Adapted from Savoring the Seasons of the Northern Heartland by Lucia Watson
Serves 6
This recipe is for our esteemed farm manager, Kathy Huckins, who grew up in the Heartland!
Lucia Watson is a well-known chef who owns Lucia’s, a restaurant in Minneapolis. Her family has deep roots in Minnesota, and both her grandmother and mother were outstanding heartland cooks, and have passed their talent onto Lucia. If you don’t know it, this is a wonderful cookbook. In order to keep the red cabbage crisp in this recipe, she says to toss it with the vinegar before cooking- an old German trick! This dish is also great the next day served at room temperature.
3 strips bacon or 2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 medium head of red cabbage, shredded
1/4 cup cider vinegar
2 tart apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1/4 cup apple cider or apple juice
4 whole cloves
1/3 cup sugar
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
In a large deep skillet or kettle, fry the bacon (or, if using butter or oil, heat over medium heat). Leave the drippings in the pan and drain the bacon on paper towels. Crumble the bacon and set it aside for garnish. Sauté the onion in the fat until limp and brown. Toss the shredded cabbage with the vinegar in a large bowl, then add this, along with the remaining ingredients except the salt and pepper to the pot and simmer, uncovered, until the cabbage is bright and tender but not soggy, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve garnished with the crumbled bacon.
