Use That Chinese Cabbage for a Tasty Holiday Salad

Happy Memorial Day, and it looks like it's going to be another hot one. If you are looking for some cool picnic fare that uses some of the fresh produce we received at the first pickup, you might want to try this tasty and quick Chinese Cabbage salad. It’s even red (dried cherries), white (onions), and blue (blueberries).

MEMORIAL DAY SALAD

Salad

1 or 2 heads Chinese cabbage, washed and chopped
8 green onions, chopped
1 cup drained pineapple tidbits
½ cup dried cherries
½ cup blueberries, dried or fresh
¼ cup sesame seeds
2 pkgs. ramen noodles, crumbled to small bits

Dressing

1 cup canola or olive oil
½ cup white vinegar
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
seasoning packets from ramen noodles
½ tsp dry mustard
2 tsp molasses
2 tsp soy sauce
paprika, salt, and pepper

Toss the salad ingredients, douse with the dressing, toss again, and serve. Makes enough for a crowd.

Belgian Beet and Dill Salad

Sometimes it works out well to not manage to use up all of one week's produce before the next week's comes in--I had beets left when we got dill last Saturday, and I found this recipe to use both of them to make a lovely and tasty fall salad. The recipe comes from a cookbook I found at the downtown library, Everybody Eats Well in Belgium which I hesitated about bringing home--Belgium and Flanders are kind of known for not getting along. But I thought I'd give it a try, and so far no complaints. Turns out it's not all waffles and crepes; I've made a green bean recipe from this cookbook, too. Not that our green beans need any dressing up--they have been both delicious and prolific this season.

But back to beets and dill; another nice thing about this recipe is you can make it the night before; the longer it marinates in the vinaigrette, the better it tastes. So, eat well, eat Belgian (I just pretend it's Flemish), and try this recipe.


Belgian Beet & Dill Salad

4 or 5 small to medium red beets, scrubbed, with about 2” of green tops left on
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 small onion, sliced thin
Salt
Pepper
Lettuce or other greens
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

Place the beets in a saucepan, cover with cold water, add salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, covered, until beets are tender, 25 to 40 minutes, depending on size. Drain and let cool slightly, then slip off the peels and slice or cube the beets. Whish the oil and lemon juice together and pour over warm beets. Add the onions and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve—at least an hour, but overnight is okay, too.

Just before serving, drain off and reserve the vinaigrette (which should be a lovely hot pink color). Arrange the beets and onions on a bed of lettuce and drizzle the beet-colored vinaigrette over all. Top with dill before serving.