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Kentucky Hot Brown Sandwiches - a Kansas version

I was introduced to Hot Brown Sandwiches during our last trip to Kentucky when we met Colonel Bob and Cora Jane Spiller for lunch at a downtown restaurant in Bowling Green. 
We enjoyed a leisurely lunch with lots of conversation including the story about the origin of the sandwich.
This is my “loose” interpretation of that turkey, bacon and cheese sandwich bathed in a cheesy sauce . . . using what I have on hand, my Kansas version. There are many variations of the “original” recipe; the types of cheese used in the sauce varies from regular to white Cheddar to all Parmesan. The “original: recipe that I found at allrecipe.com includes specific amounts; my version is more of a general guideline. The original calls for roasted turkey; I used thin slices of Barry’s roasted turkey breast. It allows two slices of toast and two pieces of bacon per person, we used only one of each per serving. I omitted the egg and heavy cream that the original added to the white sauce and just used a basic sauce with cheese. Also used cherry tomatoes in place of the traditional slice. It was a delicious rendition of the lovely time we shared with the Spillers back in June of 2013.

Kentucky Hot Brown Sandwich 
1 slice of bread per person, toasted and cut in 2 triangles
Thinly sliced smoked turkey or roasted turkey
Cherry tomatoes, cut in half or 1 tomato slice per sandwich
Cheese sauce (basic white sauce with Cheddar cheese added)
Parmesan cheese – enough to add a little to the cheese sauce & to sprinkle over the top of the sandwich
1 slice of crisp bacon per sandwich 
Parsley or chives for garnish if desired
  1. Preheat the oven's broiler. 
  2. For each hot brown, place toast triangles in the bottom of an individual sized casserole dish. 
  3. Cover with a liberal amount of roasted turkey and cherry tomato halves.
  4. Spoon sauce over the top of each one and sprinkle Parmesan cheese. 
  5. Place the dishes under the broiler and cook until the top is speckled brown, about 5 minutes. 
  6. Remove from the broiler and arrange two slices of bacon in a cross shape on top of each sandwich. 
  7. Garnish with parsley or chives if desired and serve immediately with a fork!
STORY OF THE SANDWICH: The Kentucky Hot Brown  was originally created in 1926 at the Brown Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky. Chef Fred K. Schmidt came up with the sandwich to feed late-night revelers at the hotel, which was a hotspot for live music and dancing in the 1920s. When the musicians took a break at midnight, the crowds would flock to the restaurant for sustenance to keep them going for the rest of the night.

Recipe without photos . . .
Kentucky Hot Brown Sandwich 
1 slice of bread per person, toasted and cut in 2 triangles
Thinly sliced smoked turkey or roasted turkey
Cherry tomatoes, cut in half or 1 tomato slice per sandwich
Cheese sauce (basic white sauce with Cheddar cheese added)
Parmesan cheese – enough to add a little to the cheese sauce & to sprinkle over the top of the sandwich
1 slice of crisp bacon per sandwich 
Parsley or chives for garnish if desired
  1. Preheat the oven's broiler. 
  2. For each hot brown, place triangle toast in the bottom of an individual sized casserole dish. 
  3. Cover with a liberal amount of roasted turkey and cherry tomato halves.
  4. Spoon sauce over the top of each one and sprinkle Parmesan cheese. 
  5. Place the dishes under the broiler and cook until the top is speckled brown, about 5 minutes. 
  6. Remove from the broiler and arrange two slices of bacon in a cross shape on top of each sandwich. 
  7. Garnish with parsley or chives if desired and serve immediately with a fork!

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