Tramezzino with Shrimp, Egg, and Arugula

The tramezzino is not a sandwich. It is an institution. In Venice, you stand at the bar of a bacaro in late afternoon, order a spritz, and point to the glass case where these soft white triangles wait in orderly rows. The bartender hands you one on a small plate. You eat it in four bites, standing, watching the light change on the canal outside.

Americans make sandwiches sturdy. They pile ingredients high and press everything together. The tramezzino does the opposite. The bread is so soft it nearly dissolves. The fillings are restrained, two or three ingredients at most, bound lightly with mayonnaise. The crust is removed because crust would interfere with the texture. This is not about fuel. This is about pleasure.

Shrimp, egg, and arugula is a classic Venetian combination. The sweetness of the shrimp, the richness of the egg, the pepper bite of the arugula. Nothing more. What you keep out is as significant as what you put in.