I'm a mystery buff, and a fan of Rex Stout's culinary minded sleuth, Nero Wolfe. In The Father Hunt sidekick Archie Goodwin snacked on an egg & anchovy sandwich while awaiting instructions from Wolfe. Having a thing for anchovies, I wanted to try one of these sandwiches.
I found an egg and anchovy sandwich recipe, resembling what was described in the story, on the Australian Women's Weekly's site, of all places. Their recipe feeds six people. I altered it for one person. My ingredient amounts aren't precisely 1/6 of their totals though, because my recipe doesn't have the sandwich maker leave an empty 1 inch margin between the fillings and the edges of the bread. I also mixed a few teaspoons of yellow mustard with my mayo for an extra tang without the sharp vinegary bite straight mustard, sometimes, delivers.
-
Egg & Anchovy Sandwich
INGREDIENTS
3 tsp. mayonnaise
2 tsp. yellow mustard
2 thick bread slices
1.5 large hard-boiled eggs
4 anchovy fillets
PROCEDURE
Mix the mayonnaise & mustard together in a ramekin, or small bowl, until the mixture is pale yellow in color. Spread some mayonnaise mixture generously over one side of each slice of bread. Place half the egg slices in mounds on one bread slice. Top with the anchovy fillets, then the remaining egg slices. Cover with the second piece of bread and press firmly on the edges to seal the sandwich. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve immediately.
The result is a tangy salty sandwich, with a nice umami undertone from the egg. Served with a cold beer, this sandwich is perfect for any bar's menu or at home poker night.
-
I thought anchovy sandwiches were open-faced, served on small pieces of pumpernickel bread. Butter the bread slices, put a slice of hard-boiled egg on each piece, and then top with anchovy.
ReplyDeleteGreg, you’re thinking of Smørrebrød (Danish for "butter and bread"), which is a traditional Scandinavian open-faced sandwich that usually consists of a piece of buttered rye bread (rugbrød), brown bread, topped with pieces of; meat, fish, cheese, pickled vegetables, and/or pate.
DeleteMine's a different kind of anchovy sandwich derived from the one found in Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe novels.