Laura’s Favorite Sweet Pineapple Coleslaw

Having just planted some cabbage seeds a couple of weeks ago, I had an impatient and premature craving for my yummy homemade coleslaw.  I finally perfected the recipe last summer, after years of fiddling with it once a year or so and being disappointed.  Now, I can whip it out and KNOW I am in for a treat the next day.

Dear hubby and I like our coleslaw “macerated,” as Chef Betharoni has explained to me.  When something gets macerated it soaks up some liquid and blends flavors.  That doesn’t mean my cabbage gets mushy, but it is a touch softer than if it were eaten right after the dressing was mixed in.  It has also had a chance to absorb some of the sweetness of the pineapple and the tanginess of the dressing.

Here is my list of salad ingredients:

• one green head of cabbage (basic, medium, store bought size), quartered, cored, (rinsed) and thinly sliced
• 4-5 small to medium carrots, peeled and grated
• about 1/3 cup sweet onion, finely diced
• 1.5 cups pineapple tidbits, with a little bit of the liquid, maybe 1/4 cup (but I don’t measure it, I just pour some off so that the pineapple is not swimming in liquid)

• 1 cup real mayonnaise
• 1 cup low fat yogurt
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon celery seed

After all of the vegetables are cut up and in the bowl with the slightly juicy pineapple pieces, I use a wire whip to mix the dressing ingredients. For these amounts, my old 25 cup Tupperware bowl is a good size.  There is just enough room to mix it, then there is the lid that seals it well, allowing me to even have it sideways in the refrigerator if necessary.

About 24 hours later, I begin eating coleslaw.  I usually have about 3 bowls of it.  I have figured out how to eat it with a spoon so that I can get enough dressing with each bite.  I hate getting to the bottom of the bowl and finding all the left over dressing that has dripped off of the fork-eaten cabbage!

The coleslaw lasts several days in the refrigerator, getting a little softer each day, but staying delicious.  It has never lasted long enough to spoil, so I can’t tell you the limits on that.  🙂  In the final analysis, I get about half of it and the other 4 or 5 people who still live here get the other half… if they are paying attention.