So excited about this Crunchy Asian Salad recipe on the menu today. I think it’s going to be one of your favorites this summer.

It uses garden fresh ingredients and the dressing is excellent: light and sweet, made with rice wine vinegar and a few other ingredients. This salad packs a lot of crunch with the toasted sesame seeds, almonds and ramen noodles. Use Napa or red cabbage, though why they call it red cabbage is beyond me.

Looks mighty purple to me.

Anyway, this Crunchy Asian Salad recipe is so pretty and uses such colorful veggies. This recipe makes a ton, serves twelve to sixteen generously, so it’s perfect for potlucks, picnics and barbecues. Really feeds a crowd. Also a great recipe to share extra with friends or neighbors.

Lots of yummy crunchies: toasted Ramen noodles, almonds and sesame seeds.

I first had this salad four or five years ago. The dressing is sweet and the salad has great crunch from the cabbage and toasted ramen noodles, almonds and sesame seeds. Great combination of flavors.

And the bright colors are so vibrant and cheerful, really makes a great presentation on a dinner plate. (You see this one coming!) Love having a bowl of Crunchy Asian Salad for lunch! Also makes wonderful leftovers. Wherever I take this side dish, I get asked for the recipe.

The key to preparing this salad is to have a good sharp knife or mandoline on hand for slicing the cabbage and Romaine lettuce very thin. Be sure to dice the red peppers small. It makes a world of difference using a sharp knife for this task, so sharpen yours first. You can buy pre-shredded cabbage to save time, but I’ve not found it shredded fine enough for my liking.

I often make this recipe in stages. Ahead of time, I toast up the crunchies in a skillet, then store in an airtight container. I make the dressing next and store in the refrigerator. Then I dice/chop all the veggies just before serving and toss it together with the dressing and crunchies.

Hope you make this Crunchy Asian Salad recipe and do let me know how you like it.

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Crunchy Asian Salad

Sweet dressing on a crunchy cabbage salad with toasted almonds, sesame seeds and ramen noodles. Gorgeous salad!

Course Salad

Prep Time 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 12 -16 servings

Author Allie Taylor

Ingredients

• Salad:
• 1 large head Napa or red cabbage sliced thin
• 1 small head Romaine lettuce sliced thin
• 2-3 large red peppers diced
• 4 green onions diced (use the entire onion)
• Crunchies:
• 2 packages chicken flavored Ramen noodles crumbled
• 1 chicken flavored seasoning packet from the Ramen noodles
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1/3 cup sesame seeds
• 3 tablespoons butter
• Dressing:
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 clove minced garlic or more if you love garlic

Instructions

• Place all prepared vegetables in a large serving bowl.
• Crunchies:
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
• Add crumbled Ramen noodles and stir.
• In two minutes, add almonds.
• Watch the almonds closely as they are very easy to burn.
• Salute 'til golden brown.
• Add 1 packet chicken seasoning from Ramen noodles.
• Mix well.
• Add sesame seeds at the very end and stir 'til just golden.
• Quickly remove from heat and cool mixture.
• Dressing:
• Separately, whisk together all dressing ingredients.
• Just before serving, toss salad, crunchies and dressing.
• Serve immediately.

 You may also enjoy: Grilled Corn, Basil & Tomato Salad

The post Crunchy Asian Salad appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.

Hi friend, hope all’s well with you today. It’s almost time to ring in 2016, and hard to fathom 2015 is nearly over. Taking a quick moment here to say a heartfelt thanks to each of you for your love, support and encouragement this past year. I’m grateful for all I’ve learned, the wonderful people I’ve met and precious friends I’ve reconnected with along the way during my first year of blogging. It was a big learning curve and an exciting journey. Thanks for coming along for the ride.

Today I’m sharing the Top 2015 Recipes from Through Her Looking Glass. Maybe you missed a few along the way or are curious which recipes took off on Pinterest and social media this year.

The Famous Brick Street Chocolate Cake was the top viewed recipe here in 2015, and was given to me by a southern friend who regularly makes this cake for the local fire and police stations in town. It’s also served at the Brick Street Cafe in Greenville, SC for $5 a slice. Linda told me this recipe would make me famous. (She may be right!) This is the best chocolate cake I’ve ever tasted.

This pretty Crunchy Asian Salad came in second place in 2015 and I can see why. The bright colors and tangy flavors blend perfectly with the cabbage, toasted sesame seeds and ramen noodles. Crunchy, sweet and addictive. This healthy salad is the perfect year round side dish and adds vibrant color to any menu.

This Blueberry Pound Cake came in at #3 on the blog. I’m such a blueberry lover and blueberries are a New England thang. (Yeah I meant to say that.) My boys and I pick pounds and pounds of blueberries each July to make jars and jars of blueberry jam, blueberry muffins and this Blueberry Pound Cake. You can’t go wrong with fresh butter, sugar, pure vanilla and blueberries. This dense and buttery pound cake is packed with plump, juicy blueberries. A dollop of whipped cream on top is utter bliss.

Coming in at #4 are these  Jordan Marsh Blueberry Muffins. The fancy sugar-crusted muffins are legend in New England and the Boston area, and were baked at the Jordan Marsh department store bakeries for decades. Sadly Jordan Marsh is no longer in business, but these scrumptious muffins bring back the memories, tastes and wonderful smells of a by-gone era. This recipe is the original and you won’t be disappointed with these gigantic blueberry muffins.

A December 2004 Boston Globe article said, “For decades, any decent downtown shopping trip ended at Jordan Marsh, where the promise of a sugar-crusted blueberry muffin could make annoying children angelic.” (Jordan Marsh, where are you when I need you???)

And last but not least, these Gingersnaps came in at #5. These cookies are beautifully crackly and crunchy on the outside, slightly chewy in the center, rolled in sugar just before baking. Oven warm, Gingersnaps are the perfect companion to a tall glass of ice cold milk or lemonade. Or a steaming mug of spicy chai tea in winter. (Hint: dip one in Lemon Curd for a real treat.)

Would love to hear if you tried one of these Top 2015 Recipes, and cheers to a scrumptious culinary year ahead in 2016!

The post Thanks & Top 2015 Recipes appeared first on Through Her Looking Glass.