This delicious gratinéed sandwich—amazing comfort food, whether you had it in childhood or not—is a good example of the kinds of little-known but wonderful food traditions that exist across the U.S. In the early 1920s, The Brown Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky drew a swank late-night crowd every evening—and these people needed to be fed! The hotel’s chef, Fred Schmidt, got bored with the bill of fare he prepared midnight after midnight—so he got creative in 1923, and came up with an open-faced sandwich in a gratin dish, made with some variation of chicken, turkey, ham and bacon, topped with tomatoes and mornay sauce, and passed under the broiler. You can still find it today in Louisville—or in your kitchen. No need to wait for midnight; it’s a great dish for lunch, brunch, or a light supper.
makes 2 servings
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup loosely packed grated gruyere cheese
3 slices good quality white bread (or as a variation, brioche)
6 ounces thinly sliced roast turkey breast (leftovers are good; turkey roll is not)
6 slices crisp cooked thinly sliced bacon
4 slices ripe tomato, cut 1/4″ thick
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add flour, stirring with a wooden spoon to make a smooth roux. Cook over medium-low heat, until the mixture smells nutty (about 2 to 3 minutes.) Do not allow the roux to color.
2. Whisk in the milk. Use the wooden spoon to get lumps out of corners. Whisk until mixture is free of lumps. Bring to a simmer and add nutmeg. Simmer for five minutes to thicken.
3. Place yolk in a mixing bowl and slowly add white sauce, whisking constantly, to temper the yolk. Return mixture to pan, and cook over low heat for another 2-3 minutes to thicken slightly. Add cheeses and continue cooking until cheese is melted and mornay sauce is smooth.
4. Preheat broiler. Place about 2 tablespoons of mornay sauce in the bottom of 2 gratin dishes (4 tablespoons altogether.) Lightly toast the bread, then cut each slice on diagonal into two triangles. Place three bread triangles in each gratin dish, overlapping slightly.
5. Cover the bread slices with the remaining ingredients in the following order: turkey, bacon, tomato slices. Make sure to divide these ingredients evenly between the two gratin dishes. Cover with remaining mornay sauce; each sandwich will get about 1/2 cup of the sauce, or a little more. Sprinkle each dish with 1 tablespoon of grated Parmesan.
6. Place dishes under broiler, and cook until the sauce is browned and bubbly. Serve immediately.
