Memorial weekend was a rather hot one at our home. The AC is awaiting the repairman! I spent most nights on the screened-in porch enjoying the cooler breezes. Hopefully the repairman will get here the first of the week, golly I hope so. Usually on a 3 day weekend I have all kinds of things accomplished around the household, but not this time, too much heat to do many of the cooking projects I had planned. Yes, I could have risen at 6am to do them, but then I would heat up the entire house!! How did they do it in the old days??
This Cole slaw recipe that was inspired by my good friend, Rose Schwarte. Cole Slaw is truly an American dish that is a perfect accompaniment to any bbq or picnic. This new recipe features a poppy-seed dressing and it’s so hearty that it could easily be turned into a main entrée. You will notice that the base of the dressing is sweet condensed milk. I also chose what is called ‘angel-hair’ shredded cabbage. This can easily be changed out to whatever prepared cabbage your store carries. I love the flavor of the bacon, raisins and nuts mixed into this yummy dish. It is a bit different from the traditional style of coleslaw, but in this day and age ‘different’ is good. I think the recipe would also be refreshing with strawberries or blueberries. ‘Brianna’ makes a delightful poppy seed dressing to use as a substitute, but the sweetness from the condensed milk is certainly missed.
When I add the dressing to a Cole slaw I usually don’t pour all of it on at once. As the salad sets one usually finds that using ‘all’ the dressing wasn’t as necessary.
As you think about other modifications to the recipe think about using sunflower seeds or even a pistachio nuts instead of the walnuts. I always toast my nutmeats because it enhances the flavor greatly. It’s so easy to do I usually roast my walnuts and pecans at 300 degrees. This is because I frequently ‘forget’ I have them in the oven and at 350 degrees they can quickly overcook & burn. For only a pound of nutmeats it would probably take only 20 minutes. After cooling mark a Ziploc bag with what they are and place them in the freezer.
I’d best get to business this morning, I have a couple of salads to get made, and I want to do so before it gets too warm in the kitchen! One is cucumber salad and the other is old-fashioned carrot salad.
With the holiday Monday we will be scurrying to get all the business done before Friday. Enjoy your time with family and friends. Simply yours, The Covered Dish.
Rosie’s Fruity Coleslaw
(The inspiration for this interesting coleslaw came from Rose Schwarte)
2 (10 ounce) bags angel hair coleslaw or comparable blend
3-4 ounces toasted walnut pieces
4 slices, cooked & chopped bacon pieces, well drained
1/2 – 1 cup raisins of choice
8-12 green onions, chopped into small pieces
1 cup of optional fresh fruit, i.e.: strawberries, blueberries or oranges
Sweet Poppy Seed Dressing
1 (14 ounce) can sweet condensed milk
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black kettle seasoning *
Prepare all salad ingredients and place in a large bowl. Stir together salad dressing ingredients until smooth. Pour only 3/4ths of the dressing over the salad ingredients and coat evenly. As with most dressings this will thin down as it sits on the leftover salad in the refrigerator. Be sure to save any extra dressing as it will last at least a week in the refrigerator. This will easily serve 10 – 12 persons.
I enjoy writing dishes that can be altered by very simple steps. On the salad ingredients consider different types of nutmeats, sunflower seeds or cilantro. In the summer this would be a perfect fit for barbecued chicken. If you use fat free condensed milk be careful as it is a bit thinner than the regular.
*Black Kettle is a multi-use seasoning spice which has now been discontinued. Something like Lawry’s would probably work, but I would consider using a tad less because it is so high on sodium.
