Reuben Bread
If you are looking for a twist on a Reuben sandwich try baking all the traditional ingredients into a loaf of bread. By using quick rising yeast, this bread can be ready to eat in right around an hour. It tastes amazing, and looks pretty impressive, too. Easier than you think, it will look like you spent all day making it. Plus, you can switch out the ingredients in all sorts of fun combinations. The other night we used ham and Gouda instead of the corned beef and Swiss for a cheesy ham bread. Added a grainy mustard to the bread, too. Came out so nice! I recently also made spinach filled bread and a mushroom and Swiss filled variation.
This would make a great bread to serve for your Super Bowl party. Fun for anytime. really.
Reuben Bread
3 ¼ c. all purpose or bread flour, you can add a little rye flour, too
1 T. sugar
1 t. salt
1 package quick-rising yeast, or a scant tablespoon of yeast in bulk
1 c. hot water
1 T. oil
¼ c. thousand island dressing*
6-8 oz. thin sliced corned beef – or thin sliced smoked turkey for a Rachel
4 oz. sliced Swiss cheese
1 c. sauerkraut, rinsed and squeezed dry
1 egg white, beaten
Caraway seeds
Set aside 1 cup of the flour. Combine remaining flour with the other dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir in water and oil and gradually stir in enough flour to make a soft dough. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Roll dough into a rectangle about 16 x 8. Spread dressing down center middle of dough. Top with meat slices, cheese and sauerkraut. Cut one-inch wide strips of dough from filling to edge on both sides. It will sort of look like fringe. Alternating sides, fold strips up and over the filling at an angle. Carefully lift loaf onto greased baking sheet and place at an angle. Cover with a towel and place sheet on top of a roasting pan half-filled with simmering water for 15 minutes. Brush with egg white and top with seeds. Bake in a preheated 400-degree for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly before slicing. Serve warm and refrigerate leftovers.
* You can make your own Thousand Island Dressing by combining equal parts of ketchup, mayo and sweet pickle relish.
Note: The variations for this bread are almost endless. Some favorite combinations are ham and Swiss with mustard, roast beef and cheddar, chicken, broccoli and cheese, Spinach with ricotta or feta and onions, pizza, assorted fillings. You get the idea. Use your imagination and have fun. Just be careful not to overfill, or the bread will be hard to move, use fillings that aren’t too runny and always use cold fillings.
If you want to use regular yeast, use warm, rather than hot water. Also, don’t let dough rise over boiling water. After kneading cover dough and let rise 45 minutes. Punch down and assemble as in original recipe. Cover with a towel and let rise until dough looks puffy, about 40 minutes. Bake as directed above. These breads can also be frozen.
Reuben Calzones
There is more than one way to enjoy corned beef. This time of year, because of the St Patrick’s Day specials, corned beef is on sale at lots of stores. These calzones are a fun way to serve corned beef.
While more often made with Italian ingredients, you can make calzones with other fillings, too. I made these for a friend a while back and we were talking about them the other day. I decided to make them again.
These are a fun way to make a Reuben, but with a twist. You can leave the sauerkraut out, if you like. I add some thousand island dressing to the calzones, but serve extra on the side. They also freeze well, so you can make a batch, enjoy some fresh, and freeze some for later. I thought I would share the recipe with you.
Reuben Calzones
3 ¼ c. flour
1 c. rye flour
1 T. sugar
1 t. salt
1 package quick-rising yeast
1⅓ c. hot water
1 T. oil
1 c. Thousand Island dressing, recipe follows
1 lb. thin sliced corned beef
8 oz. shredded Swiss cheese
1 c. sauerkraut, squeezed dry
1 egg , beaten
Caraway seeds, optional
Set aside 1 cup of the all-purpose flour. Combine remaining flour with the other dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir in water and oil and gradually stir in enough flour to make a soft dough. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Cover dough and let rest 20 minutes. Divide dough into 8 pieces and roll one piece into a 6-8 -inch circle. In the middle of the dough, add a spoonful of Thousand Island dressing, place 1 ounce of the Swiss cheese and 2 ounces of the corned beef. Add a tablespoon or two of the sauerkraut, if using. Brush the edge of the dough with water. Fold over the dough in half and press the edges to seal. Brush the edge again with water and roll the edge over again. It will give you a prettier look and seal the calzone better. Repeat with remaining dough and fillings. Place calzones on greased baking sheets- or on a baking sheet with a silicone liner or parchment paper liner. You will end up with 8 calzones in all. Only put 4 on one baking sheet. Cover and let rest 15 minutes while preheating the oven to 400 degrees. Before placing calzones in the oven brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with the caraway seeds, if you like. Also poke a few holes in the tops with a fork to help steam to escape while baking. I put both baking sheets in the oven at the same time and switch them halfway through baking. Bake in a preheated 400-degree for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. If baking both at once switch them after 10 minutes or so. Cool slightly before eating. Serve warm and refrigerate leftovers.
If you want to use regular yeast use warm, rather than hot water. Also, allow a little more time for the dough to rise the first time, about 40 minutes. Everything else will work the same.
If you want to make your own dressing, here is the recipe
Thousand Island Dressing
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. mayo
1/2 c. sweet pickle relish
Mix ingredients together and serve, or chill until needed.
