Indoor Easter Picnic (Cole Slaw and a lesson that we don't care for sweet tea brined fried chicken)

One of the things a SoCal Ex-Pat needs to learn when they move  to North Carolina is to remember to order your iced tea “unsweetened.” Unless you want something closer to a soda than the iced tea you grew up drinking, that is. 

Sweet tea brined fried chicken: Picture perfect, but
not blog-worthy.  Sweet potato biscuits don't rise
like normal ones but are amazing!

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not judging. But I’m not a sweet lover, so I learned this one quickly. 

Sugar aside, the iced tea in the South is the very best. Amber brown and clear as the Pasadena sky on New Year’s Day (which is when thousands of people freezing their tails off in the midwest and northeast watch the Rose Parade, pack their bags and add to the LA traffic just in time for the winds to shift and the smog to settle back into the valley).  Wow, I am full of rants today!

This crisp and refreshing Coleslaw
never fails me

Why the tea discussion?  Well, today is Easter and we are just the two of us for dinner.  So I thought I’d make a little indoor picnic complete with Sweet Tea Brined Fried Chicken (a first for me) served with my go to side, a crunchy cole slaw made with mayo, Greek yogurt, apple cider vinegar and celery seeds. Oh.  And biscuits.  Sweet potato biscuits. Because we can.

But here's the deal.  The chicken was good, but you know, I really don't think the sweet tea brining is up my alley.  Not blog worthy.  So, I'll post the pretty pictures, but skip the recipe.  

I will share my cole slaw recipe and a link to  Bobby Flay’s sweet potato biscuits.  They are absolutely relish. So VERY tender.  They don't rise quite as high as a normal biscuit, because of the moisture in the sweet potatoes but, dang, they are good. 

Holly's Cole Slaw Method

I love love love to dice. And this 
method makes it super easy.

This is a staple in the Barnett household.  I change it up lots of ways - lemon or lime juice rather than the vinegar, chopped cilantro or parsley, green onions or chives in place of the diced onion. And often I go straight mayo rather than mayo and yogurt.  Any way you do it, it’s refreshing and a great accompaniment to meat, fish, poultry, burgers, lamb… or with canned tuna mixed in for lunch.

Make the dressing - to a large bowl add:

• 1/4 diced onion - I like a sweet onion like the Visalia onions we get in here NC and the Maui onions we got in SoCal.  
• 1/4 cup Best Foods/Helmans or Duke’s Mayonnaise 
• 1/4 cup plain, fat free Fage Greek Yogurt
• 1 TBS apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp celery seeds
• pinch salt 
• a bunch of grinds of black pepper
• Mix thoroughly and taste.  Adjust the vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.

Quick & Easy Cole Slaw -
fresh makes it best

Add the crunchy stuff:

• Toss in1/4 of a large head of cabbage, sliced thin and then cropped.  You can also use a bag of pre-shredded cabbage.
• Stir and check the seasoning again, and add salt and pepper if needed.  If it is too dry, add some more mayo and/or yogurt.  

Cover with plastic wrap and chill thoroughly.  Stir and serve. 

Enjoy!