We made it back from South Africa in one piece! It was a crazy couple of weeks traveling all over South Africa and Swaziland. There is SO MUCH beautiful scenery and so many amazing animals to take in, I wholeheartedly recommend visiting. I must apologize for the lack of posts over the last two weeks. Originally I thought I could easily whip together a few posts in between meals and sightseeing – boy was I wrong. There were only a few places we stayed that had easy access to computers or nearby internet cafes. Additionally, I must admit that once I got there, I just really enjoyed disconnecting. I could go on for hours about this trip but I will say that I was pleasantly surprised by all the amazing food we experienced. Keep an eye out for some new recipes inspired by our South African adventures!
Alright, let’s get down to business. One of my all time favorite holidays is quickly approaching! Saint Patrick’s Day! My family likes to keep St. Patty’s day fairly traditional. For as long as I can remember my parents have always made corned beef and cabbage, Guinness stew, and soda bread. It is always delicious and they always make too much. Thankfully for us, that means Reubens the next day with all the leftover corned beef. I wanted to spice up one of my all-time favorite sandwiches and make a fun appetizer that can be shared with a group. These Rueben Quesadillas with Russian Dressing are an awesome shareable dish that pair perfectly with a Guinness!
I have always used Thousand Island dressing for my homemade Reubens and never thought anything of it. Turns out, after a little research, traditional Reubens are served with a Russian Style dressing. What’s Russian Style dressing you ask? Well, basically it is a spicier dressing that looks similar to the crowd-pleasing Thousand Island. Over the years Thousand Island dressing gained popularity due to it’s sweet and mild flavor. This receipe needed a dip with a kick of heat so Russain dressing was a perfect match for these quesadillas.
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 15 minutes |
| Servings |
people
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- 6 flour tortillas small
- 3/4 lb. thinly sliced corned beef from the deli
- 1 1/2 cups Swiss cheese shredded
- 1 1/2 cups cabbage slaw
- 1/2 cup sauerkraut
- 1 cup red cabbage shredded
- 1/3 cup carrot peeled and shredded
- 1/4 cup mayo
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 2 Tbsp ketchup
- 1 Tbsp onion finely diced
- 2 tsp horseradish freshly prepared variety
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp Worcestershire
- 1 tsp hot sauce more or less to taste
- freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients
Quesadillas
Cabbage Slaw
Russian Dipping Sauce
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- For the Russian dressing, mix all of the ingredients in a medium bowl and place in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Next, mix together all of the ingredients for the cabbage slaw.
- Add 1-2 tsp of olive oil to a skillet over medium-low heat. Build quesadillas one at a time by laying a tortilla in the pan and covering with 1/4 cup of Swiss cheese. Just as the cheese begins to melt, add 2 oz of corned beef to one-half of the tortilla. Top the corned beef with 1-2 Tbsp of sauerkraut and 1/4 cup cabbage slaw. Fold the tortilla in half and continue cooking until each side is golden brown, flip as needed. Add 1 tsp of oil to the pan in between each quesadilla.
- Cut each quesadilla into 2 or 3 pieces and serve immediately with Russian dipping sauce.
2 Comments
Pinning! So wish I had corned beef now. We made it ourselves for St. Patty’s day. But it’s long gone. I’m a sucker for Russian dressing so can’t wait to make it myself. We went to South Africa in 2002. It was an amazing trip. Imagine the country is still as beautiful in most places – and stark in others. We took the trans-country train from Jo-Berg to Cape Town. That was the most interesting part of the trip. Post more photos from your trip!!
Thanks, Serena! Ugh, there never seems to be enough corned beef! We thoroughly enjoyed South Africa. I can’t recommend it enough!