RED CABBAGE SALAD WITH APPLES

RECIPE: Red Cabbage Salad with Apples
Adapted from “Everybody Eats Well in Belgium Cookbook,” Ruth Van Waerebeek (Workman Publishing, 1996). Serves 6-8.

Ingredients
1 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
2 bay leaves
1 sprig fresh thyme
1/2 head red cabbage (about 1 pound), finely shredded
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 tart apple, unpeeled, halved, cored, and thinly sliced
1/2 cup walnut halves, toasted (see method below)

Directions
Heat the vinegar with the sugar, bay leaves, and thyme in a small saucepan. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Pour the warm vinegar over the shredded cabbage in a bowl and toss well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

Remove the salad from the refrigerator. The cabbage will be wilted and slightly pickled. Add the oil and mix well. Season with salt and pepper. The salad will keep in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.

Just before serving, discard the bay leaves and thyme. Decorate with the apple slices and sprinkle with the walnuts.

To toast nuts
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the nuts out evenly on a baking sheet and bake to 7-10 minutes, until you can just start to smell them and they have started to brown. Keep a careful eye on them as they can scorch easily. Let the nuts cook on paper towels before using.