Tuesday, August 20, 2024

Cole Slaw for the Future

 Good morning to all.  Hope you are well and safe.  It is a glorious fall feeling morning here.  It is about 59* as I type this.  We get a sampling of fall for a few days - then summer comes back in the form of 90*F by weekend.  The moon was magnificent this morning.  So big and bright.  It always amazes me, that all of us, no matter where in the world we are, are looking at the same moon.  The simple and the basics amuse me!
I enjoyed yesterday's weather and got a bunch of outdoor work done.  More to do today and garden to harvest and things to chop - oh my!!!

I had a couple people ask about canning the Cole slaw - it is really very easy.  I like it as it is - it is sweet and tangy.  BUT it can be drained and used with mayo as well.  Let is sit for a few weeks before using after just canning.  Yes, it does stay somewhat crunchy as well - it is not like cooked cabbage.
CANNED COLE SLAW
1 medium cabbage
1 large carrot
1 bell pepper
1 smaller onion
1 tsp. salt
Chop all of this up finely and add salt.  Let it sit for about an hour - then drain if needed. (I didn't have anything to drain)
**I did all the chopping in my Ninja in batches.  It pulsed to the perfect consistency. It only took a few minutes to complete the chopping.

SYRUP **
1 C vinegar
1/4 C water
2 C sugar
1 tsp. mustard seeds
Bring this all to a boil for about 1 minute.  Cool slightly and pour over your stuffed jars.
Process in a water bath for 15 minutes boiling.

**I doubled the brine for the batch I made.  I think my cabbage was a bit larger than medium - and I stuffed 7 pints with slaw to about 1" from top.  I suggest doubling brine.
If you are just a 'little' shy on having enough brine (top w/water).  My tip is to pour brine over contents a little at a time over all the jars you have - that way it is even and if you need to make more you know how much!  You want it to cover all the veggies.
I hope that isn't confusing.  
**You could always just double the brine to start with - and IF you have any left - make some refrigerator veggies!!!  I used all of mine in the slaw.

                                                  Slaw mixed up in my big cooking pot
                                                                7 pints of slaw all made up

There you have it.  Super easy and tasty to eat.
There are so many ways we can use different ingredients we have.  Your mind is your only limitation! 

I love this time of the year.  It is the time to make things and put things back for the winter months.  I have cabbage, peppers, tomatoes, and squash.  I have grapes as well, so will be using those as well.
Not only is it good for our pantries, but making fresh items and canning are great for gifts as well.

Do what you can with what you have.  There are just all kinds of options.
Enjoy using these fresh ingredients in your cooking as well.  

I hope you all have a wonderful day and stay productive.
Be safe all.



32 comments:

  1. Your slaw looks so good! It could be used as a jumping off point for other dishes. The Farmer planted baby cabbages yesterday so hopefully we will have some to preserve. Are you pickling any of your peppers? We are harvesting lots of squash...spaghetti, delicata, and a sweet little squash I've forgotten the name. Some plants are already gone, like the cucumbers, but others are still going strong.

    Absolutely beautiful day out! Going to tackle the rest of the flower garden weeds.

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    1. Yes, you could use that with a lot of other dishes combined. My cabbages that I have picked all have about 4 mini cabbages starting to produce again. I always like those little ones for myself for eating.
      Hope your new planting does well. I haven't pickled any bell peppers - may do that.
      It is gorgeous - just came in from finishing up the weed whacking from yesterday's mow. Windows open and lots of fresh air.

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  2. My kitchen counter is covered with baskets of food, just picked. Various herbs to dry, tomatoes and beans. I pressure canned beans yesterday so as to keep some space in the freezer. Yellow transparent are early ripening and I've been making batches of applesauce to keep up with it. My husband decided to grow the butternut squash this year and he is so much more meticulous than me. There are about 15 of the biggest butternuts I've ever seen. Those will store well for the months ahead.
    43F here this morning but a beautiful sunny and breezy day. Warmer temps will come again.
    The moon was big and beautiful as it rose over the lake last night.
    Enjoy these days..

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    1. Oh gal, lucky you. What a problem to have - all that yummy fresh goodness. Yes, the squash will last and last and will be so good this winter.
      Glad you are enjoying the same wonderful weather. It sure is pretty today. Really nice breeze here as well. Oh the moon was something to see.
      Enjoy all those goodies.

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  3. We stood outside last night and watched the moon raise, it was so awesome. I've watched the sunrise before but never the moon. It was so amazing.
    Thank you for the slaw recipe, I have all to make it. I have the steam canner so I might use that for the canning part.
    Well, we are gifting tomatoes, we always seem to plant too many. I guess that's a good thing.

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    1. How cool to watch the moon rise. It was just beautiful - so clear here and I was amazed.
      You are very welcome. I should maybe get a steam canner - it sure would help with having to lift that big canner full of water. That is so heavy and harder to do the older I get.
      LOL - such a problem! I getting a lot too all of a sudden. I need to get busy with salsa. I gave away a few today too.
      Everyone loves fresh tomatoes.
      Are you making any spaghetti sauce or putting up any tomatoes?
      Have fun!

