Sándwich Elena Ruz
Entre Panes: Between Cuban Bread
Long before secret menus, a teenage socialite named Elena Ruz would hit up Havana's El Carmelo in the 1930s, demanding a highly specific sweet-and-savory turkey sandwich until they finally put her name in neon lights. Today, it is a brilliant, high-contrast masterpiece of the Cuban diaspora—a tangy, sweet, and deeply savory weeknight savior that reigns supreme as the ultimate post-Thanksgiving tradition. With a good deli turkey and a soft brioche bun from the local market, you can recreate this taste of old Havana in ten minutes flat.
Ingredients
- brioche buns2
- cream cheese4 tbsp
- strawberry preserves4 tbsp
- roast turkey breast1/2 lb
- unsalted butter2 tbsp
Method
- 01
Coat the bread.
Generously spread the softened cream cheese on the bottom buns and the strawberry preserves on the top buns, using the dairy to create a moisture barrier.
- 02
Layer the turkey.
Arrange the sliced turkey evenly over the cream cheese, slightly warming the meat in the microwave first if pulling it straight from the fridge so you don't serve a cold center.
- 03
Butter the exterior.
Close the sandwiches and lightly butter the top and bottom crusts.
- 04
Toast carefully without pressing.
Heat a skillet over medium-low and toast the sandwiches gently for two to three minutes per side until deeply golden. Apply only enough pressure with a spatula to ensure even pan contact—crushing the sandwich will ruin the airy bread and shoot hot jam out the sides.
- 05
Slice and serve.
Remove from the pan, slice in half diagonally, and serve immediately while the exterior is crisp and the sweet, savory interior is perfectly soft.
Notes
The diaspora twist.
While strawberry preserves are historically canonical, swapping them out for guava marmalade is a heavily favored Cuban-American variation.
Tostado, no prensado.
Resist every instinct to press this sandwich in a heavy plancha like a traditional Cuban; the delicate egg bread is meant to remain soft and aerated.
From Cook Cuban in America.