The Swedish Dish So Good Policemen Wanted It As A Bribe
Who knows how many people were saved by sandwiches? The simple and inexpensive heroes are suitable for any age, and everyone loves them, whether young or old. Food Timeline reports that the word sandwich was attributed to John Montagu, fourth Earl of Sandwich, who invented the sandwich in the late 18th century. Montagu was apparently a gambler who created this easy and portable type of food because he didn't want to leave his gambling table to have a meal.
Nowadays, there are different types of sandwiches. CTPost reveals that a classic one consists of two slices of bread with a filling in between, while open-faced sandwiches consist of one bread slice topped with various ingredients. Throughout Scandinavia, open-faced sandwiches are the most popular choice for a quick bite and are called smorrebrod.
And although smorrebrod originates from Denmark, it's also popular in Norway and Sweden (per Scandi Kitchen). Sweden even has its own traditional dish that can best be described as an evolved sandwich, and it is so good that a bizarre case happened when police officers wanted it as a bribe.
The policemen wanted a smorgastarta sandwich cake as a bribe
The Swedes decided to take the sandwiches and transform them into large sandwich cakes called smorgastarta. This sandwich cake is especially popular in spring and summer and is commonly served at parties and birthdays. Smorgastarta is typically made with white or rye bread and fillings such as liver pate, shrimp or salmon salads, or cold cuts. The bread should be sturdy, while the fillings shouldn't be too mushy. Once assembled, smorgastarta is frosted with cream cheese and garnished with vegetables such as cucumbers, bell peppers, hard-boiled eggs, and tomatoes (via Curious Cuisinière).
This sandwich cake is so popular in Sweden that there was a case in which a trombonist lost his trombone and asked the police for help. And in order for his case to be pushed to the top of the priority list, the policemen wanted a smorgastarta from a particular bakery made with specially-selected ingredients, and the sandwich cake was supposed to be big enough to feed 10 police officers. The trombone thief was caught, the instrument was swiftly returned to its rightful owner, and the smorgastarta bribery case ended up in court (per The Local).
On another note, Swedish Spoon reports that a man named Hasse Pettersson made the world's longest smorgastarta for the Guinness Book of World Records, measuring 1,675 feet and 5 inches long. We can only hope that thieves won't steal a musical instrument (or anything else) from Pettersson.