A Take on the Spanglish Sandwich

Spanglish is a nice little movie that will make me pause when flipping the channels. Cloris Leachman! Tolerable Adam Sandler! Eli Gold's daughter! Téa Leoni (playing a nightmare)! And of course I can understand the hubba-hubba factor of Paz Vega.

Then there's that sandwich.

Late one night, in the throes of ... some stress or another, fake-movie-chef Adam Sandler cobbles together the sandwich of dreams. And we, the salivating viewers, lean a little closer to the screen.

Bacon, egg, lettuce, tomato, crunchy bread. It seems simple but looks exotic, ethereal almost.

So it should come as no surprise by now that I've made this sandwich a few times. I had to! Various iterations, all compiled eagerly and hopefully. Then enjoyed immensely.

Here's a simple iteration that should soothe your soul. I got for Creole mustard rather than mayo, spinach rather than butter lettuce, whole-wheat versus "rustic country bread." Added Swiss cheese on top of the Monterey Jack. Oh, and I fried the egg and browned the tomato in rendered bacon fat. As you do.

(Disclaimer: I am not a health nut.)

 

 

Spanglish Sandwich
(the "No Grocery Trip" edition)

Makes 2 sandwiches.

Ingredients:4 slices multi-grain sandwich bread
2 slices Monterey Jack
2 slices Swiss
4 slices bacon
2 eggs
2 slices tomato
2 oz. spinach
1 tablespoon Creole mustard

1. Heat cast-iron over medium. Add bacon slices and fry, pressing down with a spatula to render the fat. Reserve on a paper towel, pressing down to degrease.
2. Meanwhile, toast bread slices—two in the toaster. The other two will be toasted under the broiler with a slice of Monterey Jack and a slice of Swiss on top of each piece of bread. Toast for about five minutes until cheese has started to melt.
3. Return to your cast-iron and pour off a little bit of the rendered bacon grease. Add tomato slices and brown for 2–3 minutes on each side. Set aside.
4. Crack eggs into skillet and lower heat as the edges start to set. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then cover the skillet and let cook for 3 minutes.
5. Compile each sandwich as such: spread one slice of the bread with mustard. Add tomato, then spinach. On other slice (the side with cheese on it), add fried egg, then bacon. Press together and enjoy!
6. Oh yeah, grab some napkins.