Coleslaw

 

I am in constant search of the best coleslaw. The tanginess of vinegar or citrus juice on crisp, uncooked veggies is just wonderful during hot summer days. I was looking for something I didn’t have to cook to heat up the kitchen, and also to use our green onions, which are basically the last things remaining in our poor August garden.

One of our raised garden beds is devoted (unintentionally) to only green bunching onions. We planted them two years ago thinking they were white onions–the ones that would produce a big head that we could pull all at the same time, braid together and store in a dark place for months to come. But nope, they weren’t white onions; instead they were green bunching ones. Instead of making one big head, the plant just puts on other green onions right next to it propagating itself. So we harvest a couple from a plant at a time, and the plant keeps on producing. Hence, we have a whole bed devoted to only onions. Oh well. They end up in just about every dish we make.

Ingredients:

1 one-pound head of green cabbage, cored, and cut into strips
1 1/4 c apple cider vinegar
1 c sugar
1 c grated peeled carrots
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1/4 c mayonnaise
S&P

Instructions:

Put the chopped cabbage in a bowl. Add the vinegar and sugar and toss. Cover and let it stand for 30 minutes. Drain. Toss and let it stand for 30 more minutes. Drain again. (At this point, you can let it sit in the refrigerator for up to 8 hours.) Next, add the carrots, green onions, mayonnaise, and S&P. Enjoy!

Salmon with Blender Hollandaise Sauce

I’ve been neglecting my blogging duties for the past two weeks; I was in vacation mode in Iowa with my family. At the peak of summer when the gardens are full, lighting bugs are out, and the kiddy pools are filled with naked babies, you just about had to pry me away from it all with a crowbar.

We ate lots of locavore meals, like the one above, with zucchini and beans from my mom’s garden, local sweet corn, and salmon caught by my dad and grandpa.

Earlier this summer, Dad and Grandpa spent a couple of days fishing in Lake Michigan, and caught their limit of big, beautiful salmon. (Dad caught the largest one–a 24 pounder!)

My grandma prepared this hollandaise sauce (minus the blender, only because there wasn’t one available). It was a great topper for the fish.

Ingredients:

2 lbs of fresh salmon (or more)
3 egg yolks
1 t Dijon mustard
1 T lemon juice
1/2 c butter
S&P
coconut oil

Instructions:

First, get the grill hot for the salmon. Put S&P on the salmon, and drizzle with coconut oil (or canola oil) that will stand high heat. If the skin is present, leave on. If not, oil both sides of the fish and put it on foil.

Once the fish is ready for the grill, set it aside and make the sauce. In a blender, combine the egg yolks, mustard, S&P, and lemon juice. Cover, and blend for about 5 seconds. Place the butter in a glass measuring cup. Heat butter in the microwave for about 1 minute, or until completely melted and hot. Set the blender on high speed, and pour the butter into the egg yolk mixture in a thin stream. It should thicken almost immediately. Keep the sauce warm until serving by placing the blender container in a pan of hot tap water.

Next, put the fish on the grill and cook on medium high heat for 7 minutes. I like my salmon undercooked in the middle, but you can keep it on the grill for longer if you like it cooked well done. Do not flip.

Serve the fish with the sauce immediately. If there is any hollandaise sauce leftover from the meal, discard it since it has raw eggs.