Meatless Monday - Red Cabbage and Walnut Winter Coleslaw

Although I call this a winter coleslaw, I often make this in the warmer weather as well. Red cabbage makes wonderful coleslaw, although it is sadly often overlooked in favour of its greener cousins. The fact that red cabbage is often served overcooked or pickled has led many folks to believe that it is bitter, but properly prepared nothing could be further from the truth. Nutritionally, it is an absolute powerhouse, high in protective phytonutrients that detoxify, nourish and protect against disease, particularly when served raw. It is also a powerful anti-inflammatory and high in vitamins A and C.

You need to make this salad in advance but this is something I almost always find a benefit, particularly when I am entertaining. It is best to make it the afternoon or evening before the day you wish to serve it to allow the flavours to blend together and for the cabbage to become tender crisp in the dressing. You can shred the onion and cabbage in a food processor if you like, but I often find it is quicker just to slice them finely with a knife than having to wash all the paraphernalia that goes along with the food processor!

half a red onion, finely sliced in half moons

1 red cabbage, cored and finely sliced or shredded

¾ to 1 cup walnut halves

2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley (or 2 teaspoons dried parsley)

4 tablespoons olive oil (Extra Virgin if possible)

3 tablespoons good balsamic vinegar

(I use Apple Balsamic Vinegar when I can get it, but any good balsamic vinegar is absolutely fine.)

1 tablespoon sugar or honey

2 teaspoons wholegrain Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon salt and one eighth of a teaspoon pepper (or to taste)

Place the onions and cabbage in a bowl. Add the walnuts and 1 tablespoon of the fresh parsley (or 1 teaspoon of the dried) and stir to mix.

In a shaker or clean jar, mix the oil, vinegar, sugar or honey, wholegrain mustard and salt and pepper. Shake until well mixed and pour over the salad. Toss thoroughly.

Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight. Before serving, toss the salad again. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if you feel it needs it. Garnish with the remaining parsley and serve.

Colourful Vegetable Medley

This is one of those recipes that the photograph doesn’t do justice to. In reality the colours are much brighter, and it makes an excellent side dish with just about any meat. This colourful and fresh dish is also very economical. Plus, it is a fantastic way to use up your more raggedy Thanksgiving leftovers - just stir chunks of cooked turkey and/or ham through it when you add the peas and gently heat through before serving as a one dish meal with hot rolls. Easy and delicious.

To serve four people as a main dish and six to eight as a side, you need:

2 tablespoons oil (I used olive, but any oil is fine)

1 red onion

1 tablespoon sugar

1 small cabbage, shredded

¼ cup Madeira or sherry

¼ cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 tbsp soy sauce

½ cup frozen peas


Heat the oil in a frying pan (with a lid) and sauté the red onion over low heat until it is just beginning to soften. Add the sugar and stir to mix through. 

Turn up the heat to medium and add the shredded cabbage. Stir-fry for a few minutes, just until the cabbage is tender-crisp.  Add the Madeira or sherry and the chicken stock, along with the soy sauce.  Stir to mix and bring to the boil. Allow to bubble away for a minute or so just to let the liquid reduce a bit.  Stir in the frozen peas.  Then put the lid on the frying pan, lower the heat and cook for about three minutes.  You still want the peas to be nice, bright green.

Meatless Monday - Grown Up Applesauce

It’s Meatless Monday again, and although my recipe this week would work as an accompaniment to a meal that is not meat free, I think it is just the sort of thing that is special enough to save for a Meatless Monday!

This applesauce is a wonderful treat, and makes a beautiful accompaniment to just about anything, from vegetarian sausages to a vegetable gratin. 

It’s also a wonderful dessert, with or without a bit of cream. You can serve it warm or cold – and one of my favourite things to do is to serve a bit of it, warm, in a bowl, topped with some good vanilla ice cream and some crumbled ginger biscuits. Ambrosia!

You can use cooking or eating apples for this, and I find it tastes best if I use more than one variety of apples in a batch if possible. We love cinnamon in our house, so I always put lots in, but do go according to your own tastes. It gives the apple sauce a lovely colour as well as a great flavour.

Calvados, or apple brandy, works best for this, but ordinary brandy is good too. I suspect apple schnapps would work as well, although I honestly haven’t tried it yet!

About 2 to 3 cups of peeled, sliced apples

¼ cup Calvados or brandy

1 to 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Put the apple slices, Calvados or brandy and cinnamon in a small saucepan. Stir well and heat over medium to low heat, stirring occasionally, until the apples begin to soften. (Try not to let them boil too much.) This usually takes about half an hour.

I then use a potato masher to crush the slices down and give the applesauce a nice, chunky texture.

Serve either as a meal accompaniment or dessert. Leftovers (if you have any) keep well in the fridge for a couple of days.

The 21st Century Housewife's© Cabbage with Red Onion and Madeira Sauce

Cabbage is one of "those" vegetables. Along with Brussel sprouts and spinach, it's had a bad reputation for years, but properly cooked, both red and green cabbage are absolutely delicious. They are also really, really good for you, and usually very reasonably priced so great for the budget. I developed this recipe when I was trying to think of things to serve alongside leftover ham and turkey after Christmas, but I've since discovered it goes with just about everything.

2 tablespoons oil (I used olive, but sunflower or Canola would be fine)
1 red onion
1 tablespoon sugar
1 small cabbage, shredded
¼ cup Madeira or sherry
¼ cup chicken or vegetable stock (from a cube is absolutely fine)
1 tbsp soy sauce
½ cup frozen peas

Heat the oil in a frying pan (with a lid) and sauté the red onion over low heat until it is just beginning to soften. Add the sugar and stir to mix through.

Turn the heat up to medium and add the shredded cabbage. Stir-fry for a few minutes until the cabbage is tender-crisp. Add the Madeira or sherry and the chicken stock, along with the soy sauce. Stir to mix and bring to the boil. Allow to bubble away for a minute or so just to let the liquid reduce a bit. Add the peas. Then put the lid on the frying pan, lower the heat and cook for about three to five minutes. (You still want the peas to be nice, bright green.)

Serves four to five as a side dish.