Crisp slaw keeps things simple

F or Mother’s Day, I planned an elaborate brunch for my mom.

I modified the menu several times: blintzes; no, something with almond paste; no, smoked salmon. Homemade this, made-from-scratch that.

Then I said the heck with it – why do I make everything so difficult all the time?

Instead, I stopped at the Waterfront Fish Market just a block up Marine View Drive from the paper and snapped up a few of their crab cakes.

A word about their crab cake: fabulous. They are the best, big hunks of fresh crab barely held together, but definitely cakes.

I’m especially partial to Diane’s secret recipe with red peppers and green onions. I had a little crab cake jones going for a while, in fact, and needed a weekly fix.

For maximum presentation, I made my nice, easy spring slaw, which is green and sharp and just the right thing with crab cakes. It’s also just right with grilled fish and meat, especially anything with barbecue sauce or sweet fruit glazes or marinades.

In fact, for movie night a couple of weeks ago, my friend Judy fixed a low-fat sort of deconstructed chicken cordon bleu, and the slaw was just right with that too.

Make a big batch. You can throw it together ahead of time and have it around all weekend, and it’s nice and sturdy for workweek lunches.

It’s great to go home on Monday night with a Waterfront Fish Market crab cake, which goes from car to plate in about 15 minutes, and spoon a big scoop of spring slaw next to it.

Fairly healthy. Minimal effort. And not least of all, fairly inexpensive. Someone with a crab cake habit needs to economize somewhere.

To round out the Mother’s Day meal, I made plain rice pilaf.

I wanted fresh fruit too because the menu felt sort of tropical to me or maybe it was Pacific Rim. Nothing looked right on shopping day, however. Instead of continuing a desperate search for the perfect pineapple, I bought some fresh mango slices in a jar.

So we had a little crab cake, a little slaw, some pilaf and a nice slice of mango. Coconut sorbet for dessert.

It’s a nice Mother’s Day brunch, and a nice Sunday lunch.

Features editor Melanie Munk: 425-339-3430 or munk@heraldnet.com.

Spring slaw

8cups shredded cabbage (1 big cabbage)

2cups prepared broccoli slaw

4green onions

1cup rice vinegar

1/2cup canola oil

1-2tablespoons sesame oil

1/4cup honey

1-2tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

1/4cup toasted slivered almonds

Shred cabbage or use one bag prepared shredded cabbage, which is about 8 cups. Slice green onions, including some of the green parts.

Mix shredded cabbage and broccoli and green onions.

Whisk together rice vinegar, canola oil, sesame oil and honey. Pour over salad and allow to marinate for 30 minutes or more in the refrigerator before serving.

Add sesame seeds and almonds to salad just before serving.

Makes 8 servings.

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