Idea Alley

Side dish, dessert among Kats' gifts

Recipes that appear in Idea Alley have not been tested by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

From salad and slaw to dessert, Alley Kats are on the ball this week.

Dixie Land shares the following recipes.

Broccoli Salad

2 medium heads broccoli, florets only

1/2 medium red onion, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup raisins

1 cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoons vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

10 slices bacon, crisply fried and crumbled

Cut broccoli florets into bite-size pieces.

In a large bowl, combine the broccoli, onion and raisins.

In a smaller bowl, combine the mayonnaise, vinegar and sugar and stir until sugar is dissolved.

Pour over broccoli mixture and gently toss to coat. Refrigerate 2 to 4 hours. Add crumbled bacon just before serving and mix gently.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Katy's Coleslaw Dressing

3/4 cup PLUS 2 teaspoons sugar, divided use

1 teaspoon celery seed

3/4 cup salad oil

1 cup vinegar

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1 teaspoon dry mustard

Pour 3/4 cup sugar on chopped cabbage (see note).

In saucepan, mix 2 teaspoons sugar, celery seed, oil, vinegar, salt and mustard.

Bring to boil; pour over cabbage. Cover and cool for 3 hours.

Note: Makes enough for 2 pounds of chopped slaw mixed with 1 medium onion, chopped. Better if marinated 1 to 2 days.

Pauletta Reese shares these two.

Easy Coleslaw Dressing

1/4 to 1/3 cup Brianna's home-style blush wine vinaigrette dressing

3/4 cup mayonnaise

Mix until smooth and pour over slaw.

Makes enough for one bag of slaw.

"My mother-in-law, the late Velta Reese, made this cake. We liked the chocolate pudding rather than traditional vanilla pudding," Reese writes.

Easy Boston Cream Pie

1 box yellow or white Jiffy cake mix PLUS ingredients listed on package

1 small box instant chocolate pudding and pie filling mix PLUS ingredients listed on package

Chocolate-Powdered Sugar Icing (recipe follows)

Bake cake mix according to package directions. Cool cake.

Make pudding mix according to package instructions for pie filling.

Slice cake in half horizontally (Reese uses dental floss). Spread one piece of cake with pudding, top with other half of cake and ice. Store in the refrigerator.

Chocolate-Powdered Sugar Icing

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, plus more as needed

3 tablespoons butter, softened

2 tablespoons cocoa powder or half square semisweet chocolate, melted

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Milk as necessary

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Thin with milk to desired spreading consistency.

Next week: Tomato recipes.

REQUEST

• Red sauce from Collucci's Italian Restaurant, a restaurant in North Little Rock that closed more 24 years ago, for Liz Jacks. "I think a family member opened Percito's with the same recipe out [Arkansas] Highway 10 at one time. It was my family's favorite when I was growing up," writes Jacks.

Send recipe requests, contributions and culinary questions to Kelly Brant, Idea Alley, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203; email:

[email protected]

Please include a daytime phone number.

Food on 07/30/2014

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