“My grandmother—I called her Other Mother—was a natural cook, knowing just how to make anything taste great,” recalls DARLENE RANDOLPH (Nashville, Tennessee). “I remember my very first dinner party in my new apartment when I was just twenty-two years old. I had invited my mother, father, grandmother—ROBERTA HARDCASTLE WAHL (Goodlettsville, Tennessee)—and step-grandfather over for dinner. I had worked all day to prepare a shrimp casserole for the first time . . . and thus made a future note-to-self: always try new recipes before the main event. Anyway, being somewhat anxious, I tasted the casserole right before I was about to call them to the table, and it was awful. Panic-stricken, I asked my mother to come in and taste it. She agreed—it was awful! She in turn asked her mother (my grandmother) to come taste it. My grandmother came in, tasted the dish, and immediately got to work scanning my cupboards and refrigerator for ingredients and mixing them into the casserole. And . . . voilà! Of course, when she was finished, it was delicious. She knew all the tricks of toning down flavors, enhancing a dish, and in my case, fixing a recipe. After that dinner party, when we went to Grandmother’s home for dinner, the question always was asked—‘What’s in it?’ It became one of our family jokes and a memorable tradition.”
1 large cabbage
2 medium green bell peppers, finely chopped
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup cider vinegar
¾ cup canola oil (or other mild tasting oil)
1 tablespoon celery seed
1 tablespoon dry mustard
1 Chop the cabbage very fine (in a food processor or chopper) and place in a deep bowl.
2 Place the peppers on top of the cabbage. Place the onion on top of the peppers. Do not toss.
3 Sprinkle the sugar and salt over the vegetables.
4 In a small saucepan add the vinegar, oil, celery seed, and mustard. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Pour the dressing over the vegetables. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours. Toss just before serving.
MAKES 10 TO 12 SERVINGS.
NOTE: This salad can be made as far ahead as necessary. If you aren’t serving a large group, you may want to halve the recipe.