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  4. Thank you, thank you, thank you! Will get my head of cabbage processed later today!

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    1. You are very welcome! Just remember to make extra brine if the head is very big!!
      Enjoy!

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  5. My mom canned "Winter slaw" as she called it. I recall it was very good. My brother and I were chatting about the amount of canning she did every fall, and he mentioned the wall of colourful jars on the shelves in the basement.
    My wee garden isn't big enough to produce enough for canning or freezing, but it's nice to have fresh vegetables as long as we can.

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    1. I guess that would be what this could be called too.
      Aren't those memories of all the jars neat? Our mommas sure did work hard on all that.
      You are getting fresh goodies and that is all that matters. You are saving some $ now and enjoying something you actually grew! Pretty neat.

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  6. Hi Cheryl, a little grey and rainy here in NE OK this morning. We’re making zucchini bread and zucchini relish today. Bread smells good in the oven.
    Your relish looks pretty and yummy πŸ˜‹ Thanks for the recipeπŸ‘πŸ»
    Glad you’re having “fall-ish” weather for a few daysπŸ‚πŸπŸ‚
    Mary~

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    1. I can almost smell the bread baking! I am thinking about making some zucchini brownies while it is cooler.
      I was going to make relish and then I came across a bunch I still have downstairs. I thought I was out. I love homemade relish.
      Enjoy the rainy day and that zucchini bread!

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  7. Cheryl, that recipe is what we call freezer slaw, have never processed it except in hollowed out bell peppers and then brine over all and processed for 15 minutes. So good with beef roast and even on sandwiches. When I was pregnant with my second DD I craved that slaw, I would hardly wait until it was thawed before eating it.
    JC

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    1. Interesting. Never would have thought about that way. It is good with anything I think. I have used on sandwiches too.
      Thanks - that lets everyone know how good it is!!

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  8. Hi Cheryl, any idea how long I could keep in the fridge without processing? (I'm not a canner) - Madelyne

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    1. JC above - says she freezes it. That would be an option. Not sure how long it would last in the frig without canning.
      If you have some canning jars - you could possibly get your slaw and brine super hot - then put in jar and cap. It should give a 'sort of' seal when cooling, then put in frig. Just not sure how long it would last. Might try the freezing!

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  9. Slaw looks good! The Farmer planted fall cabbages. Hopefully we will have enough to preserve.

    Beautiful day out to do more weeding. It never ends1

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    1. Hopefully you will get plenty before freeze time. Mine already have 'seconds' growing. It was beautiful!

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  10. Thanks so much for your recipe. I will definitely be giving this a try very soon.

    God bless.

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  11. I cannot eat anything with that much vinegar. However, I have it from an expert that coleslaw can be frozen. It did not work for me. I do want to freeze or can or dehydrate for this winter.

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    1. Too bad, as it tastes very good. JC says she freezes hers as well. Hopefully you can get something put back.

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  12. (Little Penpen) what a great idea! I’ve never seen this done before. Does the cabbage stay crunchy?

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    1. Hi Penny. Yes, it stays pretty crunchy. Maybe not as crunchy as fresh - but still pretty good. It is tasty!

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    2. Ok great! I purchased a small electric canner. This will be one of the first things I will try. 😊 penny

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  13. I made this exact recipe last week and I had some problems I hope you or some of your readers can address.

    First, you are exactly right about making more brine than the recipe calls for. For this amount, I would recommend 1.5 or 2 times the amount of the recipe.

    Secondly, my jars look NOTHING like yours. They started full and they are now standing about 2/3 full. I did press the mixture down as directed. The only thing I can think of is that I didn't have a food processor and sliced the cabbage with a knife. Yours looked like it was chopped in a food processor. Maybe it packs down more easily?

    The good news is that my husband--who I did not think would like it--LOVES this stuff.

    Any help anyone can provide will be appreciated!

    PS Last week I canned 18 pints of dry beans. Some were quite elderly, like before Covid. They turned out great! I did not soak them or pre-cook. One-half (1/2) cup dry beans per pint, fill the jar with water, process 75 minutes @ 10 lbs. pressure. Double the amount for quarts and process 90 minutes. You can mix and match types of beans in the canner since they all are the same. Also, last night, I froze about 5 lbs. of peaches that I got for .99 lb.

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  14. Max--again
    Oops, process dry beans at 15 lbs. pressure.

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    1. No, I was right the first time. Process at 10 lbs. pressure. Ignore comment stating 15 lbs.--10 it is!!

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    2. Thanks for the directions on the beans.
      Yes, I did use the Ninja food processor - so it is smaller grain - that might make a difference. It did pack really well. I wonder if like tomatoes - if processed a little too much you get the juice at bottom and the veggies float. It will still be good.

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