Melty Gruyere + Shaved Ham with Herb Salad and a Dijon Aioli Swipe
There’s this coffee shop in Minneapolis called Penny’s Coffee, where you can purchase the best crepe in the Lower 48.
One time I was craving it so hard that I accidentally paid $16 for parking downtown in order to eat a $12 crepe made with ham, gruyere, lemony-herby greens, a crack of black pepper and a creamy mustard aioli. I’m telling you, I could eat this crepe every day for three meals a day, so that’s why I decided I had to make a crepe-less version of it—to save me from myself.
I don’t want to hype this recipe up even more than I’ve already hyped the crepe, but you’re going to wanna make it… like, today. And tomorrow. And the next day for three meals a day forever and ever.
I wrote the recipe very loosely because it’s a good one for off-roading. You should make the number of servings that make sense for you. The aioli will keep, but the greens won’t really hold up well so you’ll want to make that fresh.
Melty Gruyere + Shaved Ham with Herb Salad and a Dijon Aioli Swipe
gluten-free recipe (paleo and whole30 without the cheese) | serves 1
Ingredients
~2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 small garlic clove, grated on a microplane (or crushed in a press)
~1 T mayo (olive oil or avocado are great)
~1/2 T dijon mustard
a serving of shaved ham
a serving of grated gruyere or swiss cheese
optional: a sprinkle of caraway seeds
1 big handful of mixed greens
a few sprigs of fresh flat-leave parsley, torn into mostly leaf pieces
fresh mint leaves
fresh chives, chopped
a sprinkle of kosher salt, if needed
fresh cracked black pepper
Instructions
Prep the mustard aioli first. Put the lemon juice into a bowl with the grated garlic. Let it hang out for about 10 minutes.
As that’s mingling together, mix together the mayo and mustard in another bowl. The ratio should be about 2:1 or 3:1 if you like a creamier sauce.
Strain the garlic out and mix the garlic-infused lemon juice into the mayo, adding slowly to taste. Once you love it, swipe a big spoonful onto your plate and save the rest in the fridge. Save the leftover garlicky lemon juice for dressing the greens.
On a lined sheet pan, make a serving-size jumble of ham and top with grated gruyere. If desired, add a sprinkle of caraway seeds.
Broil until fully melted and crispy ‘round the edges (slightly toasty, crisp like a Parmesan crisp or the best part of a grilled cheese). This only takes a few minutes.
Prep the greens, parsley, mint and chives by mixing it all up in a bowl with a splash of the leftover garlic-lemon juice and a little salt. All to taste.
Transfer this crispy ham and cheese jumble out of the oven and onto the plate with the mustard swipe on it and top the whole thing with the greens.
Crack some black pepper on top.
EAT.
Notes
The caraway seed addition is optional (only because I know it’s not a thing everyone keeps in their pantry like me—I use it often in this other recipe: Hot German Bratwurst Apple Slaw). But I was inspired to add it in a second homage (DOUBLE HOMAGE!) to another local Minneapolis business—Patisserie 46, a bakery that puts caraway on top of their ham and gruyere croissants. It is subtle but adds this nutty boost of flavor to the whole plate.
This dish good for one person or a group. It honestly would be a very easy/impressive brunch meal for a group (maybe with poached or soft boiled eggs if that’s your thing).
I’m usually not in the mood to make an aioli from scratch so this is a cheater version (I do know how if you wanna try it though).