Benedictine (spread)

Spread/dip made with cucumbers and cream cheese

Benedictine

Benedictine spread, which is used as a filling for Benedictine sandwiches

Type| Sandwich filling
Place of origin| United States
Region or state| Louisville, Kentucky
Created by| Jennie Carter Benedict
Serving temperature| cold or room temperature
Main ingredients| Cucumbers, cream cheese
Ingredients generally used| onion, mayonnaise

Benedictine or Benedictine spread is a spread made with cucumbers and cream cheese.[1][2][3] Invented near the beginning of the 20th century,[1] it was originally and still is used for making Benedictine sandwiches, a type of cucumber sandwich, but it also has been used as a dip[3][4] or combined with meat in a sandwich.[5][6] This spread can be obtained pre-made from some Louisville, Kentucky-area grocery stores.[7]

Although benedictine is rarely seen in restaurants outside the state of Kentucky, it has been written about in articles in national publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Saveur Magazine, and also reported about on multimedia outlets such as the Food Network and NPR.

A benedictine-based sandwich was featured on the Food Network's 50 States 50 Sandwiches program in 2012,[8] on the television shows of celebrity chefs Paula Deen[9] and Damaris Phillips,[5] in Southern Living magazine as one of June's "2011 Best Recipes" for their corresponding issue,[10] in Garden & Gun magazine,[11] in PopSugar,[12][13] and in the Smithsonian's Folklife Magazine.[14]

## History

[edit]

Benedictine spread and the Benedictine sandwich was invented around the end of the 19th century by Jennie Carter Benedict (1860–1928), a caterer, restaurateur and cookbook author in Louisville, Kentucky.[15][16] Benedict opened a kitchen for providing catering services in 1893, and in 1900 opened a restaurant and tea room called Benedict's.[15] It was probably during her catering period when she invented and originally served benedictine.[17]

Benedict's cookbooks are still being sold a century after they were first published. For example, her The Blue Ribbon Cook Book, which first published in 1902, has been reprinted numerous times and recently in 2008.[18] Although early editions of this book do not contain a recipe for the spread,[19] the 2022 edition does.[20]

## Ingredients and preparation

[edit]

The original Benedictine recipe by Benedict, as reported by the Louisville Courier-Journal and NPR, included cream cheese, cucumber juice, onion juice, salt, cayenne pepper, and a couple drops of green food coloring.[2][3]

Modern variants of the recipe typically call for grated or chopped cucumber, chopped onions, mayonnaise, and dill, and often omit the food coloring.[1][3][21]

Benedictine sandwiches are typically served as a type of tea sandwich or finger sandwich, with crusts trimmed and the sandwich cut into four pieces, either fingers or triangles, to make them convenient to eat with one hand.[16] Garden & Gun called them Kentucky's answer to the pimiento cheese sandwich.[22]

Preparation of Benedictine sandwiches

* Ingredients for Benedictine spread: cream cheese, green onions, mayonnaise, salt, pepper, chopped cucumbers, dill

* Benedictine spread

* Benedictine tea sandwiches

## See also

[edit]

* Food portal

* Pimento cheese
* Tzatziki
* Cuisine of Kentucky
* History of Louisville, Kentucky
* List of common dips
* List of sandwiches

## References

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1. ^ a b c "Benedictine Recipe Details | Recipe database". The Washington Post. April 25, 2007. Archived from the original on July 16, 2013. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
2. ^ a b Popham, Mary (April 22, 2009). "Benedictine spread; Miss Jennie Benedict's famed cookbook is back, with lots of extras". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
3. ^ a b c d Peterson, Erica (July 13, 2013). "A Summery Spread That's As Cool As A Cucumber". NPR. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 5, 2014.
4. ^ Schrambling, Regina (May 28, 1989). "Food; Bluegrass Flavor". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 16, 2017. Retrieved January 31, 2017.
5. ^ a b Phillips, Damaris (May 11, 2014). "Borage, Benedictine and Bacon Sandwiches". Southern at Heart. Season 2. Episode ZD0209H. Food Network. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Ladies' Tea Party. Retrieved July 13, 2014.
6. ^ Schrambling, Regina (April 30, 2003). "They're off and partying: The Derby bash is a Kentucky tradition worth duplicating in the West. Try these race-day classics". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 3, 2015. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
7. ^ Gray, Lori (March 18, 2002). "Derby Delight: Everybody wants the spread in Louisville". Saveur. Archived from the original on August 25, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
8. ^ Thompson, Sharon (August 15, 2012). "Food Network declares a Benedictine sandwich one of country's best". Lexington Herald-Leader. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
9. ^ Deen, Paula (May 6, 2006). "Benedictine Sandwiches". Paula's Home Cooking. Season 6. Episode PA0713H. Food Network. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Mother's Day. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
10. ^ "2011 Best Recipes: June - Kentucky Benedictine Tea Sandwiches". Southern Living. June 2011. Archived from the original on August 13, 2014. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
11. ^ Portman, Jed (March 28, 2013). "Pimento Cheese's Kentucky Cousin". Garden & Gun. Archived from the original on October 16, 2017. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
12. ^ Einhart, Nancy (May 7, 2008). "'Wich of the Week: Benedictine Cheese Tea Sandwiches". PopSugar. Archived from the original on October 16, 2017. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
13. ^ Benedictine Sandwiches Recipe - Between the Bread - Food How To. PopSugar. May 15, 2013. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021 - via YouTube.
14. ^ Cieslik, Emma (April 28, 2025). "And Down the Stretch, It's Benedictine Spread for the Kentucky Derby!". Folklife Magazine. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved July 22, 2025.
15. ^ a b Birnsteel, Laurie A. (2001). "Benedict, Jennie Carter". In Kleber, John E. (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Louisville (1 ed.). pp. 85–86\. ISBN 9780813128900. Retrieved July 5, 2014 - via Google Books.
16. ^ a b "Benedictine Sandwich Spread". Saveur. March 18, 2002. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
17. ^ Stinnett, Donna (October 2, 2006). "Claim to fame Kentucky restaurant owner, caterer contributes". Evansville Courier & Press. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
18. ^ Cox, Larry (November 26, 2008). "Storied Kentucky cookbook still has relevance today". Tucson Citizen. Archived from the original on August 26, 2014. Retrieved August 22, 2014.
19. ^ Benedict, Jennie C. (1904). The Blue Ribbon Cook Book (2nd ed.). Louisville: John P. Morton.
20. ^ Benedict, Jennie C. (2022). The Blue Ribbon Cook Book. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0-81-319533-9. Archived from the original on August 19, 2023. Retrieved August 18, 2023 - via Google books. "... this edition is the first to come complete with the now-famous spread that bears Benedict's name."
21. ^ Skladany, Joey (April 26, 2024). "Kentucky Benedictine Sandwiches". Southern Living. Retrieved March 22, 2025.
22. ^ Portman, Jed (March 28, 2013). "Pimento Cheese's Kentucky Cousin". Garden & Gun. Retrieved March 22, 2025.