There’s a bit of a cupboard clean-out going on in my kitchen. I have one cupboard divided in half: one side for savory things, like rice, grains and canned goods and one side for baking stuff, sugar, coconut, etc. And the truth is, it’s getting a little crowded. Pretty much all my rice, grains and dried beans are stored in glass jars and some of them are nearing empty while still taking up a load of space. Something had to be done.

So when I spied a small amount of farro inside a recycled Adam’s peanut butter jar, I decided to take action and make it a part of dinner. The thing about farro is that it’s a chewy grain and takes nearly and hour to cook, so this salad does require some advance planning. But what I like about farro, is that once you’ve got some made, it keeps nicely in the fridge and you can use it in salads and soup to instantly add bulk and texture. And farro is very high in protein and fiber which is a good thing when talking salad. Please note that farro is not a gluten-free grain, but it does tend to be lower in gluten than other wheat, so those with very mild gluten insensitivities might be able to eat farro.

As for this salad, my husband and I both loved it. We loved the chew and nutty flavour of the farro and the arugula adds a nice peppery bite. The first night we ate this, we used some leftover diced roasted beets which lent a lovely sweetness to the dish. The next night, we were out of roasted beets, so I subbed in some of my homemade pickled beets instead, which was a very good move. But it was the creamy yogurt & tahini dressing that embraced everything and tied in all the flavours so nicely.

farro & arugula salad with beets
I tend to have a pro-acidic palate, so I used nearly a whole lemon here, but feel free to cut it down if you don’t want too much of a pucker.

3/4 c farro
1 T greek yogurt
1 T tahini
1 T olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon (more or less depending on taste)
1 clove garlic, minced
salt & pepper
a drop of honey (optional)
arugula, rinsed & dried
1 large roasted beet, diced or 1/2 c pickled beets, diced
1/4 c feta or goat cheese, crumbled (optional)

1. Add farro to a small saucepan filled with boiling water. Let simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes, then turn down heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes more until tender. Drain & set aside to cool.

2. In a small jar, combine yogurt, tahini, oil, lemon, garlic, salt & pepper and honey. Shake until well blended. If you find the dressing too thick, add in a tiny bit of water to thin it out. Taste & adjust seasoning.

3. Divide farro into 4 bowls, top with arugula and beets and drizzle with dressing. Sprinkle with cheese, if desired.

Possibly related posts:

• dinner salad: farro & greens cranberry crunch salad
• beets in vinaigrette

Thanksgiving is long-gone and maybe you’d rather be stamping out gingerbread cookies and wondering if glace cherries deserve another look. But I think you shouldn’t discount this sweet potato salad yet. I had some leftover sweet potatoes and yams in the fridge and decided this would be the perfect way to use ‘em up. And yes, in Canada, we call the deep orange sweet potatoes “yams” to differentiate them from their lighter skinned companions.

The taters get all roasted in the oven and then coated in a creamy yogurt-based dressing that has flavour to spare. It’s also studded with toasted pecans and chewy dried cranberries which add good texture and colour. This salad is my version of autumnal heaven. It’s sweet and spicy and crunchy and tangy and I’d be happy to eat a tiny bowl of this daily.

The original version called for mayo, but I wanted to keep this a little lighter so I used 0% greek yogurt instead for the win. I used garam masala but any of your favorite curry powder would be fine here. I also think that if you wanted to go a bit Southwestern, you could toss in some chipotle and limes instead of the curry and see what happens – I think it could be kinda spectacular. Green onions and cilantro would be nice too!

Oh, and I’d love to pimp some of my non-food stuffs for a moment….I will be selling my cards, birthday calendars and brand-new recipe cards at Got Craft? this Sunday on the Drive in Vancouver. Please stop by my table and say hello! I will also be at Toque the following weekend as a fundraiser for the Western Front. And if you don’t live in Vancouver, you can always purchase my lovely paper goods on etsy. Shop now for stocking stuffers and holiday gifts!!

elsewhere: Take a peek over at Poppytalk this week and bake up a batch of everything but the kitchen sink cookies. It will soothe what ails you.

curried sweet potato salad with cranberries & pecans
(adapted from Homesick Texan)
3 large sweet potatoes (yams), peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 T olive oil
1/2 c greek yogurt
1 T garam masala paste (I always use Patak’s) or curry powder
1 t dijon mustard
1/4 red onion, finely diced
1 c dried cranberries
1/2 c roughly chopped pecans, lightly toasted
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Add cut up yams into a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Use your hands to make sure everything is coated. Dump them onto a baking sheet covered with parchment or silpat in an even layer and roast for 35 minutes or until tender.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, masala, dijon, red onions and cranberries, along with a little salt and pepper and half of the pecans. Add in the warm sweet potatoes and stir until well combined. Chill for 3 hours. Sprinkle with remaining pecans and serve.

