Nobody Beats the Count*

 I've never had a Monte Cristo Sandwich before, but the one posted on Vegan Happy Hour rekindled my interest in them. I am not usually intimidated by rich or fried foods, but I believe I met my match this time. My first bite was delicous and doughnutty. I couldn't wait for more, that is until I was nearly done with my second quarter of the sandwich. Defeat started to set in and I realized I should have made this when I wasn't the only one around who would eat it. These are definitely for sharing. The recipe makes two sandwiches and I don't think anyone will need more than half, a fourth might be just enough in fact.

I used the "Baked Ham" slices from Lightlife, Oven Roasted slices from Tofurky, and Mozzerella Daiya shreds. I think I would use a different flavor of Tofurky or another brand because these got lost in the rest of the flavors. I also might put more "meat" inside since the bread and breading can be overwhelming. The recipe suggests sliced Daiya but says shredded is doable. I would only recommend shreds if you're really fast and have good hand-eye coordination. By the time I quartered and toothpicked my sandwiches I lost nearly all of my Daiya in the dipping batter-again this could be my own lack of skill, but just saying. I decided to fry the second sandwich in one piece so I wouldn't lose the cheese again. It seemed to come out much better. I'll do it this way from now on, then maybe cut it into strips for sharing. I'm not sure how well the leftovers will work out, but I absolutely could not eat another bite. Hopefully it's toaster-oven-friendly.

*I always think of the movie "Sleepers" when I hear Monte Cristo. Of course you should read The Count of Monte Christo instead of watching movies, but if you can do both, why not.