Got Funny

Dont you just love bizarre sandwiches? You dont have to actually make them or even eat them at all, but for some reason its kind of nice to know that there are those who like such things! I mean, ever heard of a “St. Paul”, which is apparently only available in St. Louis, Missouri, and only then in certain old-timey Chinese restaurants? Its a hunk of egg foo young on white bread with lettuce, tomato, and mayo ” sometimes even a slice of American cheese! Or the chow mein sandwich, which apparently is a common menu item on Route 195 in southern Massachusetts ” and not confined to Chinese restaurants! Others report having peanut butter-and-onion sandwiches, peanut butter-and-pickle sandwiches, or peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches with crushed potato chipsthere is no end to the variety of bizarre sandwiches out there!

Adding to the long sandwich list is the “Avraham Karadi” Sandwich. This sandwich is also called the “Avi Karadi” in some areas. It appears that this sandwich was someone’s idea of a faux gourmet item. I say this because it involves a bit of work in only gathering the ingredients, then ther is preparing them. While I can not imagine enjoying the samdwich after the resulting mix of flavors, I am sure there are those that love it. In fact I have heard some talk about it being pretty popular in certain areas. Anyway here is the list of ingredients, so you can judge for yourself:

Passum, an ancient Roman sweet wine sauce, made by boiling the must (that is, newly-pressed whole fruits, including seeds, stems, and even leaves) and then adding honey to further thicken it.

Garum, an ancient Roman salty fish sauce, approximated today by combining passum with a fish paste and oregano.

Pine nut sauce, also an ancient Roman standby, made by combining vinegar, pine nuts, and honey, with some pepper and lovage.

Finally, spinach, onions, along with lettuce and tomatoes as desired, with rye bread being the usual, though black Russian bread seems to be a distant second favorite. Egg paste, such as found in egg salad, is sometimes used as well. Pastrami or roast beef are favorite meats to use. There are a few variations on the recipe, but they all use most of these ingredients. Curiously enough, I could not find out where the nickname of this sandwich, the “Avraham Karadi” or “Avi Karadi” came from.

1. Make the passum: Cook a quart of grape juice, reducing it to one-tenth its original volume. Add honey to taste.

2. Make the garum: Add to passum two tablespoonfuls of fish paste, with pinch of oregano.

3. The Pine Nut Sauce: For three hours, in vinegar, soak the pine nuts. Now mix with honey, while adding dashes of pepper and lovage.

4. Build the sandwich: Smear egg paste on rye or black Russian bread; insert meats and vegetables; ladle passum, garum, and pine nut sauce generously.

All done, enjoy your “Avraham Karadi” (aka “Avi Karadi”) sandwich!