Possibly related posts:

• curried sweet potato & rice autumn soup/stew
• salad on the go: chopped waldorf wraps

I’ve been trying to open myself up to new experiences and that tends to mean doing things that are pretty frickin’ scary. Though, I did just see 127 Hours recently, I think that experience is one I can live without, thank you very much. But I did speak in front of a crowd of 1,200 people last week and talked about my inspiration regarding food and food blogging at PechaKucha. And it turns out, speaking in front of a crowd of strangers – who thankfully laughed at all the right places – wasn’t as scary as I thought! It was actually all kinds of amazing and I’m so thankful for the opportunity do to so. Conquering a crazy fear? Check! If you are interested in seeing my presentation slides, you can view them here via slideshare. Slide 5 is static over there, but at PechaKucha it was a speeded up silent video. You can see the actual one minute and 40 second movie (with sound!) over on YouTube. It’s called A Dream of Donuts and I made it with a friend in 2000 and we edited with 2 VHS machines ‘cuz that’s how we rolled back then. It’s short and sweet and a little bit fun too. Here are the links to the recipe for my mom’s vanilla chocolate chip bundt cake and the recipe for chocolate on toast that I mentioned at PechaKucha if you feel like doing a little baking.

Oh hey, let’s talk about canning pickled beets! Okay? Okay!

Pickling is fine. No big thing, right? I mean I’ve quick pickled all kinds of vegetables and even made some apricot jam over the summer. But I have never tried canning and processing because it seemed like such a frightening process. And like all things that seem scary at first, it turned out not to be that scary after all. All you need is a bit of preparation – and equipment. I’m lucky because I scored a canning bath pot and jar rack at a garage sale and I found some canning tongs at a thrift store. I also used a wire cookie rack at the bottom of the pot to make sure that the jars didn’t touch the bottom because if glass jars touch the bottom of the pot, they’ll crack and explode. Hence the cookie rack. If you’re feeling more DIY, just create a rack of your own out of tin foil. Improvisation is key! You will also need 6 pint jars. Thrifted jars are fine but they must be clean and free of nicks and chips, but they don’t have to be brand new. However, your snap lids and rings should be, so don’t skimp there!

Once you’ve got all the equipment handy, all you need to do is make sure you’ve got your ingredients ready and read over the directions at least twice. Seriously, this will help you feel calm and prepared. If you’ve never canned anything before, peruse some online guidelines to get familiar with the task at hand. It will sound more scary than it actually is. Trust me.

You know you’ll have escaped the threat of botulism once you hear a very satisfying pop-pop-popping from each jar as they cool. It’s the best sound you’ve ever heard and it goes so well with that sigh of relief. To be sure that your jars have processed correctly, you can tap the lids with a spoon to hear a high pitched ring. The lids will also be slightly concave, so the visual clues with the audio clues will have you totally relived. Phew!

Now, regarding this beet recipe….while it was very tasty, the recipe itself was a bit totally off. One, it calls for a crap-load of beets – 4.5 lbs to be exact. And there’s no way that that amount of beets could have fit into my 6 pint jars (or the 5 pint jars + 2 half-pint jars I used). I had a ton of beets and onions leftover, not a problem since I love beet salad, but a complication nonetheless. In the recipe below you’ll find that I reduced the amount of beets and onions, but I just guessed at the amount figuring 3 lbs and 1 onion should do just fine (if this is not the case, please let me know). I loved the taste of the cinnamon and ginger and rosemary together but I also tend to enjoy a sweeter pickled beet. So bump up the brown sugar from 1/3 cups to 2/3 cups if you want your pickles a wee bit sweeter. Your call.

