Reuben Sandwich

Today will be the last post of my St. Patrick's Day themed March :(

I'm a little sad. Luckily, I still have a bunch of leftover goodies in my freezer so I can pull them out when I'm going through withdrawal in a couple days.

And I still have a gigantic container of shamrock sprinkles! Springtime shamrock shakes? You better believe it!

Today's recipe is a good old fashioned Reuben! I love all sandwiches because of how creative they allow you to be with mixing and matching ingredients. And the Reuben is one of my absolute favorite combinations. The unique taste and texture of the corned beef, the strong flavor of the sauerkraut, and the tangy Russian dressing. Perfection!

For my personal twist on the sandwich, I used whole wheat sandwich thins. It just happened to be the bread I had on hand and I don't love rye enough to buy and use a whole loaf. I actually liked the sandwich thins. As I've stated before, I think that bread has a tendency to swallow up the flavors of a sandwich and I wanted to taste every delicious bite of this sandwich without the bread mellowing it out at all. Plus, it makes the sandwich quite a bit more diet friendly. I also substituted muenster cheese for swiss. I'm not the biggest fan of swiss cheese and I don't think it melts well. To me, muenster tastes like a cross between swiss and provolone so it seemed like the ideal substitution.

The highlight of this sandwich is the Russian dressing. I used a recipe I found that was based off of the Zingerman's recipe. The only changes I made were that I omitted the lemon juice because I didn't have any, I substituted soy sauce for Worcestershire sauce because I hate that stuff with a passion, and I increased the horseradish from 1/2 teaspoon to a full tablespoon for a liiiiiittle extra bite. This dressing is creamy and chunky and completely delicious. I'll never ever buy it from the store again. Period.

Just whip up this recipe next time you're craving a nice warm delicatessen-quality sandwich!

Reuben Sandwich (1 sandwich)

For the Russian dressing from Food Network

• 3/4 cups mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 teaspoons chopped curly parsley leaves
• 2 tablespoon onion, minced
• 2 tablespoon sweet pickle, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated horseradish
• 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce

1. Combine the mayonnaise, chili sauce, sour cream, parsley, onion, pickle, horseradish and soy sauce in a bowl and mix well.
2. This makes about two cups. Store in an airtight contain in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. 

For the Reuben

•  1 tablespoon butter
• 2 slices of your favorite bread (rye if you want to be tradition, sandwich thins if you want to be carb conscious)
• 2 slices muenster cheese (swiss, if you prefer the original)
• 1/4 cup sauerkraut
• 2 ounces shredded or sliced corned beef, warmed
• 1-2 tablespoons Russian dressing

1. Heat a skillet over medium heat. 
2. Butter the outsides of your bread. Place one slice of bread butter-side down in the skillet. Put one slice of cheese on the bread. Layer with half of the sauerkraut and half of the Russian dressing. Then put on all of the corned beef. Finally, layer with the rest of the Russian dressing, the rest of the sauerkraut, and the other slice of cheese. Place the other slice of bread butter-side up on top of the sandwich. 
3. Grill for about 3 minutes on each side, or until the cheese is melted and the outside of the bread is golden-brown.

Russian ingredients

homemade Russian dressing!

looks deli-worthy to me!

Honey Mustard Glazed Corned Beef and Cabbage

I love corned beef and cabbage. I look forward to it all year long.

That's all going to change now that I know how to make it. It is no longer reserved for only St. Patrick's Day.

I load mine up with horseradish and vinegar. Like a borderline gross amount. And I wonder why I haven't been on any dates lately. Probably because I smell like boiled cabbage and vinegar. At least my taste buds have companionship :)

In order to make this recipe slightly more diet friendly, I substituted parsnips for potatoes and doubled the carrots.

My favorite part of this recipe is the glaze. I think it gives the corned beef a really great flavor. And putting the meat in the oven for about 20 minutes makes it a little crispy on the edges while still preserving the tenderness.

In general, I was surprised by how quickly and easily this came together. The only thing that will stop me from making this once every couple months is the price of corned beef. Out of season (St. Patrick's Day season, that is), it's straight up ridiculous!

Honey Mustard Glazed Corned Beef and Cabbage (6 servings) adapted from Closet Cooking

For the corned beef

·         3-4 pound corned beef brisket

·         3 tablespoons of Dijon or spicy brown mustard

·         1 tablespoon of honey

·         2 tablespoons of brown sugar

For the vegetables

·         1 head of cabbage, cut into 6 wedges

·         1 bag of carrots, sliced

·         1 bag of parsnips, sliced

·         1 onion, sliced

1.       Place the corned beef along with the spices into a large pot and cover completely with water.

2.       Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until fork tender (about 1 hour per pound).

3.       Remove the beef from the water, keeping the water in the pot. Scrape the fat off of the top and sides of the corned beef (it should fall right off if you scrape the meat with the back side of a butter knife). Pat the meat dry.

4.       Mix the honey and the mustard in a small bowl. Spread evenly over the beef.

5.       Sprinkle the beef with the brown sugar.

6.       Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

7.       While the corned beef is in the oven, put the carrots, parsnips, and onions in the pot with the water that the corned beef was cooked in. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the cabbage and simmer for another 15-20 minutes.

8.       Slice the beef against the grain and serve with the vegetables. 

look at that gorgeous slab corned beef!

I'm going to be eating corned beef and cabbage for dayyyys.