Behind The Plate: Joe Maddon Brings Family Recipe To Wrigley Field
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The newest addition to the Wrigley Field concession stands comes straight from new Cubs skipper Joe Maddon.
"I'm salivating," he said.
Maddon says his Italian Hoagie will make any Cubs fan hungry.
"Oooo, it's good," he laughed. "My favorite. I know fans will dig them,."
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The recipe belongs to Maddon's Aunt Geneva, who created it in the late 1940s, and is a popular item at the family's deli in Hazleton, Pennsylvania.
"Uncle Carly and Aunt Geneva started Third Base Luncheonette in 1949 I believe," Maddon said. "They did all that and then they came up with the recipe for this hoagie."
His 81-year-old mother, Beanie, still works there, and her "Third Base Hoagies" are apparently something to die for.
"Beanie's in the back, she's flippin burgers, answering the phones, making these sandwiches," Maddon said.
So what's in the Joe Maddon Italian Hoagie?
"There's olive oil, onions, boiled ham, salami, white American cheese, tomato, salt and pepper, lettuce," he said.
But Maddon says the key is the bread and the peppers.
"They're crushed," he said. "The vinegary taste comes from the peppers but they're unique and I don't even know the brand name but it's really good bread. You gotta to get a really good roll to begin with."
When the sandwich was brought over to Wrigley Field this year, the team consulted Maddon to get right.
"They gave me a sample," he said. "I gave them some suggestions to make it better. They've gotten pretty close."
Maddon says he's made the hoagies for his players, and his mother even brought the sandwiches to him and his team before Game 3 of the 2008 World Series, when he was managing the Tampa Bay Rays. And if the Wrigley Field concessionaires need a little help creating the perfect hoagie?
"Have you been back there to make sure they're making it right?" Maddon said. "I did. I did. Yeah, absolutely."
The Joe Maddon Italian Hoagie sells for $10 at the concession stands. Employees say they sell about 60 of the sandwiches each game and often times sell out.
Maddon says he's thrilled to bring a little taste of home to Chicago Cubs fans.
"They brought us some down, they were really, really good," he said.
