My dad always said he was Irish, and I always assumed he was joking about drinking. I haven’t and don’t plan to do a DNA testing kit to find out the facts. Regardless, we like to celebrate the holidays with what we would think to be traditional. So, with St. Patrick’s Day coming up I thought it would be fun to start prepping for the day. We love a good Reuben sandwich. And we love to make all things from scratch. And the weather is just been crappy. SO that mean we might as well experiment in the kitchen. Derek is doing corn beef or pastrami or something on the grill. I decided to try a new rye bread recipe that I found in a book called “The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day”. This is the first recipe I tried from it. I was inspired to pick it up based on the amazing 4H bread my kid brought home. Several things happened that would not be the fault of the book, such as, I forgot to set the kitchen timer (runs in my mom’s family) AND started the oven mitt on fire. AND they said you should let bread cool 2 hours before slicing. Like what?!? I can say that is going to be a problem at our house. I am sure there is something to it and a very valid scientific method behind it, that I will never know from experience.
Add to bowl that you plan to cover and refrigerate for up to 14 days for this particular recipe.
3 c. Lukewarm water
1 T. Yeast
1 1/2 T. Caraway seeds (I put in less. I smelled them and they were powerful and I was fearful)
1 1/2 T. Salt (I put in less. I don’t know why maybe I didn’t want to wash another spoon.)
I let this sit for a couple minutes. The recipe didn’t tell me to, but its habit for me.
Then add to the mixture:
1 c. Rye Flour
5 1/2 c. AP Flour
I mixed it in with a rubber spatula.
Let this sit covered but not airtight for 2 hours on the counter. It says until dough rises and collapses. Then I put in refrigerator until the next day. It says it will keep for 14 days.
When ready to bake:
Dust surface with flour. Divide off 1 pound (this recipe makes 4 pounds); Shape into a ball. Let rise/rest on a pizza peel covered in cornmeal for 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat a pizza stone in oven to 450 degrees. You will need a jelly roll pan with water (under the stone is where I put mine) in the oven.
I totally skipped this step, but would have made a prettier loaf. After bread rises, use a pastry brush to cover the top with cornstarch wash or water and sprinkle with additional caraway seeds. Slash 1/2 in deep cuts across the loaf using a serrated bread.
Bake for 30-35 minutes until deeply browned and firm. I have no idea how long mine baked, as I mentioned before, I forgot to set the timer. I also just divided the dough in half. I baked half on the stone as the recipe stated. The other half I baked in a traditional loaf pan so that we could use it for sandwich making.
After typing this up I realize, I loosely follow directions. The bread turned out so that was good.
Reuben Sandwiches
Slice Bread and butter one side of the slices
Place one slice butter side down on griddle.
Add to it:
One slice Swiss cheese
Corn Beef or Pastrami
Sauerkraut
Another slice Swiss cheese
Other slice of bread butter side up
Grill each side until toasted and cheese is melted. After sandwich is toasted we add Russian dressing