Five Happy Things
Cabbage Season!
Spread a little joy today! Pass this along to someone who’d love it. 🥰
Every time I go to the farmers market lately, it’s the cabbages that keep finding their way into my basket.
I know cabbage has kind of a bad reputation - but hear me out.
It’s sturdy enough for salads that feel substantial.
It roasts beautifully.
It can be a great addition to soup if it’s not boiled to death.
It’s the BEST thing to add crunch to tacos.
Red cabbage is the most beautiful color on the planet.
I mean, just look at that!
Date, Feta, and Red Cabbage Salad from Smitten Kitchen - This is what you see in that photo and it’s my very favorite cabbage dish. And it’s not just because of the gorgeous color! 😂 It’s dressed with olive oil and lots of lime juice and zest for a lovely, bright flavor. You get little pops of sweetness from the dates, salty creaminess from the feta, richness and a little extra crunch from the sesame seeds. (Sometimes I use pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds instead.) Sometimes I eat it plain, but most of the time I add some kind of sweet sausage (Apple Chicken, Sweet Italian, Maple Chicken - anything along those lines). I just sear a link, slice it up, and lay it in the same bowl along the side of the salad. Yum!
Cream of Cabbage Soup from David Lebovitz - So good! The cabbage isn’t boiled - yay! You cook it with onions in butter (yum!) until it’s wilted, then you puree it with the other ingredients. Saute a little extra to add back into the soup after you puree the rest. I’m a freeze-my-leftovers person, so I use broth instead of milk, then add a splash of heavy cream when I serve it. I’m also always too lazy to make the parsley oil, but a handful of chopped fresh parsley scattered over the top is very nice.
Nutty Green Veggie Crunch Salad from Blissful Basil - This is SUCH a delicious salad. I mostly eat it in the summer because it’s cold and crunchy and refreshing - but I made it last week during a spell of weather warm enough to throw all the windows open and spend as much time as possible outside. It’s green, green green! Green cabbage, green lettuce, green cucumbers, green edamame. Sometimes I add green sugar snap peas and avocado chunks, too. I like to add a sliced hard-boiled egg on top to make it a complete meal.
Roasted Cabbage with Walnuts and Parmesan from Smitten Kitchen - If you’re not ready for a cold salad yet, try roasting your cabbage in thick slices, then dressing it with a zesty lemon/walnut/garlic/red pepper flakes dressing. Delicious with a fried egg on top.
Not-a-Recipe Fish Tacos - Cook up some breaded fish filets from the freezer section, add a few slices of avocado and a big handful of shredded cabbage, top with this Aji Verde Sauce from Pinch of Yum (or even just some bottled ranch dressing) and wrap it all in a tortilla. Delicious!
If you have a favorite cabbage recipe, please share a link in the comments so everyone can give it a try!
You can find past newsletters with recipes here.
Enjoy!
Best,
Wendi
❤️
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I second the cabbage in tacos - best EVER crunch. I also love a beet and cabbage lightly pickled slaw - just a twenty minute quick pickle with optional red onions is a nice punctuation to a rich meal.
ADDITIONALLY, red cabbage dyes Easter eggs the most delightful shade of robin's egg blue, if you add about a quarter cup of vinegar to boiled cabbage (and leave it overnight for deeper coloration). It's a good time to start chucking outer leaves and bits you'd compost into the freezer to save against the day - they're perfectly able to be composted after you get the color out!
Great suggestions for a worthy, under appreciated vegetable! I love roasting it and adding it to salads but my most favorite cabbage recipe comes from the Wildly Organic site: Detoxing Cabbage Soup. The recipe comes together quickly and it’s delicious! I usually add some extra ginger and instead of the wild rice I add the Trader Joe’s Harvest blend grain mix. Check out the recipe. I hope you like it.