Monte Cristo Sandwiches and Flowered Dresses

It was warm last week. 70 degrees and sunny all week sort of warm, like we've not seen since last September. So, Friday night, I pulled out the pink floral fabric from which I so much wanted a dress, and went to work. The result was a lovely sundress, which I think I'll wear to my daughter's college graduation in a couple of weeks (but I digress). On Saturday, it was sunny and 75, so I wore my new sundress to wash my "winter beater" Cadillac (don't get excited, I used a car wash), weeded my rosebeds, and, in a move most uncharactistic of me, made lunch. Why is it uncharacteristic that I make lunch? Because lunch is the official "free range grazing" meal in my household. That's how I have trained my children, to some greater or lesser degree, to prepare their own food. Breakfast is waffles or eggs and toast or instant oatmeal, with no other alternatives. Dinner is whatever I say it is, and you will eat and like it or risk the wrath of Mom. Feed yourself lunch. No one is going to starve in the 8 to 10 hours or so between breakfast and dinner, so it's great training!

Anyway, Saturday being a sunny day, I was fondly recalling going to lunch with my dearly beloved when we were young and beautiful, and I happened upon the memory of the Monte Cristo sandwiches we used to get at Swensons. Thus, I decided that the Monte Cristo would be the perfect midday repast for a pretty day; the day could have only been more perfect had the flowers been on my trees instead of just on my dress.

MONTE CRISTO SANDWICHES

3 slices bread per sandwich
Sliced Turkey
Sliced Ham
Sliced Tomato
Thinly sliced Swiss Cheese
2 eggs per 3 sandwiches, whisked with 1 tsp. water, salt and pepper

Assemble the sandwiches in this order, from the bottom: bread, cheese, turkey, cheese, bread, cheese, ham, tomato, cheese, bread. Dip in the whisked egg, flipping to coat evenly. Cook on medium hot griddle (350 degrees), flipping over after about 3 minutes, or in the George Foreman Grill. Note that these are very filling, and would make a nice lazy evening's dinner, too!

I was so pleased with the day, and my dress, that Saturday night I made a skirt from the same fabric. Unfortunately, it rained Sunday and Monday, and the temperature turned markedly cooler. While the sun has come out this afternoon, it's only 45 degrees out, and my poor little boys are wearing their winter jackets to ride their bikes. Thank goodness the plumber came last week and fixed the furnace so it would heat downstairs and supply hot water from its tankless coil. Hopefully the oil holds out another 2 to 3 weeks, until we can get the gas line installed from the street, and the plumber can return to convert the furnace from oil-fired to gas-fired.