Yummy and Easy Recipe!

Who doesn't love a great recipe! I thought I'd share a favorite tonight. It's Ramen Noodle Coleslaw. I was first introduced to this recipe by Sylvia, the admin at my former office. It's one of those recipes that you think "um, perhaps I'll pass." Don't! It's so yummy and addictive - or as my little Katie says "num, num!"

My recipe from Sylvia was saved in my email, but somehow it's disappeared, so I've found that there are several variations of this recipe on the Internet. Sylvia's original recipe called for chicken mixed in, and I still recommend it for adding a little "umph" to the recipe especially if you are taking it to a potluck. However, tonight we had the family over for baby back ribs on the grill and served this as a side dish, without the chicken.

















Ramen Noodle Coleslaw

Mix together:

1/3 c. vinegar
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. oil
2 packages of seasoning from ramen noodles

*NOTE: I used plain, white distilled vinegar. Several recipes I saw called for cider vinegar. I also add about 2 tablespoons more of sugar. Just plain canola oil.

Stir in:

1 - 1 pound bag of coleslaw (or make your own)
2 packages of ramen noodles (chicken flavor)
4 ounces of slivered almonds*
4 ounce package of sunflower seeds (shelled)

*Here's my addition to the recipe, as it wasn't clear the first time I made it. Break up the ramen noodles with your hands. Do not cook the noodles. For the slivered almonds, toast before adding to the salad. To toast almonds, preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread almonds in thin layer on cookie sheet or in cake pan. Toast for about 5 minutes, shaking the pan gently every 60-90 seconds to toss the almonds and keep them from getting to brown.

Why toast almonds? Well, thanks to my Southern Living cookbooks, I learned that when you toast almonds it releases the flavor and makes for a very tasty recipe! :) If you haven't checked out Southern Living, do! The recipes are fantastic. Here's the link: http://www.southernliving.com/southern/

I think this is an excellent make-a-head recipe. I always toss together all my ingredients and then chill the salad for a few hours. This gives the noodles time to absorb the dressing so they won't be extra crunchy if you do it this way. Other recipes suggest keeping the dressing and salad ingredients separate and tossing right before you are ready to serve. Note that the noodles will be very crunchy when prepared this way.

Also, I hate regular coleslaw leftover...just too soggy and runny. However, this recipe is great the next day.

Okay, now onto my recipe for brotherly and sisterly love! Just bring out one large cardboard box and put brother and sister inside. Wait for the fun to begin and snap photos!
































Ryan had drug out the box we had his Shake 'n Go Racetrack stored in and was using it as a garage for his firetruck. It ended up with both kids in the box smiling and laughing the whole time.

If you are wondering why they both have wide open mouths in the first photo, well, Ryan was pretending to be a dog and panting. Katie joined in and so did I behind the camera! That's they only way I got them both to look my way at the same time.

Well enjoy and keep checking back for more recipes! In recognition of the recession we are in, I'm going to dig out my Grandmother's recipe for Wacky Cake. If you've never heard of Wacky Cake before, it's a cake made without eggs. It's my understanding that this recipe dates back to the Great Depression when money was tight and eggs were hard to come by.