Roasted Corned Beef
After hearing about roasting corned beef, I finally did it. I can see why those who have raved about the results were so excited. The end result was a roast that was tender, flavorful and kind of pretty, too. I had searched the internet for directions and found a wide assortment of recipes. Most of the roasting temps were in the 300-325 degree range. Cooking times varied from 2-6 hours. All of the recipes I found added water to the roasting pan- but amounts varied widely – from a few tablespoons to several cups of water.
There were also all sorts of options for a spice/sweet rub. I used ingredients I thought would work with the corned beef and I was not disappointed. I used maple syrup, za’atar spice and some brown sugar. Recipe for the za’atar follows after the roasting directions.
I was concerned that the roasted corned beef would be too salty. It was not. A lot of the salt comes out in the water used in the roasting process. I tasted a piece of the roasted onion in the pan and it was super salty. The cooking liquid was, too. The roast was not too salty.
Roasted Corned Beef
4-5 pound corned beef
1/2 c. maple syrup
2-3 tablespoons za’atar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2-3 cups water*
Remove the meat from packaging. Rinse with cool water and pat dry. Discard the seasoning packet. Place a wire rack in a roasting pan and place the roast on the rack. Brush the roast with about 1/4 cup of the maple syrup. Sprinkle the za’atar over the meat and rub to cover evenly. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of the brown sugar. Rub the sugar into the roast. Place onions in the roasting pan and add about two cups of water. The meat should be above the water. Seal the roasting pan with foil or cover with a tight fitting lid. Place in a preheated 325 degree oven and roast for 2 1/2- 3 hours. Add more water, if needed. See note below. Pierce roast to make sure it is tender. Brush with the rest of the maple syrup and sprinkle with the rest of the brown sugar. Return to oven, uncovered, and cook until top of roast browns nicely, about an hour. Remove from oven. Let rest 15-20 minutes before slicing.
* The water amount became an issue for me. I thought the pan was sealed tightly, but at 2 hours, I smelled a faint burning smell. The roasting was was just out of water. I added more, replaced the foil and returned the roast to the oven for another hour. I had used a pretty big pan, in relation to the size of the roast- and obviously, the foil was not sealed as tightly as I thought. Check the roast a time or two – to be sure the water does not run out. By the same token, you don’t want the meat sitting in water. If you use a smaller roasting pan, or use a tight fitting lid, you might not need to add more water at all.
There are a number of variations of this recipe. This is the version that I made.
Za-atar Spice Mix
1 T. whole coriander
1 T. whole cumin
2 T. dried marjoram- you could use thyme instead
2 T. sumac- available at some specialty stores
2 T. sesame seeds- I toasted mine.
in small skillet, toast coriander and cumin until you can just start to smell them. Let them cool, then grind them up in a spice mill or coffee grinder. Combine this mixture with the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine well. Store in a cool, dry place.
Reuben Calzones
There is more than one way to enjoy corned beef. This time of year, because of the St Patrick’s Day specials, corned beef is on sale at lots of stores. These calzones are a fun way to serve corned beef.
While more often made with Italian ingredients, you can make calzones with other fillings, too. I made these for a friend a while back and we were talking about them the other day. I decided to make them again.
These are a fun way to make a Reuben, but with a twist. You can leave the sauerkraut out, if you like. I add some thousand island dressing to the calzones, but serve extra on the side. They also freeze well, so you can make a batch, enjoy some fresh, and freeze some for later. I thought I would share the recipe with you.
Corned Beef Calzones
3 ¼ c. flour
1 c. rye flour
1 T. sugar
1 t. salt
1 package quick-rising yeast
1⅓ c. hot water
1 T. oil
1 c. Thousand Island dressing, recipe follows
1 lb. thin sliced corned beef
8 oz. shredded Swiss cheese
1 c. sauerkraut, squeezed dry
1 egg , beaten
Caraway seeds, optional
Set aside 1 cup of the all-purpose flour. Combine remaining flour with the other dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Stir in water and oil and gradually stir in enough flour to make a soft dough. Turn onto lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Cover dough and let rest 20 minutes. Divide dough into 8 pieces and roll one piece into a 6-8 -inch circle. In the middle of the dough, add a spoonful of Thousand Island dressing, place 1 ounce of the Swiss cheese and 2 ounces of the corned beef. Add a tablespoon or two of the sauerkraut, if using. Brush the edge of the dough with water. Fold over the dough in half and press the edges to seal. Brush the edge again with water and roll the edge over again. It will give you a prettier look and seal the calzone better. Repeat with remaining dough and fillings. Place calzones on greased baking sheets- or on a baking sheet with a silicone liner or parchment paper liner. You will end up with 8 calzones in all. Only put 4 on one baking sheet. Cover and let rest 15 minutes while preheating the oven to 400 degrees. Before placing calzones in the oven brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with the caraway seeds, if you like. Also poke a few holes in the tops with a fork to help steam to escape while baking. I put both baking sheets in the oven at the same time and switch them halfway through baking. Bake in a preheated 400-degree for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. If baking both at once switch them after 10 minutes or so. Cool slightly before eating. Serve warm and refrigerate leftovers.
If you want to use regular yeast use warm, rather than hot water. Also, allow a little more time for the dough to rise the first time, about 40 minutes. Everything else will work the same.
If you want to make your own dressing, here is the recipe
Thousand Island Dressing
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. mayo
1/2 c. sweet pickle relish
Mix ingredients together and serve, or chill until needed.
