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Zana · October 25, 2012

Cabbage is King at Saucon Valley recipe contest
Crowd spends morning tasting foods made with the cruciferous vegetable

This sweet and sour stuffed cabbage dish was made by Shelley Goldberg, who is chairwoman of the Saucon Valley Farmer's Market. The recipe resembles Goldberg's (Harry Fisher, THE MORNING CALL /October 17, 2012)

By Diane W. Stoneback, Of The Morning Call
7:00 P.M. EDT, OCTOBER 23, 2012

It was a cold and dreary, bacon-and-eggs morning, hours before most people would eat sauerkraut salad, cabbage slaw or cabbage lasagna, let alone red cabbage cake with cream cheese icing. But the 9 a.m. start for the Saucon Valley Farmers Market Cabbage Recipe Contest didn't stop dedicated cabbage fans from tasting these dishes and more.

Hugh Gallagher, a Hellertown resident and a member of the early bird cruciferous crowd, downs a bowl of ham, cabbage and potatoes at 9:30 a.m., when he reveals, "I've already finished tasting the Southwestern Coleslaw. Spending $3 to taste all the entries is the best deal going."

Although Gallagher admits cabbage breakfasts aren't in his normal morning routine, he adds, "My stomach doesn't have a clock."

Cabbage can be a breakfast food at Fountain Hill resident Diane Repasch's home. Sampling a cabbage-cheese-and-raisin filled phyllo-cup appetizer that also was sweet enough to be a dessert, she says, "These are very good." She reveals she warmed up for the farmers market by having a Reuben with sauerkraut at 7 a.m.

Even more amazing is that Repasch's children also are cabbage lovers. When Repasch told her daughter she was hungry for filled cabbage and was going to make some, the Lehigh University junior announced, "I'll be home for dinner tonight."

"When I was growing up," Repasch says, "I loved the smell of cabbage cooking on the stove. My grandmother often made cabbage and noodles. My mother-in-law makes it, too, but mine never tastes as good as theirs."

Ken Bloss, president of the Saucon Valley Alumni Association, has no trouble coaxing the crowd to taste his organization's Cabbage and Noodles — a fundraising food the group uses to support student scholarships and Hellertown community projects. As members heat up 10-pound bags of the classic Slovak dish, Bloss distributes samples. He declares, "We're the only ones who make it right."

The Rodney Dangerfield of vegetables, cabbage usually doesn't get the respect of star ingredients like chocolate and garlic. But Shelley Goldberg, manager of the Saucon Valley market, spearheaded the move to give cabbage its day in the sun. Organizing what may have been the Lehigh Valley's first-ever cabbage recipe contest, she spends the day in a cabbage costume.

The event's top winners didn't stick to strict recipes. Meg Yelk, of Rush Apiaries, produced a first-prize, cheese-loaded lasagna, substituting cabbage for the pasta. One of the other keys to her victory — using Vic Rush's honey-sweetened homemade tomato sauce. Rush, owner of the apiaries, won second place for his simple dish of mild Italian sausage chunks cooked in homemade, crock-cured sauerkraut.

Jackie VonBoskerck of Aunt Jack's Baking won third prize for her cabbage cake — a takeoff on carrot cake that uses both red cabbage and carrots. She deserves an award for attracting the most tasters. Like yellow jackets, cabbage fans swarmed her trays of cake samples.

A single head of cabbage, purchased so Goldberg could re-create her mother and aunt's raisin-studded, sweet-and-sour stuffed cabbage recipe, is at the root of this unusual cooking contest. "That cabbage went a long way and the recipe turned out well. I packed it into containers and shared it with friends. In return, they gave me their favorite recipes for cabbage and noodles and halupke and shared childhood memories of cabbage dishes."

"I realized there's good reason for cabbage being at the core of so many ethnic cuisines. It's inexpensive, tasty and nutritious. It deserves its own contest," Goldberg says.

Contestants drew from time-tested family recipes and a church cookbook as well as web-based resources for inspiration. Karen Drake, who owns Tombler's Bakery with her husband, Skip, says her cabbage-and-cheese-filled phyllo nibbles were a variation on her grandmother's cabbage strudel.

