Of Coleslaw and Cranberries

Are we getting ready? Are we already thinking of our shopping list, and what snack we're going to devour, and what we're going to cook up, absolutely fresh? The wait is almost enough to make me pay the toll and cross the bridge to the year-round University District market. Almost.

But, lazy suburbanite that I am, instead I just whip up another cabbage-and-carrot salad. That is, coleslaw. We've been eating a lot of coleslaw lately. Fresh, crunchy, available now. It's not just for baked beans and summer barbecues.

I was even at Coco Ramen on Bellevue Way a couple days ago, enjoying my favorite Curry Ramen with Pork Katsu, and what accompanied it? Japanese-style coleslaw, of course! It seems I'm not the only one craving fresh and crunchy--it must be the spring sunshine.

Anyhow, since we have one more week before we get to enjoy tender spring greens and nutty, local asparagus, make yourself some coleslaw. It's really so simple you should never buy it. I repeat: never buy coleslaw.

Coleslaw
1/4 head of cabbage, slivered
1 large carrot, shredded on the largest holes of grater
2-3 scallions, chopped

Dressing:
1/4 c mayonnaise
1/2 Tbsp milk
1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Whip dressing ingredients together and toss with the vegetables. Refrigerate until serving.

In other news, new this year to the Thursday Market will be Starvation Alley of Long Beach, Washington. Starvation Alley is the first organic cranberry farm in the state and the source of the famous "Cranberry for Concoctions"--cold-pressed, unsweetened cranberry juice that has gained a cult following in Seattle and Portland as an ingredient in fancy cocktails.

Check out just this one, served up at Prime Steakhouse in Redmond:

West Coast Cosmo
1.5 ozs Uncle Val's Botanical Gin
0.5 ozs Starvation Alley Cranberry for Concoctions
0.5 ozs Cointreau
0.25 ozs fresh-squeezed lime juice
0.25 ozs simple syrup



Of their product Starvation Alley says:

We make a 100% raw unpasteurized, unsweetened cranberry juice. We knew that we wanted to make a value adding product from start to finish, so when we considered a juice we ruled out adding sugar that dominates so many other cranberry juices. We also knew unsweetened cranberry juice is unfavorably bitter, so we tried cold-pressing the berries, which resulted in a brighter, fresher tasting juice. Bonus points: the raw, cold-pressed juice retains more of the enzymes that make cranberries a wonderful home remedy for pesky UTIs.

Some non-alcoholic concoctions I hope to try the juice in would be smoothies, lemonade, and even added to sparkling apple cider. Heck--I even just want that beautiful bottle!