Ribbon Dainties

  

      When I was married June 2, 1956 (47 years ago) there were a lot of wedding and baby showers and college graduation parties and one of my favorite foods to make for the parties I hosted was ribbon sandwiches. You could take three days to make these sandwiches and the day of the party took the least amount of work. Every one enjoyed them because you could just pop them in your mouth. My mother in law gave me the recipe that she had used since she first was a bride and that was in 1924, 79 years ago. I changed it a little, but not much. She had cream cheese and olive in hers and I have egg and olive in mine. The cream cheese was hard to spread and most times tore the bread. You do have to be a little careful about the amount of filling you spread.  Don’t make it too thick and cut them with a sharp knife.

Yield: 20 sandwiches   4 cuts =100 pieces    5 cuts = 200 pieces     Revised For Nicole’s Shower 5/17/08

• 1 ½ pounds bologna
• 1 16 ounce jar Hannaford old fashioned dill pickle slices  NOT KOSHER OR POLISH
• 6 (5ounce) cans white albacore tuna
• 2 stalks celery, finely minced
• ½ small onion, minced
• 16 large eggs, hard cooked, peeled and finely chopped
• ½ of a 10 ounce jar of green olives with pimento, finely chopped
• ½ quart mayonnaise
• ⅓-½ cup mustard or to taste
• 2 loaves (20 slices each loaf) Country Kitchen whole wheat bread (40 slices)
• 2 loaves (25 slices each loaf) Wonder Kids sandwich bread (50 slices)

1.  Drain brine from pickles and olives (separately) and pat dry in paper towels. Grind bologna and pickle together; mix with mayonnaise and a little mustard to bind the mixture.  Cover and refrigerate.

2.  Flake tuna and combine with celery and onion; mix with mayonnaise and a little mustard to bind. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

3.  Combine eggs and olives; mix with mayonnaise and a little mustard. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

NEXT DAY:

1.  Remove spreads from refrigerator 1 hour before using.  Use 4 slices of bread for each sandwich.

     SLICE # 1 whole wheat, lightly spread with tuna. SLICE# 2 white bread, lightly spread with bologna salad.  Slice # 3 whole wheat bread, lightly spread with egg salad.

2.  Place slice #2 on slice #1. Place slice # 3 on slice # 2. Place slice # 4 white bread, on slice # 3. Wrap sandwiches in waxed paper, then in plastic wrap or in waxed paper and a damp tea towel and refrigerate.

PARTY DAY: Unwrap sandwiches; cut off all crusts and place in a plastic bag, they are great to snack on. Cut sandwiches into 5 long ribbons, then cut the 5 ribbons in half, crosswise. Each sandwich will make 10 bite sized pieces, or you can cut the sandwiches into the 5 ribbons and serve them that way.

  

NOTE: Another change I made was from ground ham mixed with sweet pickle relish to a recipe made for us when we were children that we loved. It was bologna, ground with dill pickles and mixed with mayonnaise and a little mustard. I also changed the size.  Nana sliced her sandwiches in 5 long slices and I made another crosswise cut to make 10 daintier sized pieces. So you do have choices, just be sure that the mixtures are easy to spread so that the bread won’t tear when you slice them.