Apple and Blue Cheese Coleslaw

In my mind this started as pear, blue cheese and walnut coleslaw, but something happened. The first, and most idiotic thing, was I simply forgot to ask hubby to get walnuts at the market. The second, my husband picked the very best pears the store had to offer and by golly you could play baseball with them. They were little and hard and I wasn’t about to use them. Luckily he got some wonderful cameo apples so I developed a plan B. I still want to try this with the pears, but that is for another day. However, the other thought I had was that it would be great with some pineapple and cilantro… just a thought folks.

1 bag of the coleslaw mix by fresh express (or about ¼- ½ a cabbage shredded and one carrot)
1 apple cut into small pieces
3 heavy tablespoons of blue cheese crumbled
2 tablespoons minced onion
5 sliced of bacon cooked and chopped
½ cup mayo
¼ white vinegar
1 tsp sugar
¼ c. sunflower seeds
Salt and heavy pepper

Mix all ingredients and let set for 1 hour.

Almost Heaven

I am not weighing myself for a week at least. The tomatoes were fresh and so were the pork biscuits! And a fresh tomato on the pork tenderloin biscuit…. Forgetaboutit! While I did not make it to Lowells for a hot dog, there was a new restaurant in Hinton that overlooked the New River and had great Barbeque that I thoroughly enjoyed!
I am not an outdoorsman. A cabin on the River is really as rustic as this chick wants to go, but in West Virginia I can see why someone could overcome their fear of all things icky just for the chance to sleep underneath the stars. I never realized how many stars were in the sky really. I often say, that West Virginia is like an America I have read about but never got to grow up in. Some of the sterotypes are a bit true. It is a rural area. However, it is lovely and the people lovely too. As I watch the kids along the river, out until dusk, fishing without a grown up in sight, I think of some Norman Rockwell painting that somehow missed being painted. West Virginia is often, I feel, the greatest gift I will give to my children, not only for the beauty they will get to experience but the contrast it provides to their life here in the city. So if you ever get a chance to visit anywhere in West Virginia, but specifically anywhere along the Greenbrier River in Summers County West Virginia, do not pass up the opportunity.
That said, I made a great, and I mean great pasta recipe while we were up there. I got the idea from Rachel Ray, she calls it California pasta. I don’t think I changed much if anything other than omitting what I didn’t have (orange rind). It is super easy and really summery and fresh.
1 bunch of leeks slices and cleaned
1-1.5 cups artichoke hearts (you can use, canned, marinated or frozen, I used marinated because I had it)
1 pound pasta
Pesto
1 cup flat leaf parsley
½ c Olive oil
½ c parmesan
1tsp lemon rind
1tsp lime rind
1tsp orange rind

To clean leeks slice the white part, separate and put in a bowl of water. Swish around a bit to give it a “bath.” Discard water. Sautee in a bit of oil leeks until wilted add artichoke and sauté to warm through. Meanwhile start pasta. Combine, parsley, parmesan, the zests of the lemon, lime and orange (I did not have orange so I used a bit more lemon. I didn’t measure how much zest either, I just zested one and a half lemon and one lime.) pulse. Add oil and process until smooth. Once pasta done, add leek dish and pesto to pasta and combine. Serve.
I am sure if you look at Rachel’s recipe on line I didn’t follow it to a “T” however, it was close and man it was good.

Fig Salad

I don’t know where you are but here it is fresh fig season. The figs that are grown locally, are not super flavorful, which is the reason for “drying” them in the oven to concentrate the flavor. The dressing is the most complicated part of this simple salad. It is really good, and very pretty. If you don’t like goats cheese, use feta.

Dressing
10 figs sliced
½ c. balsamic vinegar
¼ c, oil
2 tbs raisins
1 tsp brown sugar

Heat oven to 250. (note below this is a good time to toast walnuts) Line a baking sheet with sliced figs and cook for 1 hour. You still want them moist, you are just trying to concentrate the flavor. Put into blender of food processor. Add all other ingredients and mix until fairly smooth. This will be a thick dressing.

Salad
Bag of spinach
¼ of onion thinly sliced
¼ c. walnuts
½ c. goat cheese
3 fresh figs

Toast walnuts in oven for about 10 minutes. Set aside. Combine spinach, onion, goat cheese in a bowl. Top with walnuts and garnish with slices of the fresh fig. I would serve into bowls and put a dollop of dressing in the middle of each salad.