I think everyone knows me pretty well by now that I love to transform leftovers into something magical. Transform them into a new meal. So over the next few days you’ll learn about different ways to transform your leftover Corned Beef and Cabbage. Today, I’m sharing with you an easy lunch (or dinner). Instead of your traditional Reuben sandwich make a Reuben Panini! It steps it up a notch and (in my opinion) it makes it fancy.
Last week, I shared how to make your own Russian sauce. Well, this is the first of three recipes where that big batch of Russian sauce will come in handy. Today we are going to smear that Russian sauce on two pieces of fresh rye bread, and then of course if your inclined too… dunk your Reuben Panini in the sauce as you eat it bite-by-bite. If you choose this option and are sharing a meal with people you love make sure you give everyone their own bowl of Russian sauce to dunk in… no double dippers allowed!
I often forget to give my panini press a workout. While I’m being honest here, this is the only way I like to eat sandwiches; pressed, toasted, with beautiful grill marks. There is something about a pressed sandwich that I can’t resist. You give me a plane jane sandwich that isn’t toasted and I most likely won’t eat it! So if your like me and want to reinvent leftovers… make these sandwiches the day after St. Patrick’s Day. Your friends and family (or maybe just yourself) will thank you!
While panini press is heating up spread one tablespoon of softened butter on the outside pieces of the rye bread. Then spread one tablespoon of Russian Sauce on each side of the rye bread. Place Corned Beef on top of one side of bread followed by drained sauerkraut, and top with two slices of Swiss Cheese. Place second piece of bread on top of the sandwich (Russian sauce side down, buttered side up).
Place the sandwich on the panini press and cook for 5 minutes or until the panini is golden brown and cheese has melted. Serve with a pickle and additional Russian sauce if desired.
Get ready… this is one epic veggie bagel sandwich. So epic, that you spruce up whipped cream cheese and turn it into the most decadent and savory herb and garlic cream cheese on this planet. I was inspired years ago on a bright Saturday morning while strolling along at my local farmers market. Our local farmers market just doesn’t sell produce. They sell other speciality items like dips and sauces, local honey, freshly baked bread, and a variety of food. My favorite part of the farmers market is this bagel. I discovered it in college and would treat myself every time I made my way down to the farmers market.
And then one day it hit me like a brick wall… why don’t I try to recreate this “treat” at home? So I did just that a few years ago. And by now I’ve made it even better than the bagel stand at the farmers market. I can say that since I recently had one of their bagels and made the comment “mine is better”. Which my husband either Whenever I buy everything bagels there is a 99.9% chance that I’ll be making my famed veggie bagel sandwiches for breakfast. Yes, people… we eat these for breakfast; however, this would be great for brunch or even lunch. Heck while we are at it you could make it for dinner, too. Why not? This is great way to start off your morning. A good balance of carbs, veggies, and dairy! The major food groups in my life!
A majority of the time when I do make this famed veggie bagel sandwich I make it in the morning before we are ready to leave for work. We both chomp on them during our drive into the office. During the days I make this delectable treat I have to check my face for cream cheese smears and my body for excessive everything seeds! Whether your on the go or just want to indulge in the comforts of your own home for breakfast, lunch, or dinner I highly suggest you give this veggie bagel sandwich a try!
Veggie Bagel Sandwich with Herb and Garlic Cream Cheese
Prep Time: 12 minutes
Cook Time: 3 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 2
Ingredients
1/4 cup whipped cream cheese
1 tbsp each fresh parsley and dill, chopped
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp Cavenders Greek Seasoning
2 Everything Bagels
10 slices each of plum tomato and cucumber, thinly sliced
8-10 spinach leaves, per bagel
Directions
Toast the everything bagel.
While the bagel is toasting; in a bowl combined whipped cream cheese, fresh parsley, fresh dill, black pepper, and Cavenders Greek Seasoning. Mix, until well incorporated.
