I love corned beef, so I am thrilled when stores put this meat on sale around St. Patrick’s Day. After the dinner with corned beef, a domino effect influences our meals for the next week. If you make corned beef, you might have some leftovers. Those leftovers will make a great Ruben sandwich.
So if you plan to make a Ruben sandwich, you will need sauerkraut, but you won’t use all the sauerkraut in your sandwich.
Now I need another dinner where I can use sauerkraut. Dillyburgers* on the grill require sauerkraut. But you have to be sure you have propane in the tank for your grill.
Once you have procured the propane you have to install the tank, but you can’t remember how the pieces attached. So you look for the manual, but it is no where to be found. You use Google to find the pdf of the manual for your grill. Now the propane tank is back attached to the grill.
Since you are grilling dillyburgers, you might as well grill a pan of veggies too.
Finally, all the odd ingredients have been used and the dominoes have stopped falling. Now I wonder what’s for dinner tomorrow?
elsie tries writing 
Elsie,
I didn’t read the other comments, but I wondered if you had given a mouse a cookie too? How fun.
Okay yum and fun together! It doesn’t get any better. 🙂
Yummy Elsie! You always seem to cook the tastiest things! I tend to shove those odd items to back of frig and you know what happens then…
There are two guys in my house that would enjoy a dillyburger! I’ll have to try that out! I love the connection to If you Give a Mouse a Cookie! It’s one of our favorite stories at my house!
There is a very good cake recipe that uses sauerkraut, reminds one of coconut. You have my mouth watering at the thoughts of that tasty, tartness sauerkraut provides.
Such a fun post! Love the nod to “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.” Great cause/effect piece around eating – one of my favorite pastimes! 🙂
I love the Mouse a Cookie-ness of this, too! Because, after all, that’s how life goes – doesn’t it??!
Your food posts always kill me! Very excited to return back to my mom and grandma’s cooking and be done with dining halls for the summer. The dillyburger sounds fascinating– might have to try it out!
I remember corned beef from my childhood and days of having leftovers. Haven’t had it in a looong time!
Glad you told me what a dillyburger is. I loved this post-very creative.
Can I come to your house? I’ll take a Reuben. Loved the pattering of this piece.
My mother, Maxine, would love this. I am not much of a meat eater…but not a vegetarian either. I like how the week’s meals are like a domino effect. The Dilly burger actually sounds good. Maxine would have loved to have been at your place for the Ruben though…one of her favorites.
Education does not take a break on Sundays! Dillyburgers are now part of my vocabulary, but not necessarily my dinner menu. Fun post to read after lunch!
First off, a Dillyburger sounds absolutely delicious and now I’m going to need to try one. I also completely understand your pain in having to try to figure out what to do with extra ingredients. A small simple meal turns into spending more money and time than you originally had planned! I didn’t catch the “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” theme while reading, but now that it has been pointed out, I love this slice even more!
Elsie,love how this slice goes from one meal to the next as you explain your week! I agree with the comment above, about how your slice is like If You Give a Mouse a Cookie…instead it could be If You Give Elsie Corned Beef!
If You Give a Writer Some Corned Beef…
Another winner Elsie. I have so enjoyed reading your posts and “getting to know you” over these slices. Thank you for all your great stories!
I definitely caught the “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie” connection…and I loved the part about the propane tank. Isn’t this always the way, we have to refresh our memory of how to use certain things , each and every time we go to use them?
I read your recipe to my husband and his mouth began to water. My daughter, also a big fan of pickles and sauerkraut will also be eager to try this recipe. I loved the structure and how it lent itself to the theme of using up leftovers. You are such a clever writer with such a big bag of tricks!
My momma use to make corned beef. I’ve never tried! As always Elsie, you inspire me. Thank you for your sweet posts this month!
Never had a dillyburger but will have to try it. I love corned beef, too, and we had a few dinners from it this week. I think it’s a sign of spring!
It never occurred to me that one thing can lead to so much other goodness in the eating, Elsie. Is this a little bit like “pay it forward”? And, Ruth is right, it is like “If You Give A Mouse A Cookie”.
Who knew that a simple dinner of corned beef could lead to so much??? This post reminds me of the “Seven Degrees of Kevin Bacon” where it is said that everyone can trace a connection to Kevin Bacon. Enjoy your meals this week!
I have never heard of a dillyburger. Sounds interesting, except for the mustard – not a fan. Is it Rachel Ray who has a show like cook once and eat all week?
Caught the “Give a Mouse a Cookie” theme and loved it. So much of life is that way. But especially true for the food world!
I laughed. This is “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie ” for adults. And it is completely true. Every once in a while I buy Hebrew National hotdogs, buns & condiments. It goes on for a while until balance is reached and everything gets used up.
Elsie, this is the story of my life too! Always finding a creative way to use up yesterday’s leftovers! I really like this.
Such a fun post. And if you finally use up all the leftovers, my mom used to say “It’ll be a clear day tomorrow.”
I have never heard of Dilly burgers, either, so thank you for the education. I love what LibraryDragon noticed about “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.” I would not have thought of that.
Nice post. The Dilly Burgers sound yummy.
Darla & Jen
You need to put a warning on your posts when you write about food. You always make me hungry! Man, I need to hang out with you more often so I can enjoy your cooking–and your conversation! 🙂
Your “domino effect” post is so fun. The grill effect is so true, bells are ringing in my ears. I hear your voice, Elsie. That’s why I keep reading your blog–full of every day life and information with the whimsical. Didn’t know what a dilly burger was either. Sounds like a man pleaser!
Elsie, as I read your writing I could here the influence of “If you Give a Mouse a Cookie”. Well done! I never knew about Dilly burgers. It was a fun read.
Thanks for catching that slight nod to “If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.”