These pickled beets make fine gifts. I’ve given away a few of the jars already and have received rave reviews. While the beets make a fine side dish, I think they are pretty perfect on their own. Adding a drizzle of local honey and a handful of salty crumbled feta certainly does things up right.

elsewhere: Don’t be a hater! Find the love for some spicy and salty roasted brussels sprouts over at Poppytalk. You won’t be disappointed.

phat beets
(adapted from Martha Stewart)
3 pounds large red beets, greens removed and washed
4-5″ piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into thin rounds (12 slices of ginger)
6 sprigs fresh rosemary (3 inches each)
1 large red onion, peeled, cut in half lengthwise, then cut into thin slices
1 T whole allspice
1 cinnamon stick (3 inches long)
1 t whole cloves
4 c cider vinegar
1/4 c freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 – 2/3 c brown sugar

1. In a large pot, bring beets to the boil and let simmer for about 30-45 minutes until they can easily be pierced with a fork. Drain and cool beets. This step can be done the day before. Remove skins and cut beets in half lengthwise and then cut crosswise into 1/4 inch slices. In a large bowl, mix together the onions with the beets. Set aside.

2. Place 6 clean 1-pint jars right side up on a rack in a boiling-water canner. Fill the canner and jars with hot water, about 1-inch above the tops of jars. Boil jars over high heat for 10 minutes. Remove and drain hot sterilized jars one at a time. Keep the water simmering away in the canner for later. Place jars on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet.

3. Meanwhile, in another pot filled with water, bring water to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Add cleaned lids and lid rings and let simmer lids for 10 minutes – do not boil, as this may cause problems in sealing jars. Drain lids and set aside.

4. Fill each sterilized jar with 2 pieces of ginger and 1 sprig rosemary. Pack each jar with onion and beet mixture up to within 1/2 inch below the rim of the jar.

5. In a tea strainer or make a baggie out of a piece of cheesecloth, place allspice, cinnamon stick, and cloves inside a medium sized saucepan. Pour over cider vinegar, 2 cups water, lemon juice, and brown sugar and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and cover – let mixture simmer about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, check to make sure that the water in the canner is brought up to a boil.

6. Immediately pour hot spiced vinegar mixture over the beet mixture in each jar. Press down with a small rubber spatula to release any air bubbles. If you drip any liquid on the tops of the jars, wipe dry with a clean cloth. Put lids and rings on jars and tighten but do not over-tighten.

7. Within 10 minutes of filling the jars, place them back into the canner one at a time, using a jar lifter that is securely positioned below the neck of the jar. Keep jars upright at all times. Add more boiling water from a kettle if needed so that the water covers the jars by one inch. Boil the jars for 7 minutes. Turn off heat and gently transfer jars to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet, taking care not to tilt jars and spacing each jar at least 1 inch apart. Avoid placing jars on a cold surface or near a cold draft.

8. Let jars sit undisturbed until fully cooled, 12 to 24 hours. You will begin to hear a popping noise. This is a very good thing, meaning that your jars have sealed. Hooray! No botulism for you! Do not tighten ring bands on the lids or push down on the center of the flat metal lid until jar has cooled completely.

9. Once jars have cooled completely, test to make sure each jar is completely sealed. Press down on the middle of the lid with a finger. If lid springs up when finger is released, the jar is unsealed. Store sealed jars in a cool place for at least 2 and up to 4 weeks to allow flavors to thoroughly combine. If any of the jars are unsealed, store in the refrigerator and used within several days.

Possibly related posts:

• splash of colour: farro & arugula salad with beets
• i love the beets & the beets love me: sauteed beet greens with lime and garlic

Last night I had cooked up a pot of chickpeas, drained them and put them in the fridge. I had no immediate plans but figured I’d use them in a soup or stew sometime in the next few days. But then lunchtime rolled around and I was getting a hankering for some good eats. Ages ago, I had bookmarked a chickpea sandwich recipe on Smitten Kitchen and when I gave it a look over, any questions about what to eat were solved. A smashed chickpea salad sandwich coming up!

