Lay Down The Slaw Coleslaw, That Favorite Of Potlucks, Has A Healthy New Look And Taste

Remember cousin Effie? She’s the good-hearted relative who sends birthday cards, teaches Sunday school and volunteers as a crossing guard.

And at family gatherings, she’s the one who brings the coleslaw.

Not showy chocolate cake with white chocolate leaves. Not crispy fried chicken. Not flaky homemade biscuits.

Her dish is plain and simple - the one you can’t do without.

Slender shards of shredded cabbage swim in a mayonnaise ocean inside a weathered wooden bowl with hand-painted pink roses around the inside edge.

The cabbage mixture sinks in the middle. The milky dressing floats loosely to the top, surrounded by cabbage haystacks.

Sure, it’s tasty. The traditional cabbage, mayo, vinegar and sugar make great culinary comrades. Celery seeds, too.

For years, it’s been a familiar, reliable side dish at picnics and potlucks. But it might be time to establish new coleslaw traditions.

So get out your grater, sharpen your chef’s knife and dust off that salad bowl. Here are some new twists on shredded cabbage salad. Combos with a little more crunch, a little less goo - different from the rest.

Cousin Effie won’t mind. She’s on a low-fat diet these days.

And she’s getting downright adventurous. Once she stuck to plain old green cabbage. Now she uses red or Napa cabbage, even the occasional curly-leafed savoy. Green onions, radishes and bright bell peppers.

Chives or fresh basil. Even fresh dill or cilantro. Apples, too.

Sometimes she uses a light oil-andvinegar dressing with a hint of fresh garlic. She sprinkles on chopped peanuts for added pizazz.

She’s a new-slaw kinda gal.

Asian-Style Coleslaw

1/4 cup sour cream or nonfat sour cream

1 tablespoon grated or minced (peeled) fresh ginger

2-1/2 tablespoons orange juice

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 small cabbage

2 carrots, peeled and shredded

3 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into thin matchsticks

2 tablespoons minced red onion

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

Optional garnish: edible, pesticide-free flowers or Italian (flat-leafed) parsley

In a small bowl combine sour cream, ginger, orange juice and sugar; stir until sugar dissolves. Stir in sesame oil, salt and pepper.

Remove core from cabbage and cut into thin shreds. In a large bowl, combine cabbage, carrots, green beans, red onion and most of the poppy seeds (reserve some for garnish). Add dressing and toss.

Garnish with reserved poppy seeds and, if desired, sprigs of parsley and/ or edible flowers.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Cook’s note: Sesame oil is sold in Asian markets and supermarkets with Asian specialty sections.

Rainbow Coleslaw

Add either currants or shredded apple for extra sweetness.

5 tablespoons calorie-reduced mayonnaise

3 tablespoons plain, nonfat yogurt

1 teaspoon prepared mustard

4 tablespoons unsweetened apple or pineapple juice

Seasoning blend, such as Lawry’s, Mrs. Dash’s or Spike, to taste

Pinch of sugar (optional)

3 cups shredded cabbage

1 cup shredded carrot

1 red bell pepper, cored and seeded, cut into matchsticks

1 yellow bell pepper, cored and seeded, cut into matchsticks

1 bunch green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced (include 1/2 of the dark green stalks)

Garnish: slivers of raw red bell pepper

In a large bowl, combine mayonnaise, yogurt, mustard, juice and seasoning blend. Stir and taste. Add more seasoning if needed. It may need a pinch of sugar. Add cabbage, carrot, bell peppers and onions; toss to combine and coat vegetables with dressing. Chill several hours, well-sealed.

Garnish with slivers of red bell pepper.

Yield: 6 servings.

Calorific Coleslaw

From “Noteworthy: A Collection of Recipes From The Ravinia Festival,” (Noteworthy Publications, 1986). Not for the nutritionally shy, this coleslaw is high in calories and surprise ingredients.

1 cup mayonnaise or calorie-reduced mayonnaise

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon lemon juice

13 ounces canned pineapple tidbits, well drained

4 cups shredded cabbage

1 cup crushed peanut brittle

Sprigs of parsley (optional garnish)

In a large bowl, combine mayonnaise, curry powder and lemon juice.

Mix well. Add pineapple and cabbage. Toss thoroughly. Chill. Toss in peanut brittle just before serving.

Garnish with sprigs of fresh parsley.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Low-Fat Lady Slaw

From “Vegetarian Times Magazine,” June 1995. Although it’s called slaw, this Victorian-style salad is made with shredded lettuce rather than cabbage.

1/2 cup low-fat mayonnaise

1/2 cup plain, nonfat yogurt

1 medium head iceberg lettuce, finely shredded

2 medium carrots, peeled and finely shredded

2 large stalks celery, finely diced

1 small red onion, very thinly sliced

1 (10-ounce) package frozen peas, thawed and drained

Salt and pepper to taste

About 1 teaspoon sugar

In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise and yogurt.

In a salad bowl, preferably glass, arrange a thin layer of lettuce. Scatter with some carrots, celery, onion and peas. Place small dollops of mayonnaise mixture over peas. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar. Continue layering vegetables and dressing until all ingredients have been used or until bowl is full. End with dressing, salt, pepper and sugar. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

Garnish with sprigs of fresh parsley and edible, pesticide-free flowers, such as nasturtiums or borage. Serve without tossing.

Yield: 6 generous servings.

Cook’s note: If the tang of yogurt in this dressing is too tart for your tastebuds, add 1 to 2 teaspoons of sugar to the dressing mixture.

Michel Richard’s Crab Coleslaw

Adapted from “Michel Richard’s Home Cooking With A French Accent” by Michel Richard, 1994. This glorious Crab Louisstyle coleslaw can be a first course or a luncheon entree.

Russian French Dressing:

1/3 cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons ketchup

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon minced fresh tarragon or basil

1 teaspoon cognac or bourbon

1 large clove garlic, minced or pressed

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

2 drops hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco

Salt and pepper to taste

Salad:

1 small red bell pepper

1 small yellow bell pepper

1 small green bell pepper

1 small savoy cabbage (about 1 pounds)

1 small tomato, seeded and diced

8 ounces cooked crabmeat

Adjust oven rack to a position about 10 inches below the broiler element. Preheat broiler.

Combine all dressing ingredients in a small bowl.

To roast bell peppers, line a baking sheet or jellyroll pan with aluminum foil. Place peppers in a single layer on sheet. Place under broiler. When one side is charred, use tongs to rotate peppers to char on all sides. Remove from oven and enclose in aluminum foil. Allow to rest for 5 minutes. Open foil. Allow to rest until cool enough to handle. Peel and discard skin.

Core and seed peppers. Cut into 1/4-inch wide strips. Reserve about 9 strips for garnish, then dice remaining strips. Place diced peppers in a large bowl.

Reserve 4 large outer dark green leaves from the cabbage. Core and finely shred remaining cabbage and place in bowl with the peppers. Add tomato, crab and dressing.

Place a large reserved cabbage leaf on 4 plates. Divide crab mixture between 4 plates. Garnish with reserved peppers. Serve.

Yield: 4 first-course servings or 2 main-course servings.

Cook’s notes: To seed tomato, cut it in half (through the waistline) so that all the seed beds are exposed. Gently squeeze to push out seeds.

The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = Cathy Thomas Orange County Register