Cindy McNabb, who sells her homemade Mrs. McNabb's baked beans at the Saucon and Macungie farmers markets, reproduced her grandmother Ethel Jacoby's homey cabbage, ham and potatoes in broth. Some of the other market shoppers are so impressed with their samples that they return to buy full servings. But McNabb's husband, Brent, dishing up samples, says he won't taste a single drop of it. Surrounded by cabbage lovers, he dares to say, "I won't eat cabbage in any form. I'm strictly a meat-and-potatoes man."

Hellertown resident Elaine Kantor, a member of Lower Saucon United Church of Christ's cooking team, reports,
"Two young ladies tasted our sauerkraut salad at 10 a.m." Other cabbage fans line up a little later for samples of Pearl Martin's dish from the church's cookbook. "Whenever I make it for our salad bar at our church spaghetti suppers, people ask for the recipe. That's why I've made it for the contest," Kantor says.

Chris Lurch, a Breinigsville resident and owner of the market's Spice Up Your Life stand, admits she's a recent cabbage convert. Her Low-Sodium Southwestern Coleslaw, made with several of the spice combos she sells, has added just enough heat to makes the slaw distinctive and different from more traditional versions.

As she dishes a sample, she explains, "Cabbage has become part of our family's lifestyle transformation. We've shifted our focus to vegetables, cooking from scratch and cutting our sodium intake with salt-free or low-sodium spices, herbs and seasonings."

She notes cabbage's Vitamin C (more than oranges) and antioxidant contents, along with ongoing research, that have convinced her to add it to her diet. She credits it as one of the dietary changes that have helped her family collectively lose 120 pounds and helped her control her blood pressure without medications. Cabbage's potential? To her, the humble cabbage is a possible "miracle" food.

Recipes with cabbage: lasagana, cake, salsa, coleslaw and more
By Diane W. Stoneback, Of The Morning Call
7:00 P.M. EDT, OCTOBER 23, 2012

Contestants in the Saucon Valley Farmers Market's first Cabbage Festival and Contest shared recipes that do justice to cabbage.

In the following free-form recipe, Meg Yelk skips the noodles and uses cabbage leaves instead. She isn't certain of the ingredient amounts she used to fill her lasagna pan. Although she used a single layer of cabbage leaves on the bottom, you could use a few more. She added about 1 1/2 pounds of meat, but you could use more or less. She also used about 2 pounds of grated cheese, or possibly, even more. Again, you could use more or less.

MEG YELK'S CABBAGE LASAGNA

1/2 large cabbage, cored and steamed
1/4 lb. ground pork
1/4 lb. ground lamb
1 lb. ground beef
2 lbs grated cheese including colby, asiago, mozzarella, Parmesan and Monterey jack, mixed
2 qts. homemade spaghetti sauce or brand of your choice

• Steam the cabbage until tender.
• Brown the ground meats in a small amount of oil and then blend with 2 quarts of homemade spaghetti sauce.
• Line the lasagna pan with cabbage leaves, then cover with half the meat mixture.
• Add a layer of grated cheese.
• Repeat until pan is full, ending with a layer of cheese.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 45 minutes, until sauce is bubbling around the edges and the cheese on top has melted.

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AUNT JACK'S RED CABBAGE CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE ICING

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 tsps. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
2 tsps. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
3 eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 cup canola oil
3 tsps. vanilla extract
1/2 cup shredded carrots
3/4 cup shredded (like for coleslaw) red cabbage, rough-chopped, too
1/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup chopped pecans and an additional 1/4 cup chopped pecans for topping
1 cup Breakstone's sour cream

For the cream cheese icing:
2 8-oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup butter
2 Tbsps. whipping cream or milk
1 1/2 Tbsps. vanilla extract
7 cups confectioners' sugar

For the cake:
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare three 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray.
• In a medium bowl sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and set aside.

• Next, in your stand mixer bowl, on medium speed, mix together eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla.
• When it is mixed well, add the dry flour mixture to the wet mixture.
• Start mixer on low and then scrape sides and beat on medium high until creamy, about 30 seconds to 1 minute or so.
• Then add the sour cream and mix until creamy (20 to 40 seconds) on medium high.

• Next, by hand, mix in carrots, cabbage and 3/4 cup chopped pecans and raisins.
• Mix well.
• Pour batter into three round, 9-inch cake pans and bake 25 to 35 minutes, until cake is done to your liking.

