Behind a counter in the Open Air Market in the Jewish Quarter of downtown Paris, are the very specific ingredients that come together by the hands of a brilliant man named Alan to create a masterpiece. This work of art that resides in the same city as the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo, is unlike any other deli making you’ll ever have. There is a very good reason Alan has such a long line at his shop. He presses olive oil into the baguette with his bare Parisian hands and carefully but swiftly applies only the finest and freshest ingredients to create, dare I say, the greatest sandwich you have ever tasted.
Since I returned from Paris nearly over a month ago, I had the intent to do whatever it takes to recreate this sandwich. So three days ago I stopped by a European market and spent as much money on meat and cheese than the cost of the entire sandwich in Euros. I sautéed mushrooms, grilled onions, and pressed olive oil into the freshly sliced baguette just like Alan did. I thought long and hard about whether the tomatoes go before the lettuce or whether to put the avocado on top of the cheese or on top of the onions. I realize none of these were terribly crucial details but still despite my best efforts, my sandwich just wasn’t nearly as good as Alan’s.
The ingredients and order was all there but Paris wasn’t. Neither was the smell of Moroccan food from the next stand over, or the exhaustion from ten miles of walking in 100-degree weather, or the extra croissant that Alan handed you if you gave him a good smile. It was more than just a sandwich that changed my life. It was the company it brought, the cobblestone streets, and the city.
We often don’t know when or where life-changing things are going to happen. Maybe it’s huge and unavoidable and hits us in the face, maybe it’s as something as small as some cheese and meat on bread. Even if it was never about the sandwich, however big or small, we should learn to appreciate and take special notice to the things that make us stop and think, ‘this literally changed my life.’ They give us the little quirks that make us unique and shape us into the people we become.
Now don’t get me wrong, this is still a dang good sandwich. Which is why I have conveniently provided a list of the ingredients so you can put together your own taste of Paris. It may not have much effect on you, or you may agree with me that it’s the best sandwich you’ve ever tasted. Either way, I get to share an amazing experience I had with you. And that right there, makes me as happy as when I took my first bite out of the sandwich that changed my life.
The Life Changing Ingredients
French bread
Cantal cheese
Jambon deli meat
Red leaf lettuce
Tomato
Avocado
Olive Oil
Grilled Onions
Sautéed mushrooms
A collection of whatever spices sound like they should be in there.