Asian Inspired Coleslaw

Last September, for the very first time in my entire life of living in Washington State, I visited Mt Baker which is clear up at the northern boundary of the state. It was sunny and clear, quite warm when the glacial wind wasn't blowing, with the odd patch of snow at Artist Point and along the trails. I'm not an outdoorsy person, like a hiker or a camper. I'm an ambler, as in, I prefer to amble along flattish paths in a temperate forest. It didn't even occur to me that I'd be on the top of a mountain. At the end of September. So there I am in my hot pink Converse and lightweight cardigan (because I get warm very easily), on the top of a mountain, surrounded by serious hikers and serious tourists in fleece vests and thermal jackets and actual hiking boots. It was surreal. My friend who is an advance amateur photographer and actual outdoors man, took off on one of the paths that went further up the mountain. I, on the other hand, found a nice sunny log to sit on and people-watched. And get a mild sunburn, which is something else that didn't occur to me. I joke that I must've been a dog in a previous incarnation because I love to ride in the car, even short trips, but I think I was a cat in many more incarnations. I'm essentially lazy, I prefer my own company and I'm finicky about allowing other people into my personal space, I think about food constantly, and I'm quite happy to observe rather than participate.

Mt Baker as seen from Artist Point

After my friend had taken all the photos he could possibly take, we eventually headed back down the mountain for a late lunch at an unassuming diner across the highway from an Italian restaurant. I ordered a pulled pork sandwich and it was served on a pile of french fries with a side of coleslaw. Now, I'm super-picky about coleslaw. All too often, it's a sweet, watery mess which detracts rather than complements a meal. This coleslaw was amazing. It had cilantro and scallions mixed in with the cabbage and a sweet chili dressing that had a bit of bite without being cloyingly sweet. After the first couple bites, I piled the slaw on my sandwich and inhaled it. By nature (or perhaps nurture), I'm a slow eater. I like to take my time and enjoy my food. That was not the case with this meal! The pulled pork was smoked in-house with apple wood and seasoned just right, and heaped on a toasted ciabatta roll. I'm not a huge fan of ciabatta as they ought to have a chewy crust and a soft interior, yet I've found that most commercial ciabatta are dry and bland with nothing to distinguish them from another other bread roll.

Since then, I've craved that coleslaw. The first thing I needed to do was find a sweet chili sauce that wasn't too sweet nor too spicy. I made a trip to the Korean grocery, H-Mart, as I needed to pick up some sesame oil, veggies, and a few other staples. I was also looking for fresh wide rice noodles which for some reason they don't carry. They did have frozen hom bao on sale; yum! I love those things! Anyhow, I picked up a bottle of sweet chili sauce, pretty much at random and because it was $1.49. For that price, I figured I'd give it a try.

So yesterday afternoon, I made up a batch of Thai Inspired coleslaw. I was planning on eating it with some cheese'n'bacon brats but then I decided to make some barbecued pulled pork as I needed to cook a roast before it went bad. The sauce for the pork was a bottled mustard-based barbecue sauce to which I added brown sugar and honey to counterbalance some of the acidity. The pork turned out great and so did the slaw. I'll pick up some crusty bread today so I can make my very own pulled pork and slaw sandwich for dinner!

Asian Inspired Coleslaw

Ingredients:

**All measurements are approximate so adjust as needed

**Yields about 4 cups

4 cups cabbage, thinly sliced or shredded

2 carrots, grated on the bias (that means diagonally)

5 scallions, white and green parts thinly sliced on the bias

5 radishes, top and tailed, cut in half and thinly sliced

2 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped

Dressing:

1/4 cup sweet chili sauce

1 heaping tablespoon mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil or more to taste

Juice from half a lime or more to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup crushed roasted unsalted peanuts for garnish

Combine the veggies and cilantro in a large bowl. Whisk the ingredients for the dressing together in a smaller bowl, taste, and adjust the seasonings as needed. 

Toss the veggies with the dressing no more than 15 minutes before serving so the slaw doesn't become watery. Garnish with the peanuts and more cilantro, if you'd like.

