Battle of the Red Cabbage Salads

DEAR SOS: When a friend from Arkansas came out for a visit I discovered that I had misplaced my recipe for Pretending to Be Red Cabbage From the North Woods. I used by-guess-and-by-gosh, but the recipe, though passable, was a little too sweet.

My friend recognized the recipe and sent the following as taken from the North Woods Inn. We can’t break down the dressing into one or two cups, however.

--DORTHA

DEAR DORTHA: Our version of Pretending to Be Red Cabbage From the North Woods was as close as we could come. Here is our recipe and your friend’s version broken down for comparison.

FRIEND’S NORTH WOODS INN RED CABBAGE SALAD 1/2 head red cabbage 2 teaspoons garlic puree 1/4 cup grated sweet red pepper 1 small onion, minced 2 tablespoons lemon juice 3 tablespoons sugar Salt 1 tablespoon beef bouillon powder 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 cup wine vinegar 1/2 cup cider vinegar 1 cup oil

Shred cabbage into bowl. Combine garlic, red pepper and onion. Blend together lemon juice, sugar, salt to taste, bouillon powder, pepper, wine and cider vinegars and oil.

Pour over cabbage and mix well. Let stand overnight to mellow flavors. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Each serving, without added salt, contains about: 379 calories; 66 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 38 grams fat; 15 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.71 gram fiber,

THE TIMES’ PRETENDING TO BE RED CABBAGE FROM THE NORTH WOODS 1/2 head red cabbage 1/2 cup oil 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 3 tablespoons sugar 4 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon seasoned salt 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/4 teaspoon onion powder

Shred cabbage so it is irregular, with some fine and some coarse shreds, into bowl. Add oil, vinegar, sugar, salt, seasoned salt, pepper and onion powder. Mix well.

Let stand several hours or overnight to allow flavors to mellow and to achieve deep-red color. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Each serving contains about: 206 calories; 1,979 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 19 grams fat; 12 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.61 gram fiber.

DEAR SOS: For the last couple of years we have enjoyed Bananas Foster at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. Can you come up with a recipe?

--JUDY

DEAR JUDY: We have a similar recipe for Bananas Foster from Brennan’s in New Orleans. You can make the dessert nonalcoholic by omitting the rum and liqueur, but then you can’t flame the bananas. The recipe is meant for table-side service, but you can use a saucepan over the stove top instead of a chafing dish. Be cautious when flaming the dish in either case.

BANANAS FOSTER 1 tablespoon butter 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed Dash ground cinnamon 2 tablespoons banana liqueur 6 bananas, halved lengthwise and crosswise 1/4 cup rum 6 scoops vanilla ice cream

Melt butter in chafing dish over alcohol burner. Add brown sugar, cinnamon and banana liqueur and stir to mix. Heat few minutes. Place halved bananas in sauce. Saute lightly until tender and lightly browned. Add rum and allow to heat well.

Ignite and allow sauce to flame until flames die out, tipping pan in circular motion to prolong flaming. Serve over vanilla ice cream, placing 4 banana pieces over each ice cream scoop, then spooning hot sauce over top. Makes 6 servings.

Each serving contains about: 318 calories; 64 mg sodium; 11 mg cholesterol; 4 grams fat; 63 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 0.58 gram fiber.