Keto Croque Monsieur (Low Carb Hot Pockets)

These nut free Keto hot pockets are crispy on the outside and filled with melted cheese and ham. They're my low carb take on the classic French Croque Monsieur, using a simple fathead dough. Ready in 20 minutes!

If there has to be one toasted sandwich you could make, what would it be? A Croque Monsieur would be mine. It’s essentially a toasted ham and cheese sandwich, just French and better. Well, today I've made it keto!

Traditionally, the Croque Monsieur is baked or fried and made with brioche-like bread. Since anything containing wheat also is high in carbs, I've opted for a simple fathead dough instead, containing mozzarella and either sesame or sunflower seed flour (more about that later!). When baked, this mix turns into a crispy bread - it's so good.

Croque Monsieur is normally filled with cooked ham and Emmental or Gruyere cheese. I used Gruyere, but any Swiss cheese like Comte would also be reminiscent of the real deal. If you're not a fan of stinky French cheeses (I love them, but I'm aware others don't), you could add any hard cheese such as cheddar or Monterey Jack.

Some Croque Monsieur recipes call for a béchamel sauce, others use a mustard. For these hot pockets I chose a sugar free dijon to keep things simple. Also, I feel that adding a creamy sauce such as béchamel would simply be fat overload, considering we're already using a LOT of cheese in this recipe.

Here’s some other keto-friendly Croque variations you could try!

• top with an egg - Croque Madame
• add tomato - Croque Provençal
• replace the ham with smoked salmon - Croque Norvégien
• add bolognese - Croque Bolognese
• with tomato salsa - Croque Señor

How to make keto hot pockets AKA the best ever low carb Croque Monsieur:

1.) Place the mozzarella in a heat proof bowl and heat in the microwave on high for 60 seconds. Stir and heat for a further 20 - 30 seconds until fully melted. Careful not to burn.

2.) Add the sunflower seed or sesame seed flour and mix with a spatula to combine into a ball. If the dough gets too cold at any point simply pop back in the microwave for 30 seconds to warm.

3.) Roll the dough between two sheets of greaseproof paper or a silicone mat and a sheet of greaseproof into an oblong shape.

4.) Place the ham in the centre and top with cheese and mustard. (The mustard is optional but yum - you decide).

Tip: If you use thin ham you can roll it up instead of placing it flat onto the dough. This way your pockets end up thicker and fluffier. You can also use grated cheese instead of cheese slices. This is what I did when I made the recipe the second time around.

5.) Fold the edges of the dough over to form a pocket. Turn the pocket over so the seal is at the bottom. Piece two tiny air holes in the top with a sharp knife. Not too big or the cheese will escape! Bake in the oven for around 12-15 minutes until golden on top.

Recipe Variations

I have tested this recipe with both sunflower seed and sesame seed flour. You don't have to buy either of these ready-made. Simply blend either sunflower or sesame seeds in a high speed blender until finely ground. Don't over-blend or you'll end up with seed butter!

To me, both seed flours tasted equally nice. The nutritional profile is also similar.

Sunflower seeds have more of a nutty flavour than the sesame seeds. The sesame seed version comes up looking more like white bread - see the image above.  Here, I also changed the shape of the hot pocket so it looks more like a legit croque. I folded the dough the other way around, sealed the edges by folding the dough over and ended up with more of a square.

And here's another idea (now again with sunflower seed flour - note the darker dough): Halve the dough, roll out into 2 oblong shapes and fold into half, twisting the edges together. Voila - a keto calzone!

Of course, you can also use almond flour in this recipe. It's one of my favourite low carb flours. I use it in many recipes, but this time wanted to try something different because I know many of you have tree nut allergies and are looking for alternatives.

I like to serve my keto hot pockets with a crisp green salad - this way, they make a great brunch or quick lunch. If you want to push the boat out, add a quick Dijon mayonnaise for dipping. Simply stir together 1 tablespoon of keto mayonnaise and ½ teaspoon of Dijon mustard.

More bread recipes you can use to make an unforgettable keto sandwich: 

• Keto Microwave Bread 
• Almond Flour Bread
• Low Carb Bread
• Best Keto Bagels

Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!

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Recipe

Keto Croque Monsieur - Low Carb Hot Pockets

Katrin Nürnberger

from Sugar Free Londoner

If you're lusting after a hot keto sandwich filled with ham and gooey melted cheese, you've come to the right place. These keto hot pockets are made with a super simple nut free fathead dough and they're supremely satisfying.

5 from 9 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course brunch, Lunch

Cuisine French, Keto

Servings 2

Calories 404 kcal

Note: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

DOUGH

• ▢ ¾ cup / 85g grated mozzarella
• ▢ ½ cup / 50g sunflower seed flour or sesame seed flour

FILLING

• ▢ 60 g good quality ham
• ▢ 50 g Gruyere cheese or cheddar, sliced or grated
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard optional

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 355F / 180C / 160 fan.
• Place the mozzarella in a heat proof bowl and heat in the microwave on high for 60 seconds. Stir and heat for a further 20 - 30 seconds until fully melted. Careful not to burn.
• Add the sunflower seed flour (or sesame seed flour) and mix with a spatula to combine into a ball. You may need to use your hands and knead a bit too. If the dough gets too cold at any point simply pop back in the microwave for 30 seconds to warm.
• Roll the dough between two sheets of greaseproof paper or a silicone mat and a sheet of grease-proof. Roll into an oblong shape.
• Place the ham in the centre and top with cheese and mustard.
• Fold the edges of the dough over to form a pocket. Turn the pocket over so the seal is at the bottom.
• Piece two tiny air holes in the top with a sharp knife. Not too big or the cheese will escape!
• Place the greaseproof paper with the hot pocket onto a baking sheet and bake in the oven for around 12 - 15 minutes or until golden on top.
• Slice in half and enjoy. Option to serve with mustard mayonnaise or a nice fresh salad.

Notes

Nutrition is calculated using sunflower seed flour. 5.5g net carbs per portion. 

If using sesame seed flour, the nutrition changes to: 8.5g total carbs, 29.8g fat, 3g fibre, 27.1g protein, 1g sugar. Net carb amount remains at 5.5g per portion. 

Store in the fridge for up to 3 days. Re-heat in the oven 5-7 minutes. 

Nutrition

Serving: 100gCalories: 404kcalTotal Carbohydrates: 7.6gProtein: 27.8gFat: 30.3gSaturated Fat: 10.8gFiber: 2.2gSugar: 1.6g

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