jelly by warming slightly. Add 1 tablespoon honey mustard; whisk to blend.
- REMOVE skillet from oven. Cut in wedges, sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve with currant jelly and mustard sauce.
When my grandmother passed in 2007, I inherited her cast iron collection. My grandfather gave it to her for their 5th wedding anniversary. I use the big 12-inch skillet every day.
I have a whole set of Griswold skillets, plus a dutch oven with a handle that is at least 150 years old – would not trade these for the best available set on the market today. They have a finish superior to the best non-stick. Would sure like to know how many pounds of meat have passed through this big pot.
I have my mother’s two cast iron skillets. She was born in 1910 and these were her mother’s. I have no idea how old they are but I sure love to cook in them especially cornbread and fried chicken. I can still feel my mother’s love everytime I use them.
Love this and cannot wait to make it! I just love cooking in my CIS. Everything tastes so good! <3 and Hugs!
As a young bride I had my iron skillet just right for cooking–one day I came home from work my dear hubby said ‘ I have scrubbed that black skillet good and I hope you don’t ever let it get so black again”–and yet I am still married to him after 56 yrs. can anyone top this????
Oh, I would have been SO upset! I bet he learned though.
Yes! Men’s minds must run in the same channels. Mine (at the time we had been married way long enough for him to know better!!) put mine (which was given to me by my mother and probably had had more than 50 years’ use by that time) in the DISHWASHER!! That was about 15 years ago and he hasn’t touched any of my black ironware since! And we, also, just had our 56th anniversary!!
My father-in-law did the same thing to my mom-in-laws skillets. The ones her parents used. He got an SOS pad and scrubbed it! Every time she talks about it, she gets just as mad…lol…Maybe one day she’ll be able to re-season them.
My mother gave me my cast iron skillet for a wedding present. It is one of my most treasured items. Love frying chicken in it like I did last week.
So wonderful having ties to your Mama every time you cook! 🙂
Gratefully,
Christy
I will NEVER forget the day Mama caught Daddy frying eggs in her cornbread skillet! I thought she was going to strangle him. As she was yelling at him she was busy with a wire brush and hot water scrubbing out the skillet and reaching for the lard bucket to re-season it. I can only remember one or two times that she was madder at him! LOL Needless to say, Daddy learned his lesson about fooling with Mama’s cornbread skillet. He never touched it again that I can remember. And by the way, I now have that skillet. My husband, who is totally “kitchen challenged”, knows better than to touch ANY of my cast iron pots or pans! I have not been able to find this magazine anywhere in my area here in Central Pennsylvania. Anyone know how else I can get it? 🙁
I got mine at Walmart. If you can’t find it…email me and I will mail you a copy
DMRogers218@comcast.net
deb in Georgia
I have a cast iron skillet which was passed on to me by my mother-in-law and it had been passed to her from her MIL. It’s at least 150 yrs. old, best we can determine. It has “Martin Stove and Range Co., Florence, Ala.” stamped on the bottom. I don’t know if the Co. still exists, but I get a warm feeling every time I use it, just thinking “If that skillet could only talk!”
OH my goodness Phyllis, that is a treasured heirloom indeed!!! I got a warm feeling just reading about it!!!
Gratefully,
Christy
Wow! What a great story!