Cook's Notes:

1. Feel free to use bags of coleslaw mix. Cabbage can be oddly expensive as they're sold by weight and are rather heavy for their size. Since I was at an Korean market with a great variety of inexpensive produce, I picked up a small head of green cabbage and small Napa cabbage. I used about 1/3 of the green and half of the Napa. Purple cabbage would add nice color to the slaw; use whatever you prefer.
2. Most slaws include carrots, as I did. They provide a little sweetness and some great color. Grate them on your hand-held grater, holding them at an angle in order to produce longer, intact shreds. Currently, I don't have a grater so I used my vegetable peeler instead to make strips. It worked pretty well.
3. I like the crunch of radishes and their slightly peppery heat so I decided to include some with the other veggies. You can omit them, but why not give them a try? Make sure you rinse them well as they often still have mud from the fields on them. If you're really adventurous, try shredded daikon or an heirloom variety. 
4. I called this an Asian Inspired slaw, which is true. It's perhaps closer to being Thai in that the ingredients include scallions, cilantro, lime juice, and peanuts. 
5. If you don't wish to use mayo in the dressing, try a neutral-flavored oil like grapeseed instead, peanut oil which will enhance the peanut flavor, or a stir fry oil which is safflower oil seasoned with garlic, ginger, and onion. I personally wanted a creamier dressing but it's up to you.

I still have most of the sweet chili sauce left. I'm thinking I'll use it to glaze chicken before grilling later in the year or perhaps in a pan sauce for shrimp or in a dipping sauce for spring rolls...

Jean's Chicken & Chips Casserole

This is not a healthy recipe. Let's just get that outta the way right up front. This is a comfort food casserole all the way, baby! And it's retro. Like, serve-it-on-melamine-plates-at-the-formica-table retro. With Kool-Aid in jelly jars with cartoon characters printed on them. In my opinion, any recipe that calls for mayonnaise and Lay's potato chips is retro. I'm surprised the hipsters aren't all over this...except there's no quinoa or kale in sight! 

I think the casserole we ate the most frequently growing up was tater tot casserole and I know it's a comfort food for one of my brothers. I mean, you can't go wrong with a ground beef gravy topped with cheddar cheese and tater tots. I don't recall ever eating tuna noodle casserole as a kid and I think it's because my mom grew up eating it and couldn't stomach the thought (pun intended) of eating it ever again. She was the second oldest of six kids, four of which were boys and money was tight, so my grandma made a lot of inexpensive yet filling casseroles. 

After my mom passed away less than a year after my dad died and I was still deep in grief, my mom's best friend, Jean, called me one day and stated she was going to bring me dinner. I don't remember very many things in detail from after my parents' deaths; most of it's a hazy memory. I do remember a handful of comfort meals and this was one of them. Jean brought this casserole over and then whipped up banana pudding for me, the kind with Nilla wafers, and then she just sat and reminisced and cried with me. I've known Jean for 35 years ate this point, virtually all of my life, and it's so comforting to have a tangible link to my childhood and to my mom.

Mmm, delicious! How can you go wrong with a potato chip topping??

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked chicken, shredded

1 cup celery, diced

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/4 cup onion, diced

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Topping:

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated

1 cup plain Lay's potato chips, crushed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease an 8" by 8" baking dish. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the chicken, celery, almonds, and onion with the mayonnaise, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt and pepper and mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning of necessary. Transfer to the prepared baking dish and top with the cheese and potato chips.

Bake 30 minutes until heated through and the cheese is melted.

Cook's Notes:

1. First things first: I will not give you any substitute ingredients because that's not what this casserole is about. This casserole is all about love and comfort and memories. I wasn't kidding about no quinoa or kale in sight. Maybe some broccoli, though.
2. The recipe doesn't have a high yield, maybe four cups max or four servings. It's super-easy to double or triple, though.
3. You can either poach some chicken breasts and/or thighs to use or feel free to pick up a rotisserie chicken from the market. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before; my local Albertson's occasionally sells packages of shredded chicken from the previous day's unsold rotisserie chickens. Unless raw chicken is on sale, this is a great way to go. It ends up costing about the same about of money per pound plus it cuts out a step; poaching.
4. I like the crunch and bright flavor of celery and I think that it helps balance the heavier flavors from the mayo and cheese in the finished dish. If you despise celery, I suppose you could use broccoli instead. Frozen broccoli is too slimy for me so I recommend using fresh broccoli and steaming it before adding to the chicken mixture.
5. I have a trick for you: after you dice the onion and before you add it to the chicken mixture, place the diced onion in a small bowl and cover with cold water. Let soak for five minutes and then drain and rinse under more cold water. Blot with paper towels to remove as much water as possible and then proceed with the recipe.
6. Using just mayonnaise as a binder seems weird, I know. Combined with the lemon juice, it works; think of it as a hot chicken salad. Which also sounds weird. But it's delicious.
7. I prefer using sharp cheddar in casseroles and savory baked goods as you're able to taste the cheese while medium or mild cheddars just aren't assertive enough. 
8. I nearly forgot the almonds! I guess you can omit them; I like the crunch and mild flavor they add. Last time I made this, I used dry roasted diced almonds which I bought in the bulk foods section for another recipe. Since they were dry roasted, the almonds supplied a deeper toasty flavor which I think enhanced the casserole.