The recipe is really a cinch to prepare and it’s got a serious case of tangy with all that lemon and caper business going on. But it’s also got some creamy mayo in there too to help smooth things out a little. The original recipe calls for olive oil instead of mayo but I was all out because I only get my olive oil from Tosi & Co, the oldest Italian market in Chinatown and the shop been closed for about a week now. It makes me nervous to think about it and I’m crossing my fingers that it opens again soon! But I loved how much that dollop of mayo did for this salad. I added in capers instead of black olives, though I think that would be a great choice too. But the biggest bonus for me is the juice of a whole lemon. I used a rather juicy lemon and I loved the super lemony sucker punch it gave, but feel free to tone it down to just a half lemon if you’ve got timid taste buds.

I made sandwiches for me and Cornelius on rye toast and I couldn’t get enough, so I made another. This is a bit of a drippy sandwich, so I even licked my plate. I have no manners, but I sure can appreciate a good sandwich. Yeah, this is the good stuff. So good, next time, I’ll forget about the bread and just eat it as is, salad-style. Alone. And happy.

elsewhere: This week I go ball-istic over at Poppytalk and make a recipe for veggie balls. They’re great! Also, you have to make this creamy asian veggie slaw that converts slaw haters. It’s delicious and I make it often. Enjoy!

tangy lemon smashed chickpea salad
(adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
1 c chickpeas
1/4 c finely diced red onion
1/2 green pepper, finely diced
1 lemon, juiced (though you might just want to use half a lemon if you aren’t so into the tangy like I am)
2 T chopped fresh parsley
1 T good mayo (vegan mayo if that’s your thing)
1 t capers, finely chopped
1/4 t flakey sea salt
a few shakes of your favorite hot sauce

In a medium bowl, dump in your chickpeas and use a potato masher to smash your chickpeas. This shouldn’t be hummus texture here – just smashed with some whole chickpeas and a lot of roughly chopped ones. Stir in the red onion, pepper, parsley, capers, lemon juice and the remaining ingredients. Taste & adjust seasoning if needed. Serve on toasted bread or crusty rolls or just eat as is, salad-style. Makes 4 servings.

Possibly related posts:

• eat hungrily: chickpea & romaine salad with lemon-parmesan vinaigrette
• lemon, parmesan & chickpea cabbage salad

First up, broccoli crunch slaw. This is one of the most popular recipes on this blog & for good reason too. It’s not heavy (thanks to the yogurt in the dressing) and it’s very festive with the dried cranberries and the crunchy roasted almonds. Even slaw-haters and raw-broccoli naysayers will love this one.

My mom always made a soup for Thanksgiving and I’m happy to carry on the tradition. While she would usually make vichyssoise, I tend to think sweet & spicy. I love love love this sweet potato, corn & jalapeno bisque (which is just a fancy way of saying soup) and despite how easy it is to make, it’s fancy enough for your frilliest guests. Got more adventurous friends, this spicy African yam & peanut soup is incredible.

Who doesn’t love a good cranberry sauce? Apples, cranberries and fresh rosemary co-mingle to make something really wonderful. Tasty with turkey, stuffing and all the fixings – and also delicious over biscuits and mac and cheese. It’s utilitarian-ly delicious. This cranberry chutney is another delicious alternative.

Everyone always finishes their stuffing, right? I personally think it’s the one thing that everyone loves. I love my mom’s traditional sage-onion-celery stuffing but I’ve made it a bit more exciting with the addition of chopped apples and walnuts. A keeper.

I can’t get enough of vegetables on the Thanksgiving table. I was a vegetarian for 10 years and old habits die hard. These braised vegetables are a godsend for busy holidays because they are so simple to prepare. Trust me, these braised turnips, onions and carrots will knock your socks off. Want to braise some more? Try this braised cabbage, cumin and apple dish or give milk-braised cauliflower & carrots a go.

Who could argue with a good pumpkin dessert? This pumpkin and apple crumb cake is made for Thanksgiving, though I’d happily eat it all year round.

But you can’t forget pie! Last year I made a fantastic apple & sour cherry pie with a crumb topping. I still dream about that pie. And if you can’t forgo pumpkin pie, why not give this retro looking pumpkin chiffon dream pie a try!

Please don’t forget that after Thanksgiving it’s not about eating leftover pie for breakfast (though a little slice never hurt anyone). Give yourself a hearty & wholesome breakfast and try this pumpkin spice bowl of steel cut oats.