Smear the garlic and herb cream cheese on both sides of the toasted bagel. Then add a layer of spinach followed by a layer of thinly sliced plum tomatoes and cucumbers (about 5 slices each). Close the bagel and push down so all the contents stay in the bagel. Repeat the same steps above on the second bagel.
Wrap it up and eat it on the go or serve it on a plate and eat it at your own pace!
It is the last day of February. Can you believe that? 2 months have already gone by in 2013. Where has the time gone? Lets take a minute and savor the time… and make some quick Shrimp BLT Croissant Sandwich. First off, these sandwiches are amazing in so many ways. Secondly, they are super easy to make. Third, you will impress anyone who you serve this too.
I’ve made these a handfull of times since creating the recipe last summer. I photographed last summer, too. But now that I’ve really been working on my food photography and styling I had to remake the sandwich to rephotograph it. And then of course indulge on a Shrimp BLT Croissant Sandwich after the “shoot”. Hard job… right?
I dropped off two of these sandwiches along with some fabulous Jambalaya to my parents the other weekend. They had been traveling and I knew they would need dinner that night and lunch for work the next day. I was reluctant to wrap up these sandwiches not knowing how they would fare the next day. Let me tell you… I guess they were A-ok because I got not one but two phone calls from both of my parents raving about this sandwich. They love their BLT’s and I guess I’ve introduced them to the next level of BLT’s. My husband not being a big fan of bacon isn’t a huge fan of BLT’s but he will eat it this way! Seriously, jazz up that plain old BLT!
In a frying pan on medium-high heat, add the unsalted butter. Cook for 1 minute or until the butter has melted. While the butter is melting toss the old bay seasoning with the shrimp. Place the seasoned shrimp in the frying pan and cook for 3 minutes (turning once to brown both sides). Once the shrimp has been thoroughly cooked remove from heat.
Toast croissants, slice in half and slather a healthy amount of Smoked Chipotle Aioli Sauce on each side of the croissant (about 1 tablespoon per croissant). Then line the bottom of the croissant with butter lettuce, sliced tomatoes, and bacon. Top with cooked shrimp and croissant top. Enjoy immediately or wrap in plastic wrap, store in the refrigerator for up to one day!
A few weeks ago I posted about the most amazing “pantry” Mexican Rice Salad, I created. With using that rice, I created a tasty wrap that is perfect for lunch or dinner. This wrap is also sort of a “pantry” concoction. I always have black beans on hand and typically buy an avocado or two each week. That day I happened to have 2 leftover grilled chicken breast and wanted to do something with them. I don’t always make wraps. Heck, I rarely make wraps, so this was a nice treat. It wasn’t until after my husband and I had our first few bites that I realized a dipping sauce would go great with this wrap since it was a little on the dry side.
Luckily, I had a batch of Creamy Pepper Dressing on hand. After one dip–I knew that this peppery dressing was a match made in heaven for this wrap. The afternoon I served these wraps for lunch I invited my neighbor over so she could give it a try. She too, agreed that the wrap was best with the creamy dressing. I realize that this wrap causes you to have to make essentially 3 different items, but trust me–its well worth it. Your friends and family will thank me for it later!
Preheat your grill to 400 degrees. While grill is preheating season chicken breast with olive oil and greek seasoning. Place chicken on grill and cook until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees (about 10-15 minutes depending on the cut of your chicken). Remember to turn your chicken halfway through the cooking process.
Once chicken is done cooking; slice into lengthwise pieces with the chicken being at a diagonal. You should get about 10 slices giving each wrap about 5 slices of chicken each.
Heat 1 spinach wrap in a moist paper towel in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Once warmed add 1/2 cup of Mexican Rice Salad, 4-5 slices of grilled chicken breast, 2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese and 1 slice of avocado. Fold the wrap in half pushing all the filling to the fold of the burrito. Fold in each end toward the middle of the burrito then fold over so that the seam is facing down. Place a tooth pick in each end and cut at a diagonal. Carefully transfer to plate and serve. *Repeat this step for the other 3 wraps.