• Remove from oven and let stand in pans for about 10 minutes.
• Then, turn out on cooling racks and cool completely.
• Ice with cream cheese icing and the remaining 1/4 cup of chopped pecans.

To make the cream cheese icing:
• In a mixer, cream together cream cheese and butter.
• Then add whipping cream and mix on high for about 30 seconds.
• Reduce mixer speed to low and add vanilla and confectioners' sugar until the icing is creamy and spreadable.

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Shelley Goldberg, market manager, got a good price on a head of cabbage and called her mother and aunt for their advice on using it to make their Sweet and Sour Stuffed Cabbage recipe. Shelley notes, "You can use any kind of jelly to make the recipe, which also gets additional sweetness from the raisins."

SHELLEY GOLDBERG'S SWEET AND SOUR STUFFED CABBAGE

1 large head green cabbage
1 large onion, diced
1 24-oz. jar of tomato sauce
3 lbs. lean ground turkey or beef
1 cup raisins
1 8-oz. jar of jelly
1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes
4 Tbsps. lemon juice or juice of 1 lemon
2 cups cooked white rice

• Take core out of cabbage head and place cabbage head in pot of water. Boil until leaves are slightly softened.
• Let cool slightly and remove leaves.
• Repeat until you have 14-16 leaves.
• Mix ground turkey, cooked rice and diced onion until well combined.
• Prepare the cabbage by shaving a slice off the large vein in the center of the leaves.
• Place a heaping spoonful of the filling in the center of the leaf.
• Fold in the left and right edges and roll up the leaf from the bottom, forming a tight ball.
• Place tomato sauce, raisins, jelly, lemon juice and diced tomatoes in pot. Stir and heat on low.
• Add the stuffed cabbage, seam side down.
• Cook on low for 2 hours, basting every 20 minutes.

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Cooking for a crowd? The following recipe will feed plenty of hungry eaters. It filled an 18-quart electric roaster and supplied both samples and main-dish portions to market-goers.

CINDY McNABB'S CABBAGE, HAM AND POTATOES

3 large cans chicken broth
5 lbs. of potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 lbs. of carrots, peeled and cut
3 large onions, peeled and chopped
1 large head of cabbage, cored and shredded
5 lbs. ham (precooked), cut into cubes
Salt, pepper, parsley and oregano, to taste

• Peel, wash and cube potatoes, carrots and onions and cook in chicken broth until soft in 18-quart electric roaster.
• Cut the cabbage and add to other veggies and broth in the roaster.
• Cook until it is soft.
• Finally, cut ham into chunks and add to the mix.
• Cook until done to your liking (about 3 hours).
• Add seasonings to taste.

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KAREN DRAKE'S CABBAGE PHYLLO CUPS

For the filling:
1 medium head of cabbage, finely diced
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 cup white raisins
1/4 cup brown sugar or honey (or less, according to your taste)
1/2 tsp. salt
A dash of lemon juice
For a separate layer, inside bottom of phyllo cups:
About 2 cups of ricotta cheese
For the phyllo cups:
1 box of phyllo pastry sheets
1/2 to 1 cup melted butter

To make the filling:
• In a medium saucepan, saute cabbage with olive oil over medium heat until slightly translucent and tender.
• Add raisins and cook about 5 more minutes.
• Cover with lid to steam ingredients for a while.
• Add brown sugar or honey, lemon juice and salt and cook until just barely golden brown, about 5 more minutes.
• If there is any liquid in the bottom of the pan, saute a bit longer at a higher temperature to evaporate water (but stir constantly, so mixture does not burn.)
• Remove from heat and prepare phyllo cups.

To make the phyllo cups:
• Follow directions on box of phyllo dough for working with the dough.
• Layer 5 phyllo sheets (one sheet at a time) on work table, brushing each sheet with melted butter.
• Cut the stack of five, buttered layered sheets with pastry cutter into 3-inch squares.
• Gently press squares into mini muffin pan cups, being careful not to break.
• It is not necessary to have the complete shape of the muffin cup.
• Put about 1 teaspoon of ricotta cheese into bottom of each cup.
• On top of cheese in phyllo cups, put about 1 tablespoon of the cabbage mixture.
• Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes.
• Repeat, making, filling and baking more phyllo cups until the filling is gone.