Now take a deep breath, because now you’re Thanksgiving day ready. Just remember to breathe and the rest will be easy. Do you have any Thanksgiving favorites? Share them with me in the comments, I’d love to hear about your own dinner traditions.

Possibly related posts:

• thanksgiving is pretty much all about food.
• thanksgiving pt. 2: cranberry chutney + pumpkin chocolate chip cake

Our CSA has been very lucky with the green beans lately. Every week, green beans. Really, I’m not complaining because I like green beans. I’ve recently been slicing them uber-thin and adding them raw to vegetable slaws or cutting them into manageable lengths and tossing them into a stir fry. And then there are the 2 fantastic standby favorites: lemony green beans and bold green beans.

But a couple of weeks ago, I branched out. I had just received a bag of baby nugget potatoes from our CSA as well and decided that marrying the two in one dish sounded like a good plan of attack. And because I was also cooking up some roasted miso ginger chicken that night, I figured I’d run with the miso theme. The recipe is simple if you’ve got your ingredients on hand – miso and umeboshi vinegar. If you can’t find the umeboshi vinegar (a salty Japanese plum brine), just substitute in some cider vinegar and a good pinch of salt.

This potato and green bean salad makes for a lovely late summer dish. The potatoes are creamy and the beans have snap with the dressing being a nice blend of tartness from the citrus and vinegar and the subtle miso flavour to balance things out. The salad tastes great the following day, however, your green beans will discolour and won’t look as pretty. If you are eating with your eyeballs, this may pose a problem, but your taste buds will only notice how delicious it is.

potato and green bean salad with lemon miso dressing
(adapted from Gourmet)
1/2 lb new baby potatoes
1/2 lb green beans trimmed and cut diagonally into 1 1/2″ pieces
1 green shallot (or regular shallot or green onion), finely chopped
1 T light miso
juice of 1 lemon
juice of 1/2 lime
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T vegetable oil
1 t umeboshi vinegar
a good grind of black pepper

Cut potatoes in half or quarters and boil under tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well and let cool. Steam green beans for about 4 minutes or until bright green but still crisp. Rinse under cold running water until cool. Add green beans and potatoes into a large bowl. Add the shallot over top.

In a 1-cup measuring cup, combine the remaining ingredients and use a small whisk to blend well. Pour dressing over the vegetables and toss. Refrigerate for an hour before serving.

Possibly related posts:

• southern hospitality: lemon ice tea + pulled pork sandwiches + incredible lemony potato salad + lemony-garlicy green beans
• c’mon summer: green bean quinoa salad

As soon as we came back home from our NYC holiday, we picked up our first CSA share. As always, the first few CSA shares start small and then ramp up as the growing season really begins to take off. Our first couple shares looked something like this: tiny red and white potatoes, a wee bit of broccoli, chard and kale, a beet and turnip, or two, and lots of lettuce. We’ve got enough oak leaf and red leaf lettuce to make salads for days and I couldn’t be happier. These are our salad days and I’ve chosen to revel in our abundance.

Main dish salads are fine with me. I love to eat big raw salads when it’s too hot to cook. And while the rest of the country seems to be under this reported “heat dome”, the pacific north west seems to be just shy of its covering. It’s not hot here. In fact, it resembles a rainy spring April instead of a sweltering middle of summer July. But I’ve got salads to eat and I can crack open a cold beer and dig into my salad bowl and pretend that I’m in warmer climes. I pity those without imagination.

This taco salad is a cinch and it goes perfectly with a beer, if that’s how your summers roll by. Greens, freshly prepared salsa (or that “fresh” salsa from your local grocer works just fine here), sliced black olives, black beans, cucumbers and bright yellow peppers. If I had some fresh or decent frozen corn, I would have thrown some in. Add lots of lime juice, a bit of spice, and a handful of salty tortilla chips crumbled over top. I added avocados to my husband’s plate but skipped it on mine because I’m weird like that. Don’t worry, you don’t even need cheese or sour cream to muddy things up. Keep it light and bright, like the best summer of my mind.

taco salad
1 large head of lettuce (rinsed, dried & torn to bits)
1 can of black beans, drained & rinsed
1/2 cucumber, diced
1 yellow pepper, diced
1/4 can of sliced black olives, drained

1/2 c fresh salsa
1/4 c freshly squeezed lime juice (or about 1.5 – 2 limes)
1/4 c olive oil
1 t crushed aleppo peppers (or 1/4 t chili flakes)
1/2 t cumin
a few squirts of your favorite hot sauce

1 avocado, sliced
a few handfuls of tortilla chips

In a large bowl, toss together the first 5 ingredients. In a 2-cup measuring cup, mix together the next 6 ingredients and pour over the salad. Scatter avocado slices on top along with the crushed tortilla chips.

