the friday feed: coleslaw

For my grandson’s birthday party a couple of weeks ago, my daughter-in-law asked me to bring a salad. Knowing that there would be plenty of young children at the party, I thought a veggie tray would be a better choice. First, most little ones don’t eat salad, and second, a variety of cut-up vegetables gives everyone something they like.

A trip to the farmer’s market filled my basket with cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, red and orange peppers, sugar snap peas, and kohlrabi. Then a stop at the grocery store rounded out the tray with cauliflower, carrots, celery, and radishes. There was something for everyone.

As it turned out, there was so much food at the party that only a few people nibbled at the vegetables. By the end of the day, I found myself heading home with a large amount of leftover produce. We would be eating vegetables all week long.

What to do with all these veggies? As luck would have it, there was also a head of cabbage in my refrigerator that needed to be used. Coleslaw to the rescue.

I chopped the leftover vegetables from the tray, shredded the cabbage in my food processor, and dumped everything into my giant silver mixing bowl. That bowl has a story of its own. Many years ago, when my dad managed the Sears store at the Salem Mall, the store had a small snack shop where shoppers could sit down for casual fare such as hot dogs, hamburgers, french fries, soup, and salad. When the restaurant eventually closed, the store needed to dispose of the kitchen equipment. My dad was able to bring home several of the mixing bowls, and one of those industrial-sized bowls is now in my pantry.

Before long, that bowl was filled with coleslaw ingredients. There was way more than Todd and I could ever eat on our own.

It was time to share the bounty.

My boss’s family was coming into town, and her house would soon be full of visitors. She was going to need food for everyone. Why not send some coleslaw her way? It seemed fitting that vegetables purchased at her farmer’s market had been transformed in my kitchen and would now make their way back to her table. Food has a way of coming full circle like that.