Note: Due to the nature of cabbage, these puffs do not hold up well. They should be eaten shortly after they're baked for best taste and texture. They can be appetizers or as a not-so-sweet dessert!

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The following recipe, from the church's cookbook, was contributed by Pearl Martin.

LOWER SAUCON UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST KRAUT SALAD

1 large can sauerkraut, drained
2 cups chopped celery
2 onions, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 jar chopped pimentos
For the dressing:
1/4 cup salad oil
1 cup vinegar
2 cups sugar

• Mix salad dressing ingredients.
• Pour over sauerkraut mixture. Let stand overnight.
• Refrigerate.

It's best if the dish is made several days ahead of when you want to serve it.

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The following recipe, from http://www.food.com, is one of Jen Jarson's and Wayne Miller's favorite ways to use the cabbage from their garden.

EPIC ACRE FARMS FAVORITE SALSA

8 plum tomatoes, diced into small pieces
1/2 red onion, diced
3 Tbsps. chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 head red cabbage or 1/2 head green cabbage, cut into small pieces
1 clove garlic, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
2 limes, juiced. Use juice, discard fruit
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sugar

• Combine all ingredients.
• Chill for a few hours.
• Serve with tortilla chips.

With roots in Spain, the following red cabbage dish from the Lombarda region often is made at Christmas and is served by the owners of the Lemon Crushers' stand at the Saucon Valley Farmers Market.

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LEMON CRUSHERS' RED CABBAGE LOMBARDA

1/4 cup brandy
1 cup raisins
2 ripe but firm pears
Juice of 1 lemon,
1 red cabbage, shredded
1/2 cup cider vinegar
3 chorizo sausages, crumbled
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp. thyme
Kosher salt
Ground pepper

• Soak the raisins in the brandy and let stand until needed.
• Soak pears with lemon juice and set aside.
• Mix shredded cabbage with 1/4 cider vinegar and let stand 15 minutes.
• Boil water with salt and stir cabbage in boiled water for 2 minutes.
• Then drain and plunge the cabbage into ice water to stop the cooking and drain off as much of the water as you can.
• In a skillet, crumble chorizo in oil and add bay leaves.
• Cover and cook until chorizo releases fat.
• Add the raisins.
• Let brandy evaporate.
• Then add pears and thyme and toss to cover with the fat.
• Stir in the cabbage.
• Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with remaining vinegar.
• Toss and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
• Discard the bay leaves.

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SPICE UP YOUR LIFE'S LOW-SODIUM SOUTHWESTERN COLESLAW

2/3 cup fat-free sour cream (use mayonnaise or yogurt, if you prefer)
1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 tsps. honey
1/2 tsp. honey chipotle rub (available from Spice Up Your Life)
1/2 tsp. habanero mango seasoning (available from Spice Up Your Life)
1/2 tsp. taco seasoning (available from Spice Up Your Life)
3 cups shredded green cabbage
3/4 cup whole kernel corn
3/4 cup chopped red sweet pepper
1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/3 cup chopped cilantro

• In a small bowl, combine sour cream, lime juice, honey, honey chipotle rub, mango seasoning and taco seasoning.
• In a large bowl, combine cabbage, sweet pepper, cilantro, onion and corn. Add the sour cream mixture to the cabbage mix.
• Toss to coat.
• Serve immediately or chill up to 24 hours before serving.

Serves 6.

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SAUCON VALLEY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION CABBAGE AND NOODLES

1 box of bow tie noodles
1 large head of cabbage (cut up in small pieces or slivered, using a food processor)
1 large onion, chopped
6 Tbsps. butter
6 Tbsps. olive oil
To taste: salt, pepper (white or black), paprika, garlic salt

• Saute fresh onion with olive oil and butter to soften the onions.
• Start adding the cabbage to soften and add the seasonings.
• Continue adding cabbage and more condiments until all the cabbage is used.
• It is all right if some of the cabbage gets a little brown.
• In the meantime, cook the noodles.
• After the noodles are cooked and drained, combine with cabbage mixture.

Optional: Top each portion with spoonful of sour cream.

