Rainbow Peanut Slaw

So ya'll know my feelings about farmer's markets. Two weeks ago I had the wonderful opportunity to visit the market with Craig's mom, and we had a great time. In addition to all the wonderful goodies we picked up, I grabbed some sweet green cabbage. It has a unique shape, sort of like a tulip. The farmer's explained it was a sweet heirloom variety. I am not sure of the official name, but it was sooo delicious!

Anyway, after returning home with a ton of goodies it seemed necessary to immediately make a tasty slaw. Because I hate mayo, I decided to do a Thai inspired peanut slaw, using all the tasty veggies I grabbed at the farmer's market. I combined cabbage, bok choy, radishes, carrots with some fresh herbs. It was simple, flavorful and delicious. As a bonus, the peanut dressing is extremely filling.

It turned out so well I decided to make it again for our cookout this weekend. It was the perfect compliment to my Thai lamb kabobs.

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Spicy Thai Lamb Kabobs

First - I apologize for my absence this last week. I really needed a break and Wednesday holiday screwed up my internal calendar. I didn't intend to take a week off from blogging, but I feel much better  now that I'm rested.

It's July, which means cookouts, weekends at the beach, and standing directly in front of the air conditioning when necessary. When it comes to summer entertaining, burgers and hot dogs have become the default setting. As much as I love the classics, I also like to mix things up a bit. Which is why I was thrilled to be able to host another lamb supper club courtesy of the Tri-Lamb Group.

Using a gorgeous boneless leg of lamb, I decided to make some yummy kabobs to throw on the grill. For this little soiree, I decided to go with a Thai theme, using my favorite spicy Thai marinade for the meat and coming up with some Thai inspired side dishes. Lamb is an ideal meat for entertaining because its flavorful and extremely lean. It grills beautifully and soaked up the complex flavors of the marinade.

I am always thrilled to have another lean meat option. On average, a 3oz serving of lamb has ONLY 175 calories. Additionally, a serving of lamb has 23 grams of filling protein, and is filled with B vitamins, iron and zinc.

Anyway, so I put together a simple menu that would incorporate a whole bunch of Thai inspired flavors, ginger, garlic, chilies and cilantro were emphasized in every dish. I'll be bringing you the rest of these recipes this week, so keep an eye out for these tasty treats.

COOKOUT MENU:

Spicy Thai Lamb Kabobs

Grilled Sweet Potatoes

Rainbow Peanut Slaw

Thai Guacamole

Raspberry Ginger Sangria

Since this was an outdoor party I had lots of opportunities to snap some photos of my garden! Everything is coming along nicely - the heat wave fried my kale, so I learned a lesson about planting cold weather crops early. So far things are coming along nicely. I've already got tons of hot peppers coming in, some will be mature in a few weeks. I've also got cherry and roma tomatoes. I am sooo excited about these. In other news, the butternut squash is taking over the garden, growing in every direction and covering all the other plants. I had no idea it would be so ... vigorous.

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