no contest
Well, would you look at that? It’s Saturday! Again! It sort of snuck up on me, the week whisking by in a whirl of work, but now that it’s here, I’m ready to embrace it wholeheartedly. There are groceries to stock up on, recipes to make, a book club book to finish, people to see, couches to be sprawled upon, photos to be snapped. And, of course, both days, there is a lunch to be had. A lunch not eaten at my desk. A lunch not spooned hurriedly from a reusable container. A lunch right at home, eaten with Kevin and created in our kitchen.
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Can you tell that I prefer the weekend lunch to the weekday lunch—to put it mildly? It’s like Saturday morning versus Monday morning. Or July versus January. No contest: weekend lunch wins. If it’s not a mishmosh collection of cheese and fruit and flatbreads and nuts, it might be a bowl of soup or, more often, sandwiches.
And our sandwich roster is deep: a split baguette, stuffed with roasted vegetables or Italian cold cuts and cheese; a holiday meal repurposed with brisket, sliced thin, piled atop challah; a creamy (yet mayo-less) chicken salad on multi-grain; the classic B.L.T.; several incarnations of the of gussied-up grilled cheese.
An obvious omission from this list was the reuben, especially considering it’s one of Kevin’s favorite deli choices. I must confess, too, that I am to blame for the reuben’s absence in our kitchen. Not much for sauerkraut (though I think I could be convinced) and staunchly thousand island-averse (here, I will not budge), the reuben held no allure.
Until. Until I saw a Fine Cooking recipe that swapped out the ‘kraut for a zingy, quick slaw and the thousand island for a homemade slather that I tweaked to include plain yogurt and tomato sauce (along with the sun dried tomatoes called for in the recipe). The slaw and the slather, along with smoked turkey and Swiss cheese, grilled between slices of multi-grain brain, became lunch a couple Saturdays ago—a good day, not unlike the one I hope will unfold today.
Happy Saturday, all!
Smoked Turkey Reubens
Adapted from Fine Cooking
Yield: 4 sandwiches
2 cups thinly sliced green cabbage (about 4 oz.)
3/4 cup finely diced kosher dill pickle (from 1 large)
2 tsp. cider vinegar
Kosher salt
1/2 cup plain yogurt (full or low-fat)
3 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 Tbs. canned or jarred tomato sauce (pure, pureed tomatoes)
8 slices whole wheat bread
12 thin slices smoked turkey
8 thin slices Swiss cheese
2 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened
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In a medium bowl, toss the cabbage and pickles with the vinegar and 1/2 tsp. salt. Transfer to a colander, set it in the sink, and let sit for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, pulse the yogurt, sun-dried tomatoes, and tomato sauce in a food processor until the tomatoes are finely chopped.
Squeeze the cabbage mixture to remove any excess liquid and return to the bowl. Toss the cabbage with 2 Tbs. of the yogurt mixture.
Spread the remaining yogurt mixture on one side of each slice of the bread. Assemble the sandwiches, layering the turkey, cabbage, and cheese over 4 slices of the bread and topping with the other 4 slices. Spread the outsides of the sandwiches with the butter.
Heat a large grill pan, skillet, or stovetop griddle over medium-low heat. Working in batches if necessary, put the sandwiches in the pan, top with a grill press or heavy skillet to weigh them down, and cook until browned, 2 to 4 minutes. Flip and cook the other side until browned and the cheese is melted, 2 to 4 minutes more. Cut the sandwiches in half and serve.
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Wow, you do go all out for your weekend lunches. With all the errands I have to run–the library, gym, etc., I always end up with something like a Chipotle burrito. Boring. You’ve got the right idea.
oh that just looks and sounds so good. I only have a boring latte in front of me now, wishing for this, well actually 2. I love making a big breakfast for the weekends.
Oh yes indeed weekend lunches, or rather all weekend eats, are far superior! These sandwiches look AMAZING. Im love the sauce, Ill have to give it a try! Enjoy your fabulous weekend
I really love Rachels, which is what I think this is technically called. Yum.
okay, weekend lunch is one of the BEST things on earth. stress-free, relaxing…with smoked turkey reubens, no less.
I concur. Weekend lunch is about as beautiful as ‘September morning’ ‘Summer afternoon’ and ‘Why don’t you take it easy while I cook dinner?’
The Rueben has always held some weird appeal to me despite my ghastly dislike of sauerkraut and gloppy orange dressing. This version I could so totally handle. Thanks for the inspiration
im totally on board with the weekend lunches. After a week of slices of cheese, a handful of almonds and the occasional pickle it sure is nice to enjoy a substantial and hearty meal for lunch….all the while basking in the fact that it is the weekend and time to kick up your feet!
ooh, these look pretty damn good! what a perfect midnight-saturday-night-internet-browsing- snack they would make!:)
I hear ya’ : this week came and went with a zoom! But it’s nice that you have the weekend together to make awesome-looking sandwiches and relax a bit. I agree with your sauerkraut feelings wholeheartedly. When everything canned and pickled suddenly became trendy last year, I tried and tried to like it, but still don’t.
Happy weekend!
Oh wow! Those look yummy for a quick weekday meal also – between getting home from the office, running kids to various sports practices, homework time, etc.
Thanks for the great recipe!!
Can I come next weekend? Please?
Weekend lunches are the best. I love rubens – thousand island and all, but I really like the idea of this one. I may have to try it out.
We made these on Sunday and they entire fam loved them! Wee little kids included! Hooray for a new staple. Delish!
Oh yummy! I wish I could get the rest of my family on board with turkey reubens! I have loved them since I was a kid!
Love the slaw on these!
Laura: I’m so happy to hear it!
I so want to eat that right now! What a perfect choice of bread for those fillings!
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