October 25, 2012	#60
Zana Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Southwestern Ontario, Canada Posts: 4,521	Cabbage is King at Saucon Valley recipe contest Cabbage is King at Saucon Valley recipe contest Crowd spends morning tasting foods made with the cruciferous vegetable This sweet and sour stuffed cabbage dish was made by Shelley Goldberg, who is chairwoman of the Saucon Valley Farmer's Market. The recipe resembles Goldberg's (Harry Fisher, THE MORNING CALL /October 17, 2012) By Diane W. Stoneback, Of The Morning Call 7:00 P.M. EDT, OCTOBER 23, 2012 It was a cold and dreary, bacon-and-eggs morning, hours before most people would eat sauerkraut salad, cabbage slaw or cabbage lasagna, let alone red cabbage cake with cream cheese icing. But the 9 a.m. start for the Saucon Valley Farmers Market Cabbage Recipe Contest didn't stop dedicated cabbage fans from tasting these dishes and more. Hugh Gallagher, a Hellertown resident and a member of the early bird cruciferous crowd, downs a bowl of ham, cabbage and potatoes at 9:30 a.m., when he reveals, "I've already finished tasting the Southwestern Coleslaw. Spending $3 to taste all the entries is the best deal going." Although Gallagher admits cabbage breakfasts aren't in his normal morning routine, he adds, "My stomach doesn't have a clock." Cabbage can be a breakfast food at Fountain Hill resident Diane Repasch's home. Sampling a cabbage-cheese-and-raisin filled phyllo-cup appetizer that also was sweet enough to be a dessert, she says, "These are very good." She reveals she warmed up for the farmers market by having a Reuben with sauerkraut at 7 a.m. Even more amazing is that Repasch's children also are cabbage lovers. When Repasch told her daughter she was hungry for filled cabbage and was going to make some, the Lehigh University junior announced, "I'll be home for dinner tonight." "When I was growing up," Repasch says, "I loved the smell of cabbage cooking on the stove. My grandmother often made cabbage and noodles. My mother-in-law makes it, too, but mine never tastes as good as theirs." Ken Bloss, president of the Saucon Valley Alumni Association, has no trouble coaxing the crowd to taste his organization's Cabbage and Noodles — a fundraising food the group uses to support student scholarships and Hellertown community projects. As members heat up 10-pound bags of the classic Slovak dish, Bloss distributes samples. He declares, "We're the only ones who make it right." The Rodney Dangerfield of vegetables, cabbage usually doesn't get the respect of star ingredients like chocolate and garlic. But Shelley Goldberg, manager of the Saucon Valley market, spearheaded the move to give cabbage its day in the sun. Organizing what may have been the Lehigh Valley's first-ever cabbage recipe contest, she spends the day in a cabbage costume. The event's top winners didn't stick to strict recipes. Meg Yelk, of Rush Apiaries, produced a first-prize, cheese-loaded lasagna, substituting cabbage for the pasta. One of the other keys to her victory — using Vic Rush's honey-sweetened homemade tomato sauce. Rush, owner of the apiaries, won second place for his simple dish of mild Italian sausage chunks cooked in homemade, crock-cured sauerkraut. Jackie VonBoskerck of Aunt Jack's Baking won third prize for her cabbage cake — a takeoff on carrot cake that uses both red cabbage and carrots. She deserves an award for attracting the most tasters. Like yellow jackets, cabbage fans swarmed her trays of cake samples. A single head of cabbage, purchased so Goldberg could re-create her mother and aunt's raisin-studded, sweet-and-sour stuffed cabbage recipe, is at the root of this unusual cooking contest. "That cabbage went a long way and the recipe turned out well. I packed it into containers and shared it with friends. In return, they gave me their favorite recipes for cabbage and noodles and halupke and shared childhood memories of cabbage dishes." "I realized there's good reason for cabbage being at the core of so many ethnic cuisines. It's inexpensive, tasty and nutritious. It deserves its own contest," Goldberg says. Contestants drew from time-tested family recipes and a church cookbook as well as web-based resources for inspiration. Karen Drake, who owns Tombler's Bakery with her husband, Skip, says her cabbage-and-cheese-filled phyllo nibbles were a variation on her grandmother's cabbage strudel. Cindy McNabb, who sells her homemade Mrs. McNabb's baked beans at the Saucon and Macungie farmers markets, reproduced her grandmother