Possibly related posts:

• photographic evidence: mexican black bean & tortilla salad
• salad days: southwest bean & pasta salad

While in New York, I plan on doing a lot of picnic eating. Picnic eating while traveling is a lot different from picnic eating while at home. While traveling, it usually involves picking up something readymade like a $3 Bánh mì sandwich and finding a shady spot under a tree or on a park bench. Usually, it’s a stop at a deli for cheese, sausage and bread. To drink, I just fill up my Sigg bottle and that’s it. Simple, but delicious and probably made even more so because we’re in a new city, seeing new things and just being happy and relaxed. And I have to admit that picnics while traveling are usually also a cost-cutting measure because it’s usually cheaper to eat outside on your own accord than in a restaurant.

When I’m at home, I’ve got an old thrifted tin picnic basket, a pink and white old wool blanket to sit on and I like to have lots of variety in terms of food and drink. And there’s lots of friends involved which means more variety and lots of fun. I love picnics and while I’m looking forward to coming home to picnics with friends in local parks.

Here’s some of my favorite summer picnic salads. They’re all relatively quick to prepare and they can last without refrigeration for quite a while. All are vegetarian, most are vegan (or can easily be made so).

Top row:
Colourful coleslaw | French-style carrot salad |Summer dill pasta salad

Middle row:
Simple potato salad with lemon & cumin | Roasted tomato pasta salad | Fresh corn & black bean salad

Bottom row:
Mixed bean salad | Green bean quinoa salad | Colourful chopped vegetable salad

Here are a few fantastic sounding salads by other food bloggers:
Broccoli salad with creamy sesame seed herb dressing over at So Good & Tasty
Zucchini & olive salad over at Dana Treat
Chickpea & raisin salad at Shutterbean

Do you have a favorite picnic salad? Share it with me in the comments below!

Possibly related posts:

• belated birthday fun times: the white out cake
• holiday beach picnics: roasted tomato pasta salad

The sunshine comes out and we, the sunshine deprived, go a little bit nuts. It’s been a long, cool, rainy spring and when I did my errands this afternoon it actually got so warm that I got excited for summer and all the nice days to come. Yesterday I wore a skirt without tights and sunned my pasty legs! Tonight I drank an evening cocktail out on the balcony! Who knows what tomorrow will bring, but I know it will be sweet because the weather will be even warmer. Nice!

Maybe it’s spring where you are or maybe it’s raining and grey outside. I can think of a few things that will make you smile. One, is this little bit of video on YouTube: Ska, Ska, Ska aka This is Ska (a short film with 2 titles has got to be good!). There are 4 parts and it’s all very watchable and highly danceable. And this just begs the question, why don’t people dance the ska anymore? Can we bring it back? Next time you meet me on the dance floor (or in my kitchen) I will be enthusiastically “rowing”. Now, the second thing that might make you smile is this coleslaw. Look at it! So bright! So colourful! Let’s talk about it.

This is one of my oldest and dearest coleslaw recipes. I’m surprised that I haven’t posted it on the blog until now. It has no mayo or gloopy dressing. Instead it’s a simple brined salad, tangy and a little bit sweet. It comes from the first cookbook I bought for myself when after a break-up I found myself living alone for the first time in my life. No family, no roommates, no boyfriend. Just me. I had in fact just stopped being a vegetarian a month earlier, but still wasn’t interested in cooking meat at home. So this cookbook, full of familiar and comforting recipes, was a bit of a lifesaver. The coleslaw, even better.

I’ve made a few tweaks over the years. I don’t grate my onion and I use a good amount of smoky paprika with a hot sauce chaser. I don’t really think you could screw this up. It’s easy, it’s cheap and it’s very forgiving. Once, when I thought I had this recipe memorized, I put in a 1/2 cup of sugar instead of the written 1/4 cup. You know what? I liked it, I ate it. No complaints. Try the recipe as written the first time and then play around with it. Maybe you do like a sweeter ‘slaw, so try adding in an extra tablespoon or two instead of going all out like I mistakenly did.

