Reuben Sandwich

I'm of Irish decent. Only about 12% (it's beaten out by German and Scottish). With the maiden name of O'Brien I am legally obligated to celebrate my Irishness. Growing up, most of my family decided that we didn't like corned beef and cabbage. A few years ago I decided to try corned beef with my adult children. It was a strong "Meh". The next year I decided to try Ruebens. I mean, it's still cabbage, right? After a couple of years we decided to throw the sandwiches on the panini press. After all, everything tastes so much better on a panini press. This is now our go-to Rueben recipe.

Rueben Sandwich

Ingredients:

8 slices Rye bread

½ c Thousand Island Dressing

8 slices Swiss Cheese

8 slices Corned Beef (we used oven-baked corned beef, I'll attach that recipe here tomorrow)

1 c Sauerkraut, drained

2 Tbs Butter, softened

Directions

• Preheat a panini press.
• Butter one side of all the bread.
• Spread Thousand Island dressing evenly on other side of four bread slices. 
• On four buttered bread slices, with butter side down, layer 
• one slice Swiss cheese
• 2 slices corned beef
• 1/4 cup sauerkraut
• second slice of Swiss cheese. 
• Top with remaining bread slice, dressing-side down.
• Place sandwiches, butter-side down on the preheated panini press.
• Grill until both sides are golden brown, about 5 minutes per side.
• Serve hot.

        Enjoy!

        Ingrid

Crockpot Arby's Beef and Chicken

 My family enjoys eating Arby's Beef and Cheddar sandwiches but given the chance, they would prefer that I make them at home. After some experimentation I came up with what my oldest said "This is it!" I opted for deli slices because that seemed more consistent with the original sandwich than sliced roast. Heating the Roast Beef and Beef Broth in the Crockpot helps the flavors meld. Next time I definitely will use more beef than we did this time (this recipe reflects that).

Crockpot Arby's Beef and Chicken

Ingredients:

For Roast Beef -

• ▢3 lb Roast Beef, thinly sliced deli
• ▢2 c Beef Broth
• ▢8 Onion Rolls, or other sandwich rolls

For Arby's Sauce - 

• ▢⅔ c Ketchup
• ▢1 Tbs Apple Cider Vinegar
• ▢½ tsp Garlic Powder
• ▢½ tsp Onion Powder
• ▢½ tsp Paprika
• ▢¼ tsp Salt
• ▢¼ tsp Sugar
• ▢2 tsp Mayonnaise
• ▢Water (to thin the sauce, if needed)

For Cheddar Sauce - 

• ▢2 Tbs Butter
• ▢2 Tbs Flour
• ▢1½ c Milk
• ▢12 oz Sharp Cheddar Cheese, grated
• ▢½ tsp Salt

Directions:

• • Separate the slices of roast beef and add them to the CrockPot. Add Beef Broth. Cook on high for two hours. Leave in Crockpot to add to sandwich.
  • Arby's Sauce: Whisk all of the sauce ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside. If the sauce seems too thick, add a tablespoon or two of water to thin it out.
  • Cheese Sauce: Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter and the flour and cook for 1 minute. Pour in the milk in slowly, while whisking. Melt the cheddar in the sauce, and season with salt. Whisk until smooth. Remove from heat, and set aside.
  • Spread the homemade Arby's sauce on the bottom of the buns. Divide the roast beef evenly over each. Add cheese sauce and close the sandwich with the top bun. 
  • Serve immediately, preferably with curly fries.
  
  

• Enjoy!

  Ingrid