Cabbage roll soup and a tasty crab salad

Mom made chicken noodle soup the other day when the weather got so cold. Highly recommended if you haven’t already thought to make some. It just warms you right up.

Last week I made crab salad. We were all craving something a little lighter to eat after all the beef we’d eaten over the holidays. I just made it up but luckily I thought to write down what I was doing so I could share. We really enjoyed it on crackers.

This calls for chopped parsley, cilantro (optional) and baby spinach. A tip I learned a long time ago is to press it all into a two cup glass measure. Use kitchen scissors to cut over and over making sure to bring what’s on the bottom to the top. A couple of minutes of doing this everything will be nicely chopped.

Crab Salad

3 pints of crab meat, pasteurized

3 stalks celery, finely diced

10 sugar snap peas, finely diced

1 bunch green onions, finely diced

1/2 cup of bell pepper, any color, finely diced

1 handful parsley, chopped

1 handful cilantro, chopped (optional)

1 handful baby spinach, chopped

1 tsp garlic powder (or to taste)

1 tsp lemon pepper (or to taste)

1 tsp Tony Cachere Creole seasoning (or to taste)

Juice of two lemons

Zest of two lemons

Sprinkle of fish sauce (optional)

3 tbsp mayo, just enough to moisten

In a large bowl place all ingredients except mayo. Stir to bring everything together. Taste for seasoning. Add more of whatever you think it needs. When you are happy with the flavor, add mayo one tablespoon at a time until it is just moistened. Chill for a few hours. Taste again. Cold salads like this often need more salt.

—kwc— I know cabbage rolls are popular around here, but we never ate them in my family for some reason. My cousin, Bethany Wallis, shared this one with me and it sounds delicious for a cold day.

Cabbage Roll Soup

1-1/2 lb lean ground beef

4 cups chopped cabbage

1/2 cup diced onions

3 cloves minced garlic 1/4 tsp cayenne

1/4 tsp cayenne

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp salt

1 tsp oregano

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 can fire-roasted tomatoes (14.5 oz)

4 cups beef broth

1/2 cup of long-grain white rice (not instant)

Heat a large stockpot or a Dutch oven over medium heat. Place ground beef in the hot pan and cook until no longer pink, crumbling the beef with a spoon as it cooks.

Add diced onions and garlic to the ground beef. Cook until the onions are soft, about 2-3 minutes. Season the beef mixture with cayenne, paprika, salt, and oregano. Stir in tomato paste. Add the cabbage.

Pour beef broth and tomatoes over the beef mixture and stir in the rice.

Bring the soup to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until rice is cooked through and cabbage is soft.