Bob:

As usual, I really appreciate your comments re naming if the Monte Cristo
sandwich. Previously, I believed that the sandwich had been created by Procter
& Gamle, makers of Crisco. I just thought they changed the "c" to a "t" to give
the sandwich, fried in crisco, a classie name. Now, I know better.

Andy

>
>The Monte Christo is two slices of French toast (pain perdue) with
>stuff between, cooked on a griddle. I've seen deep-fried ones, but
>they were held together by various picks and skewers and might be
>imagined to be merely grease-delivery vehicles with the caloric
>content of, perhaps, napalm. I've even seen them *breaded* and deep
>fried, but passed on the potential delights they might bring.
>
>I suspect that the pressed grilled cheese approach is considerably older.
>
> I believe that the Monte Christo was invented at a small bistro
>called Chez Edmund Dantes in the tiny village or Monte. Named after a
>secretive relative (recently found to be the brother-in-law of the
>owner, one Cristo, who was an accountant and spelled badly) who had a
>passion for eggs and bread, it was invented my Mere Dantes one
>Wednesday afternoon to just get her brother off her aching back.
> The place was busy, what with the revolution going on and people
>calling each other "Citizen" and all, and she didn't need her whiny
>brother distracting her. She made him sit in one of the unused banquet
>rooms so he wouldn't disturb the women at their knitting. "Restez la,"
>she commanded and he, wisely, did, sword or no sword.
> She had a cancellation, some former aristocrat who wanted breakfast
>at noon and lost his head over the order, and had these two slices of
>Pain Merveille sitting in milk and egg. "Sacre bleu," she said,
>because all French people say that.
> She dropped them onto the griddle, browned one side, flipped them
>over and topped them with slices of the new rage, dindon, plus fromage
>Suisse, jambon and some miscellany. Pressed it down with a spatula,
>cut it into quarters and had it served it to her brother with a
>plebian white wine, young and brash but with small signs of a future
>greatness, not to mention overtones of strawberries, guavas (which
>they had never seen), lumber, Xanax, February and Alpha Centauri.
> She called to the serving wench, "Bring this to the Accountant of
>Monte, Cristo." Over the years, there have been small changes to the
>name and formulation, and even Cristo's name, but the spirit remains.
>
>The rest, as we all know, is history.
>
>Pastorio
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