Ethel Jacoby's homey cabbage, ham and potatoes in broth. Some of the other market shoppers are so impressed with their samples that they return to buy full servings. But McNabb's husband, Brent, dishing up samples, says he won't taste a single drop of it. Surrounded by cabbage lovers, he dares to say, "I won't eat cabbage in any form. I'm strictly a meat-and-potatoes man." Hellertown resident Elaine Kantor, a member of Lower Saucon United Church of Christ's cooking team, reports, "Two young ladies tasted our sauerkraut salad at 10 a.m." Other cabbage fans line up a little later for samples of Pearl Martin's dish from the church's cookbook. "Whenever I make it for our salad bar at our church spaghetti suppers, people ask for the recipe. That's why I've made it for the contest," Kantor says. Chris Lurch, a Breinigsville resident and owner of the market's Spice Up Your Life stand, admits she's a recent cabbage convert. Her Low-Sodium Southwestern Coleslaw, made with several of the spice combos she sells, has added just enough heat to makes the slaw distinctive and different from more traditional versions. As she dishes a sample, she explains, "Cabbage has become part of our family's lifestyle transformation. We've shifted our focus to vegetables, cooking from scratch and cutting our sodium intake with salt-free or low-sodium spices, herbs and seasonings." She notes cabbage's Vitamin C (more than oranges) and antioxidant contents, along with ongoing research, that have convinced her to add it to her diet. She credits it as one of the dietary changes that have helped her family collectively lose 120 pounds and helped her control her blood pressure without medications. Cabbage's potential? To her, the humble cabbage is a possible "miracle" food. Recipes with cabbage: lasagana, cake, salsa, coleslaw and more By Diane W. Stoneback, Of The Morning Call 7:00 P.M. EDT, OCTOBER 23, 2012 Contestants in the Saucon Valley Farmers Market's first Cabbage Festival and Contest shared recipes that do justice to cabbage. In the following free-form recipe, Meg Yelk skips the noodles and uses cabbage leaves instead. She isn't certain of the ingredient amounts she used to fill her lasagna pan. Although she used a single layer of cabbage leaves on the bottom, you could use a few more. She added about 1 1/2 pounds of meat, but you could use more or less. She also used about 2 pounds of grated cheese, or possibly, even more. Again, you could use more or less. MEG YELK'S CABBAGE LASAGNA 1/2 large cabbage, cored and steamed 1/4 lb. ground pork 1/4 lb. ground lamb 1 lb. ground beef 2 lbs grated cheese including colby, asiago, mozzarella, Parmesan and Monterey jack, mixed 2 qts. homemade spaghetti sauce or brand of your choice • Steam the cabbage until tender. • Brown the ground meats in a small amount of oil and then blend with 2 quarts of homemade spaghetti sauce. • Line the lasagna pan with cabbage leaves, then cover with half the meat mixture. • Add a layer of grated cheese. • Repeat until pan is full, ending with a layer of cheese. • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 45 minutes, until sauce is bubbling around the edges and the cheese on top has melted. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ AUNT JACK'S RED CABBAGE CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE ICING 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 3/4 cups sugar 2 tsps. baking soda 1 tsp. baking powder 2 tsps. cinnamon 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 1/4 tsp. kosher salt 3 eggs 3/4 cup buttermilk 1 cup canola oil 3 tsps. vanilla extract 1/2 cup shredded carrots 3/4 cup shredded (like for coleslaw) red cabbage, rough-chopped, too 1/4 cup raisins 3/4 cup chopped pecans and an additional 1/4 cup chopped pecans for topping 1 cup Breakstone's sour cream For the cream cheese icing: 2 8-oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened 3/4 cup butter 2 Tbsps. whipping cream or milk 1 1/2 Tbsps. vanilla extract 7 cups confectioners' sugar For the cake: • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare three 9-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray. • In a medium bowl sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and set aside. • Next, in your stand mixer bowl, on medium speed, mix together eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla. • When it is mixed well, add the dry flour mixture to the wet mixture. • Start mixer on low and then scrape sides and beat on medium high until creamy, about 30 seconds