Notes
Original Recipe created by Katie Jasiewicz of Katie's Cucina
Last year my best friend introduced me to this awesome little sandwich shop here in Orlando. They have all sorts of sandwiches from a Thanksgiving dinner sandwich to the norm. I fell in love with a sandwich they call “Low Rider”. I had never thought to put cream cheese on a panini before until I ate at Pom Pom’s. I still haven’t came up with an official name for my version of the “Low Rider”, but that wasn’t going to hold me back from debuting it on my blog.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 5-8 minutes Serves: 2
Ingredients:
1/2 lb Boar’s Head Ovengold Turkey Breast (thinly sliced)
4 slices of good bread (I prefer Italian Five Grain)
1 tbsp (for each sandwich) of whipped cream cheese
1 tbsp (for each sandwich) of salsa. I prefer Jack’s.
1 avocado, sliced
1 tbsp (for each sandwich) of mushed black beans *this can be optional–the last time I made this sandwich I did not have black beans on hand.
Directions:
1. Pre-heat panini press or grill pan to high heat.
2. While press is heating up lay the four pieces of bread out on the counter, smear cream cheese on all four pieces of bread, then stack a quarter pound of turkey breast meat on one side of the bread. Drain salsa so that only the tomato chunks are left, and top on each sandwich. *If adding mashed black beans, add now. Lastly, slice fresh avocado, place on sandwich and then place the other piece of bread on top.
3. Cook on your panini press until golden brown. Enjoy!
This is my ALL time favorite sandwiches, and the best thing about this sandwich is that I created it on my own! That’s right… a few experiments and I mastered this delicious sandwich! I have been making this sandwich for years, and am finally revealing my secret recipe!
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 5-8 minutes Serves: 2
Ingredients
1/2 lb Boar’s Head Ovengold Turkey Breast (thinly sliced)
4 slices of good bread (I prefer Italian Five Grain)
1. Pre-heat panini press or grill pan to high heat.
2. While press is heating up lay bread out on the counter, and stack a quarter pound of turkey breast meat on one side of the bread. Place thin slices of tomatoes on top of the sliced turkey breast followed by freshly ground pepper, and 1 tsp per sandwich of the Dean Jacob’s Bread Dipping Seasoning. Then place basil leaves followed by two slices of fresh mozzarella, and top with other slice of bread. The sanwiches will look huge, but don’t worry… they will shrink once they are pressed.
3. Place sandwiches on panini press and cook until golden brown (about 5-8 minutes).
This is a childhood classic of mine… my mom always made this for me on “special occasions” like my birthday. Growing up it was served on white bread, and as I got older and I would imagine my parents had a little more money we would splurge and have it on croissants! Since I buy a dozen croissants at Costco every other week it made me crave this amazing salad sandwich! I had never made this for my self until just the other week–just as good as my moms! Finally, one recipe that doesn’t need those special “mom flakes” to make it taste just like hers. If you like canned tuna fish you’ll love this switch of a “salad” sandwich! Even if you don’t like tuna…. and you like shrimp you’ll like this; however, it has the same consistency of tuna/ham salad!
Open, drain, and rinse canned shrimp. Once drained, add to a mixing bowl. Add one teaspoon each of the dried onion flakes, parsley, and dill. Peel and diced cucumber, and add to the bowl. Add one tablespoon of mayonnaise to the bowl and mix… if it seems to dry to you add another tablespoon of mayonnaise or until its the consistency you like it. Add pepper to taste–no need for salt since the shrimp are pretty salty to begin with!
Chill for at least an hour. Cut two large croissants and toast until golden brown. Add butter lettuce, and then a nice large portion of shrimp salad… enjoy!
I'm Katie Jasiewicz: home cook, food blogger, and recipe developer. I’ve always had a love for cooking, and more so in the past few years a love for eating!
Join me on a culinary adventure where life always tastes good. {more}
I'm Katie Jasiewicz: home cook, food blogger, and recipe developer. I’ve always had a love for cooking, and more so in the past few years a love for eating!
Join me on a culinary adventure where life always tastes good. 
