Asian Crunch Slaw

I love pot lucks! Don't you? There's a fabulous fusion of cultural dishes. The smells, sights, textures...yes! (And, yes, some of them are notsopleasant, true....)

On Sunday, I had a meeting to attend, and it included a pot luck dinner.  The dish I prepared was quite a success, so to satisfy the request of my "seesters" and to share with the world, below is the recipe (not my own):

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Slaw:               4 tsp. Sesame seeds

                        1 cup slivered almonds

                        3 tbsp. butter

                        1 pkg. angel hair cole slaw

                        1 pkg. broccoli slaw

                        4 green onions, cut fine

                        2 pkgs. Ramen noodles (3 oz. size), any flavor, crushed

In large bowl, toss cabbages and onion.  Saute sesame seeds and almonds in butter until almonds have a toasted look.  Caramelize the crushed noodles in skillet with ¼ cup sugar, over medium heat.  Watch very carefully.  Do not let it burn.  Stir often.  Put these 3 ingredients in a bowl to cool; set aside.

Dressing:         4 tbsp. sugar

                        6 tbsp. apple cider vinegar

                        2 tsp. salt

                        1 tsp. pepper

                        1 cup oil

                        2 flavor packets from Ramen noodles

Mix all ingredients together well.  Let stand at least 2 hours or overnight.  Just before serving, add dressing, toasted almonds, sesame seeds and noodles to slaw.  Mix well.

NOTE: I have always used the chicken flavored Top Ramen.

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Enjoy!

Mama's Beans

I posted on facebook the following status update earlier this evening:

"Can youuuu SMELL what my CROCK iiiis coooookiiiiiinnnnn??"

If you know who The Rock is, you'll appreciate the twist on his famous "Can you smell what The Rock is cookin'??!!". (Dwayne Johnson is so delicious. Sorry -- sidebar.)

My house smelled AWESOME when I walked in. I cooked some cornbread from scratch and threw some steaks into the oven. Topped off my meal with chilled clementines. Mmm Mmmm MMM!

So a few of my friends asked me to post the recipe. For them and for you, here it is:

1 pound pinto beans
2 cased links chorizo
1 whole small onion
1 clove garlic
Chili powder to your liking
Fiesta Fajita Seasoning to your liking
1/2 tsp oregano
Big pinch of cumin
Salt to your liking
1-2 shakes of Season All

Rinse the beans and place in the slower cooker.

Add enough water to just cover the beans; about 3 cups.

Turn cooker on high and bring the beans to a boil.  Boil 5 minutes.

Shut cooker off and let the beans soak for 1 hour.

Pour off water.

Re-fill pot with water, or half water mixed with half beef broth.

Add all ingredients and turn the cooker on low. Let cook all day (or overnight).

Watch and stir often.

Alternatives: I've added Rotel to add a bit of a kick.  I've also used vegetable broth instead of beef broth. Lastly, you can cook the beans on a higher temperature, just watch them closely! If you're vegetarian, I'm sure there's a worthy chorizo substitute. If you have any suggestions, feel free to leave a comment!

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Thanks, Mom!

Coca Cola Cake

If you want to indulge in the quite possibly the most obnxiously yummy cake ever, follow this recipe:

CAKE
Mix & bring just to a boil in a large saucepan:

½ cup butter
3 tbs. cocoa
1 c. coca-cola
2 c. flour
2 c. sugar

Remove from heat and add:

½ c. buttermilk that has been mixed with 1 tsp. of baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
1 ½ c. mini marshmallows
2 eggs, beaten

Pour batter into oiled & floured 2x9x13 glass baking dish.

Bake 35-40 minutes @ 325 degrees

While cake is still warm, pour icing over the top

ICING

1 ½ c. melted butter
6 tbs. coca-cola
3 tbs. cocoa
1 box of powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 c. chopped pecans

Cool cake, serve and enjoy! Just don't hate me later. :)