to 1 minute or so. • Then add the sour cream and mix until creamy (20 to 40 seconds) on medium high. • Next, by hand, mix in carrots, cabbage and 3/4 cup chopped pecans and raisins. • Mix well. • Pour batter into three round, 9-inch cake pans and bake 25 to 35 minutes, until cake is done to your liking. • Remove from oven and let stand in pans for about 10 minutes. • Then, turn out on cooling racks and cool completely. • Ice with cream cheese icing and the remaining 1/4 cup of chopped pecans. To make the cream cheese icing: • In a mixer, cream together cream cheese and butter. • Then add whipping cream and mix on high for about 30 seconds. • Reduce mixer speed to low and add vanilla and confectioners' sugar until the icing is creamy and spreadable. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Shelley Goldberg, market manager, got a good price on a head of cabbage and called her mother and aunt for their advice on using it to make their Sweet and Sour Stuffed Cabbage recipe. Shelley notes, "You can use any kind of jelly to make the recipe, which also gets additional sweetness from the raisins." SHELLEY GOLDBERG'S SWEET AND SOUR STUFFED CABBAGE 1 large head green cabbage 1 large onion, diced 1 24-oz. jar of tomato sauce 3 lbs. lean ground turkey or beef 1 cup raisins 1 8-oz. jar of jelly 1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes 4 Tbsps. lemon juice or juice of 1 lemon 2 cups cooked white rice • Take core out of cabbage head and place cabbage head in pot of water. Boil until leaves are slightly softened. • Let cool slightly and remove leaves. • Repeat until you have 14-16 leaves. • Mix ground turkey, cooked rice and diced onion until well combined. • Prepare the cabbage by shaving a slice off the large vein in the center of the leaves. • Place a heaping spoonful of the filling in the center of the leaf. • Fold in the left and right edges and roll up the leaf from the bottom, forming a tight ball. • Place tomato sauce, raisins, jelly, lemon juice and diced tomatoes in pot. Stir and heat on low. • Add the stuffed cabbage, seam side down. • Cook on low for 2 hours, basting every 20 minutes. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Cooking for a crowd? The following recipe will feed plenty of hungry eaters. It filled an 18-quart electric roaster and supplied both samples and main-dish portions to market-goers. CINDY McNABB'S CABBAGE, HAM AND POTATOES 3 large cans chicken broth 5 lbs. of potatoes, peeled and cubed 3 lbs. of carrots, peeled and cut 3 large onions, peeled and chopped 1 large head of cabbage, cored and shredded 5 lbs. ham (precooked), cut into cubes Salt, pepper, parsley and oregano, to taste • Peel, wash and cube potatoes, carrots and onions and cook in chicken broth until soft in 18-quart electric roaster. • Cut the cabbage and add to other veggies and broth in the roaster. • Cook until it is soft. • Finally, cut ham into chunks and add to the mix. • Cook until done to your liking (about 3 hours). • Add seasonings to taste. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ KAREN DRAKE'S CABBAGE PHYLLO CUPS For the filling: 1 medium head of cabbage, finely diced 1 Tbsp. olive oil 1 cup white raisins 1/4 cup brown sugar or honey (or less, according to your taste) 1/2 tsp. salt A dash of lemon juice For a separate layer, inside bottom of phyllo cups: About 2 cups of ricotta cheese For the phyllo cups: 1 box of phyllo pastry sheets 1/2 to 1 cup melted butter To make the filling: • In a medium saucepan, saute cabbage with olive oil over medium heat until slightly translucent and tender. • Add raisins and cook about 5 more minutes. • Cover with lid to steam ingredients for a while. • Add brown sugar or honey, lemon juice and salt and cook until just barely golden brown, about 5 more minutes. • If there is any liquid in the bottom of the pan, saute a bit longer at a higher temperature to evaporate water (but stir constantly, so mixture does not burn.) • Remove from heat and prepare phyllo cups. To make the phyllo cups: • Follow directions on box of phyllo dough for working with the dough. • Layer 5 phyllo sheets (one sheet at a time) on work table, brushing each sheet with melted butter. • Cut the stack of five, buttered layered sheets with pastry cutter into 3-inch squares. • Gently press squares into mini muffin pan cups, being careful not to break. • It is not necessary to have the complete shape of the muffin cup. • Put about 1 teaspoon of ricotta cheese into bottom of each cup. • On top of cheese in phyllo cups, put about 1 tablespoon of the cabbage mixture. • Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes. • Repeat, making, filling and baking more phyllo cups until the filling is gone. Note: Due to the nature of cabbage, these puffs do not hold up well. They should be eaten shortly after they're baked for best taste and texture. They can be appetizers or as a not-so-sweet dessert! