WHO COOKED
THAT UP?

J.J. Schnebel wonders...

It is rare that a recipe can be traced to its actual origin.  Like all good things, a good recipe has many claimants to its parentage.  However, when James L. Brooks wrote the screenplay for his film  "Spanglish" he included in the stage directions the notation that the hero of his film, a culinary genius, would make "a snack we will remember and copy."  By the time the script got to the actor, Adam Sandler, the snack was expected to be something that "everyone in the audience would want to eat at home."  And by the time it got to the professional chef who was the advisor on the film it was expected to be "the world's greatest sandwich."

And so it fell to Thomas Keller,  whose Napa Valley restaurant The French Laundry is a landmark in California cuisine, not only to create this amazing snack but also to train Adam Sandler, who had never cooked before, to make it so well on screen that his character would contemplate it and exclaim, "Oh -- Baby" even before taking a bite.  This tall order was met so well that almost from the moment the film was released people began sharing the recipe, and the sandwich began appearing on the internet as well as on menus of trendy restaurants.

Actually, it is a variation or embellishment of an old American favorite -- affectionately called the "BLT" for Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato.  Some would say that Thomas Keller merely took those three basic ingredients and added a fried egg and cheese, but on a short film on the DVD of the movie, you can see what a difference a good chef makes.  Even the placement of the bacon is important and of course the egg must be just runny enough so that the yolk is almost a sauce spilling over and through the toasted bread.  Incidentally, it calls for "pain de campagne" translated as "rustic country bread." I tried it with San Francisco sourdough bread and it was excellent.

Is it the "World's Greatest Sandwich?"  Try it for yourself.  Here is the recipe provided by  Sony Pictures on its web site:

You might want to read more about chef Thomas Keller here and visit his restaurant, The French Laundry here
.
Learn more about the film "Spanglish" here and read Roger Ebert's review here.
 

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