The texture of the cabbage changes slightly with this brine. It’s crunchy but there’s something else…it’s a bit squeaky. It’s because of the pickling that is going on. And this squeakiness is a good thing. You can eat this slaw as soon as it cools down, about 30 minutes after making it. It’s not very squeaky at this point. It’s fresh and crunchy and it’s delicious, but if you wait 6 more hours, or overnight – that’s when this coleslaw really comes into its own. Make a double batch and see for yourself.

elsewhere: Over at Poppytalk I make a very spring-worthy dish: pasta primavera. It’s creamy without being heavy and it’s as delicious as it looks (and it looks great!). So stop by and say hi!

colourful coleslaw
(adapted from Vegetarian Comfort Food)
1/2 head green cabbage
1/2 head purple cabbage
1 large carrot, grated
1 large red pepper, sliced thinly
1/4 c finely diced red onion
1/2 c cider vinegar
1/4 c white sugar
1 t salt
1/2 t mustard powder
1/4 t hot smoked paprika
1/4 t black pepper
a few dashes of hot sauce

Slice cabbage thinly and then cross cut it a bit so there aren’t long strings of cabbage, cuz that’s just not cool. Dump the cabbage into a large bowl, preferably one with a lid. Add in the grated carrot, sliced red pepper and diced onion. Give it all a giant toss and set aside.

In a small saucepan, bring the vinegar and sugar to a boil. Be careful to not inhale – this is strong stuff. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients until dissolved. Pour hot liquid over slaw and toss until well mixed. Add a few dashes of hot sauce, if desired. Place lid on bowl or cover with plastic wrap or a plate and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Or refrigerate for 6 hours if you can wait that long and serve. Lasts for a couple of days in the fridge (as if).

Possibly related posts:

• now that’s a mouthful: smokey bbq chicken sandwich topped with north carolina coleslaw
• who doesn’t like cabbage? lemon coleslaw

Growing up I was a picky eater. I remember on more than one occasion being held back at the table because I didn’t finish my plate. So I’d sit and wait until everything was quit and then I’d fill up my napkin with the offending food item and flush it down the toilet. Good riddance. Tomatoes made me gag. Raw onions were disgusting. Jello still makes my skin crawl. Don’t even let me think about melons. Cucumbers have always been on the oh-hells-no list. But then things began to change. A few years ago I was fine with a slice in my sandwich. It provided crunch and a subtle freshness that I appreciated. And then, I made tzatziki and a creamy dill salad and I was slowly coming around to its charms. It became a regular in other salads and as a dipper for hummus.

So now I can say with a clear heart and head that I’ve made progress on the formally hated food front. And I can provide a tip if you aren’t a cucumber fan either and want to become friends: when you cut into your cuke, scrape out the seeds with a spoon. That’s it. That watery mess is the equivalent of a textural heebee-jeebee and has no business near your salad.

Now, let’s get to this salad because it’s a good one. I whipped up a lovely Sunday lunch recently of roasted potatoes, breaded baked sole and steamed spinach, but I wanted a bit more flavour on the plate. This salad came to the rescue and provided a nice tart bite. The lemon shines and the dressing is tart but balanced with a bit of honey (though agave syrup would be a lovely substitution for a vegan salad). If I had fresh dill, I probably would have tossed some over top, but this salad needed no extra help.

elsewhere: At Poppytalk last week I made a rice noodle salad with shrimp and vegetables.

lemon, onion & cucumber salad
1/2 english cucumber
1/4 small onion, sliced thinly
1 lemon, zested & juiced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 T olive oil
1 t honey
salt & pepper

Cut the cucumber in half, lengthwise and scoop out the seeds if desired. Me, I scrape ‘em out every time. Slice into thin half moons and place in a serving bowl. Add the thin slices of onion to the bowl along with the lemon zest.

To make the dressing, combine the lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, honey and salt and pepper in a small lidded jar. Shake until combined. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Pour over salad, toss, and serve.

Possibly related posts:

• creamy cucumber dill salad
• simple potato salad with lemon & cumin