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The following recipe, from the church's cookbook, was contributed by Pearl Martin. LOWER SAUCON UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST KRAUT SALAD 1 large can sauerkraut, drained 2 cups chopped celery 2 onions, chopped 1 green pepper, chopped 1 jar chopped pimentos For the dressing: 1/4 cup salad oil 1 cup vinegar 2 cups sugar • Mix salad dressing ingredients. • Pour over sauerkraut mixture. Let stand overnight. • Refrigerate. It's best if the dish is made several days ahead of when you want to serve it. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The following recipe, from http://www.food.com, is one of Jen Jarson's and Wayne Miller's favorite ways to use the cabbage from their garden. EPIC ACRE FARMS FAVORITE SALSA 8 plum tomatoes, diced into small pieces 1/2 red onion, diced 3 Tbsps. chopped fresh cilantro 1/2 head red cabbage or 1/2 head green cabbage, cut into small pieces 1 clove garlic, minced 1 jalapeno pepper, diced 2 limes, juiced. Use juice, discard fruit 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. sugar • Combine all ingredients. • Chill for a few hours. • Serve with tortilla chips. With roots in Spain, the following red cabbage dish from the Lombarda region often is made at Christmas and is served by the owners of the Lemon Crushers' stand at the Saucon Valley Farmers Market. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ LEMON CRUSHERS' RED CABBAGE LOMBARDA 1/4 cup brandy 1 cup raisins 2 ripe but firm pears Juice of 1 lemon, 1 red cabbage, shredded 1/2 cup cider vinegar 3 chorizo sausages, crumbled 1 Tbsp. olive oil 2 bay leaves 1 Tbsp. thyme Kosher salt Ground pepper • Soak the raisins in the brandy and let stand until needed. • Soak pears with lemon juice and set aside. • Mix shredded cabbage with 1/4 cider vinegar and let stand 15 minutes. • Boil water with salt and stir cabbage in boiled water for 2 minutes. • Then drain and plunge the cabbage into ice water to stop the cooking and drain off as much of the water as you can. • In a skillet, crumble chorizo in oil and add bay leaves. • Cover and cook until chorizo releases fat. • Add the raisins. • Let brandy evaporate. • Then add pears and thyme and toss to cover with the fat. • Stir in the cabbage. • Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with remaining vinegar. • Toss and cook for an additional 15 minutes. • Discard the bay leaves. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ SPICE UP YOUR LIFE'S LOW-SODIUM SOUTHWESTERN COLESLAW 2/3 cup fat-free sour cream (use mayonnaise or yogurt, if you prefer) 1 Tbsp. fresh lime juice 2 tsps. honey 1/2 tsp. honey chipotle rub (available from Spice Up Your Life) 1/2 tsp. habanero mango seasoning (available from Spice Up Your Life) 1/2 tsp. taco seasoning (available from Spice Up Your Life) 3 cups shredded green cabbage 3/4 cup whole kernel corn 3/4 cup chopped red sweet pepper 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion 1/3 cup chopped cilantro • In a small bowl, combine sour cream, lime juice, honey, honey chipotle rub, mango seasoning and taco seasoning. • In a large bowl, combine cabbage, sweet pepper, cilantro, onion and corn. Add the sour cream mixture to the cabbage mix. • Toss to coat. • Serve immediately or chill up to 24 hours before serving. Serves 6. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ SAUCON VALLEY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION CABBAGE AND NOODLES 1 box of bow tie noodles 1 large head of cabbage (cut up in small pieces or slivered, using a food processor) 1 large onion, chopped 6 Tbsps. butter 6 Tbsps. olive oil To taste: salt, pepper (white or black), paprika, garlic salt • Saute fresh onion with olive oil and butter to soften the onions. • Start adding the cabbage to soften and add the seasonings. • Continue adding cabbage and more condiments until all the cabbage is used. • It is all right if some of the cabbage gets a little brown. • In the meantime, cook the noodles. • After the noodles are cooked and drained, combine with cabbage mixture. Optional: Top each portion with spoonful of sour cream.