Serve chicken'n'chips casserole with green bean casserole, iceberg lettuce salads, and banana pudding for a true throwback meal!

Adventures in Making Energy Bites (or, How I Should Maybe Follow a Recipe)

As I may have mentioned in the past, I have an aversion to following recipes. It's not a bad thing to cook by instinct and intuition, however, I need to cultivate the habit of following a recipe closely the first time I make something new. Case in point, the energy bites I made yesterday. I've been reading a bunch of recipes for energy bites and bars because I'm terrible about eating breakfast. I thought if I made up something I can nibble on, it would alleviate the "hangry" feeling that creeps over me a couple hours after I get up. Plus, I am very, very slow to fully wake up. One of my friends calls it "hatching" which I like because that's exactly how it feels. I always have to reassure people that if I don't talk or interact with them within the first hour or so of waking up, that I don't hate them! My mind is fully functional, there's just a disconnect between my mind and my mouth. 

So, after reading various recipes for energy bites and sampling some of my sister-in-law's she made a couple weeks ago, I went grocery shopping. Bulk food shopping, to be exact. I picked up some old fashioned oats, coconut flakes, roasted almond pieces, and fresh ground peanut butter. I had honey, coconut oil, flax seeds, and a dark chocolate bar at home, so I was set. 

Ingredients:

3 cups oats

1 cup roasted almond pieces

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup coconut flakes

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

1/3 cup honey

1/3 cup flax seeds, slightly ground

1 bar dark chocolate, chopped

1 TBSP vanilla extract

Pinch of fresh grated nutmeg

Pinch of salt

**These are the amounts of the ingredients I used, to the best of my recollection. DO NOT follow these proportions! The resulting bites are delicious but so very crumbly! I need to refine the recipe. Or, you know, follow someone else's recipe to the letter.

Cook's Notes:

1. This made a huge batch, which is what I wanted. I mean, there's over 5 cups of dry ingredients. I wanted to make enough to last me for a couple weeks. And it will.
2. In retrospect, I should have melted the peanut butter with the coconut oil and the honey as I think the mixture would've come together easier. I also think I should've increased the total amount of peanut butter and coconut oil as the mix was very crumbly.
3. About half the recipes I researched used dates as a binder and then called for using a food processor to combine the ingredients. As my food processor is currently in storage, I decided to use peanut butter, coconut oil, and honey as the binders instead.
4. Flax seeds, unless they're ground, won't be digested which means you're not getting any of their nutrients. I used my mortar and pestle to smash them up before adding them to the bowl. I thought about buying ground flax seeds but I had whole ones on hand and want to use them up.
5. I personally love the taste and texture of coconut flakes and grated coconut. It adds just a touch of sweetness without being overpowering.
6. Someone had given me a bar of Hershey's Special Dark awhile back. I used my mortar and pestle to smash it up into small pieces. I could've used a really sharp knife instead to chop up the chocolate, but I didn't. 
7. A little vanilla extract enhanced the mix as did the fresh nutmeg. I'm not a huge fan of cinnamon unless we're talking cinnamon rolls which is a whole other delicious story! The nutmeg and the salt added just the right notes to round out the mix.
8. Since the resulting mixture was crumbly, I decided to squoosh it together as best I could and place the bites in cupcake liners instead. I ended up with nearly two dozen, two-bite energy balls. I place them on a cookie sheet and let them set up in the fridge for an hour, then transferred them to a plastic container (with a lid) with parchment paper between the layers and stored them in the fridge. 
9. The thing I like best about my creation are the roasted almonds because I love almonds. Love them so much! And since they're roasted, the almonds add great flavor and crunch. I decided not to add dried fruit for my first batch; I'm not a huge fan of them. Perhaps I'll make a tropical batch with more coconut, dried pineapple, and macadamia nuts.