Cook’s notes

It is a variation of the pepperoni and cheese French toast roll-ups in the archive. There are three differences though:

Salty ham instead of pepperoni is used here.
The cheese is aged cheddar, not Monterey Jack.
Panko forms the outermost coating for added crisp.

Is this recipe better than the older one? I like them both, to be honest. Omitting panko makes the prep easier and faster, but I have to admit that the added texture and bulk that panko provides has its appeal.

The cook time below says one minute because there is no option in the recipe plugin to set it to 10 seconds which is really the accurate cooking time. The cooking time really is 10 seconds. If you cook the rolled bread in two batches, then make that 20 seconds.

To serve the fried rolled bread, you will want to cut them into bite-sized pieces. To make neat cuts and to avoid squishing the bread, use kitchen shears instead of a knife.

Crispy ham and cheese bread rolls

Prep: 10

Cook: 1

Chilling 30

Total: 41

Servings: 6 people

Course: Snack

Cuisine: International

Label: Leftover Christmas ham

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Equipment

12 wooden / bamboo toothpicks

Ingredients

6 slices loaf bread crusts cut off
3 tablespoons butter softened to room temperature
6 slices ham
150 grams aged cheddar (about 5 oz) cut into thick fingers
cooking oil for deep frying
1 large egg beaten
1½ cups panko

Instructions

Flatten each slice of bread with a rolling pin.
Smear one side of each slice with softened butter.
Place a slice of ham on the buttered side, top with a piece of cheese, then roll to seal. Repeat until all the bread slices have been filled and rolled.
Place the rolled bread on the plate, cover with cling film and cill for 30 minutes (up to overnight).
Start heating the oil in a frying pan or wok.
Roll each piece of bread in egg then cover with panko.
Secure each rolled bread with toothpicks.
Drop the bread rolls into the hot oil, count five seconds, roll them over, count another five seconds and scoop out.
Pull out the toothpicks and discard.
Cut the bread into thick slices and serve immediately.