All I can say is oh my god, it’s good! I could easily have devoured the entire pot myself, it was so yummy. It got Ari’s seal of approval too – she gobbled up everything in her bowl. Definitely being added to the list of family favorites.

Sausage & Cabbage Soup

Serves 4

3 slices bacon — diced small
12 ounces polish sausage — sliced
1 cup sliced red onion
8 ounces shredded cabbage
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons spicy mustard
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

Put the bacon in a cold dutch oven and turn the heat on to medium to medium high. Stir occaisionally until the bacon is crispy.

Add the sausage and onion and cook, stirring once in a while, until the onion is starting to get tender.

Put the cabbage in the pot, stir it up well, and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the chicken broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender.

Just before serving, stir in the mustard and red wine vinegar.

Source: “http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-index/dinner-recipes/Sausage–Potato-and-Cabbage-Stew”

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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 388 Calories; 28g Fat (63.3% calories from fat); 26g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 64mg Cholesterol; 1452mg Sodium.

Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 3 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 4 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

Matt and I (well, mostly me) have been making a conscious effort to expose our children to as many different ethnic foods as we can. Whether these dishes have been American-ized or not, the point is to introduce them to new flavors and ideas. It’s especially important to do that with a picky eater like Ari is, and I have to say all our hard work has paid off, as she surprises me with what she’s willing to at least try to eat.

Both of my kids love to help out in the kitchen, and I encourage it when I can because not only is it quality time with me, but it helps create good memories. It is my hope that if they build enough good memories about the kitchen and food, when they’re out on their own they won’t subsist on ramen and take out because they don’t know how to cook anything.

With this recipe, I hope to introduce them to one of my favorite comfort foods – braised red cabbage. I’ll be making it next week, and when I do, I’ll try to remember to take pictures. I’m calling this Opa’s Red Cabbage because it’s my dad’s recipe, and Opa (German for Grampa) is what my kids call him.

Opa’s Red Cabbage

 
Red cabbage braised with a bit of bacon and onions, seasoned with cloves.

Serves 6

6 slices bacon — diced
1 large onion — chopped
1 small red cabbage head — sliced thin
3 whole cloves
2 cloves garlic — minced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup red wine
salt and pepper — to taste
chicken broth — as needed

Brown the bacon in a large dutch oven or heavy-bottomed casserole until it’s brown and crispy. Add in onions and cook the onions until they’re soft.

Put the red cabbage, whole cloves and garlic into the pot and mix well. Add in the balsamic vinegar and red wine, reduce the heat and let cook covered until the red cabbage is soft. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

If the red cabbage starts to get a bit too dry, add some chicken broth, but be careful – you don’t want the cabbage to be runny. It’s supposed to be moist, with a bit of juice/sauce.

If you find the red cabbage is too tart/sour, add in a little bit of brown sugar – no more than a tablespoon or two. This is supposed to be a tangy dish, not a sweet one.

NOTES : You can substitute red wine vinegar if you don’t have balsamic.

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 122 Calories; 4g Fat (34.4% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 14g Carbohydrate; 4g Dietary Fiber; 5mg Cholesterol; 151mg Sodium.

Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 2
Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1/2 Fat.

Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

This recipe is part of a Rachael Ray recipe, Rollover Jerk Chicken Quesadillas with Slaw Salad – I’ll talk about the quesadillas some other day.

1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons rice wine or white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Tamari (dark soy sauce)
A dash of hot sauce
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons canola oil
Salt and black pepper
1/2 English (seedless) cucumber, cut into matchsticks
3/4 cup scallions, thinly sliced
3/4 pound slaw mix

Preparation

In a large bowl, mix together the lime juice, vinegar, Tamari, hot sauce and honey, stream in the canola oil and season with salt and pepper. Add the cucumber, scallions and the remaining slaw mix and toss slaw.

And that’s it! A really simple salad, and very tasty. Despite there being 3 tbsp of honey, you really don’t taste it at all – you just get the sweetness, and it balances out the tamari nicely. The original recipe calls for the juice of one lime, but I didn’t have one so I used a lemon instead.

The salad sat for about 15 or 20 minutes before we ate, and it was still nice and crisp. There was some left over, which I packed up and put in the fridge. We’ll see how it holds up. If it does well, being able to make it ahead, or make it to take somewhere (like a potluck, picnic or packed in a lunch) is great, and since there’s no eggs or mayo in it, you really don’t need to be worried too much about refrigeration.