Thai Cabbage Salad

This was one of my favorite finds over the summer--reminded me a little of somtum, minus the fish sauce :) Serve with grilled chicken and you have a great summer dinner. Ahhh, summer...where have you gone?

Thai Cabbage Salad

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
4 cups finely shredded Napa cabbage
1/2 small red onion, sliced thin
1/2 cup grated carrot
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

In a bowl stir together the lemon juice, the sugar, and the salt, sesame oil, rice vinegar until the sugar and salt are dissolved.
Add cabbage, onion, carrot, mint, coriander, and the oil, and toss the salad well.

Squash and Cabbage Stew

I had half of a banana squash and a half head of cabbage in the fridge that needed to be used, so I thought this recipe would do the trick. It's definitely one of those soups that tastes better when the ingredients have time to "stew" together for a while--but I'm sure you could make a quicker version out of it if you wanted. I served it with my new favorite Honey Oatmeal Bread, but any crusty bread would do the trick. Now that's a nutrient-packed meal (and a good one, to boot).

Squash and Cabbage Stew
1 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, small diced
2 carrots, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 large winter squash (I used banana squash)
1 can petite diced tomatoes (I cut them up even smaller)
2 cups chicken stock
3 to 4 cups water
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 Parmesan rind
1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 head cabbage, cut into small pieces
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the butter and oil in a heavy based soup pan and add the onion and carrots. Saute until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and squash, stir well to coat each chunk and then leave to soften, stirring occasionally for about 10 mins.

Add the tomatoes, bay leaf and herbs to the pan, stir well and allow to bubble gently for a couple of minutes before adding the water or stock and the parmesan rind.

Turn up the heat and bring the pan to a gentle boil, cover the pan, putting the lid ajar so steam can escape, lower the heat and leave the pan at a gentle simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Add the beans and cabbage and heat to a low boil for another 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and leave it to rest for at least one hour. Refrigerate and then reheat when ready to eat--the soup taste better the longer it sits.

Serve with plenty of freshly grated parmesan and good crusty bread.

April Fool's Day Hay

This isn't necessarily supposed to be an April Fool's Day dinner, but it happened to be April Fool's Day and "day" rhymes with "hay," so there you go--April Fool's Day Hay. And you can tell your kids you're have "Cabbage and Hay" for dinner and they'll think you are joking, but you're not. ha, ha. This recipe is from Rachael Ray's magazine and since I've been on a cabbage-kick since St. Patrick's Day, I wanted to give it a try. She calls it Pizzoccheri or "cabbage and hay." It sounded a little starch/carb-heavy with the potatoes, so I left them out. We all liked it--even the slow-eaters. Camden particularly was eating slow and when asked why, she said, "I'm just enjoying it, Mom." Well-said, Camden. Then when the kids asked what was for dessert, I went along with the "hay" theme and served them "mini-haystacks" (chewy oatmeal-coconut cookies). I love a good theme :)
"Cabbage and Hay" Spaghetti
1 lb whole wheat spaghetti (I used about 10 oz.)
2 baking potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes (I didn't use)
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 head cabbage, thinly sliced
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 to 3 cloves garlic, grated or minced
1/2 cup vegetable broth
12 large sage leaves (I didn't have, so I added 1/4 tsp dried oregano and 1/4 tsp dried thyme)
4 Tbsp butter, cut into pieces (Since I wasn't frying sage leaves, I only added 1 Tbsp to the cooked cabbage)
salt and pepper
Parmigiano-reggiano cheese

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it and add the spaghetti and the potatoes. Cook until the spaghetti is al dente and the potatoes are just tender, about 10 minutes; drain.
2. While the pasta is cooking, in a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Stir in the cabbage, onion and garlic; season with salt and pepper (and oregano and thyme if not using sage leaves). Cook until tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the vegetable broth and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the sage leaves and cook until crisp. (I didn't do this step)
4. Toss the pasta with the cabbage mixture (I added 1 Tbsp butter). Then add the sage leaves (if using) and cheese and toss.

Cabbage, Potato and Bean Soup

I needed to use the leftover cabbage from St. Patrick's Day--so potato and cabbage soup seemed like a good idea. I got the idea to throw in some white beans from this recipe. It was delicious and nourishing. Next time I'm not feeling well, I going to ask for a big bowl of CPB soup :)

Cabbage, Potato and Bean Soup
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, small diced
2 stalks celery, small diced
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 potatoes, peeled and diced
2 cans chicken broth
1 cup water
1 can white beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 head cabbage, cut into small pieces
1 tsp salt
black pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese, shredded

1. Heat oil in a large pot. Saute onion, celery and carrots. Add garlic and saute a minute longer.
2. Add broth, water, salt and diced potatoes. Cook until potatoes are almost tender, about 10 minutes.
3. Add beans and cabbage and cook until cabbage is tender. Season to taste.
4. Top with shredded Parmesan.