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Graduation, wedding, Father’s Day and alumni celebrations abound during the month of June, calling for buffet dishes from salads and sides to desserts. Though it is always reassuring for finicky eaters to find their favorite potato or macaroni salad among the buffet offerings, many folks are looking to try something new.

“Ain’t your Mama’s Slaw” is a new twist that is sure to please broccoli lovers, and maybe convert a few who cringe at the mention of broccoli. The zesty dressing along with fruit add zing to this colorful and tangy side dish that pairs nicely with barbeque or other summer main dishes. The recipe was in a recent Kraft Recipes e-zine. You can find more delicious salad recipes at www. kraftrecipes.com.

Ain’t Your Mama’s Slaw

1 package (12 ounces) broccoli slaw

1 cup red pepper strips

1 cup chopped, fresh pineapple

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup chopped red onion

1/3 cup KRAFT Zesty Italian Dressing

1 tsp brown sugar

1/3 cup sliced almond, toasted.

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. In a small bowl mix dressing and brown sugar until blended. Add to salad; Toss well, using two forks, to evenly coat ingredients with dressing. Refrigerate 1 hour. Add nuts just before serving. Yield: 12 side servings.

Note: the first 5 ingredients may be prepared and combined, then refrigerated the day before, adding the dressing one hour before serving, then follow as directed above. Additionally, chopped, well drained, canned pineapple may be substituted for the fresh, and a 12 ounce package of coleslaw blend may be substituted for the broccoli slaw.

Gordy Lund shared a recipe for Black Forest Dump Cake that was mentioned on the Steve Harvey Show. Gordy likes this delicious cake because it is so easy to prepare. Ingredients are layered in the pan and there is no mixing involved so you don’t mess up the kitchen to make this yummy dessert.

Black Forest Dump Cake

1 can (21 ounces) cherry pie filling

1 can (15 ounces) pitted dark red cherries, drained

1 package (about 15 ounces) German chocolate cake mix

1 can (12 ounces) cherry cola (regular or diet)

Ice cream or whipped cream and chocolate sauce, (optional for serving).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13x9 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Spread cherry pie filling and drained cherries in bottom of prepared pan. Top with dry cake mix, carefully spreading over cherries with a fork. Do not mix. Slowly pour soda over dry cake mix, covering as much as possible. Do not mix.

Cover with foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil; bake an additional 30 to 40 minutes or until cake is set. Cool 15 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate sauce. Note: I used tart pitted cherries because that is what I had on hand. There is plenty of sweetness in the pie filling and cake mix to sweeten the tart cherries.

Pulled pork sandwiches are a favorite summer meal menu item. Cooking the pork to desired doneness takes time and attention to the barbeque, or could mean overheating the house with oven roasting. Slow cookers are your summer time meal preparation friend. They heat up the house much less that the oven, and if you have a secure place out doors, you can move it outside to do the cooking.

The Southern Plate e-zine recently had a recipe for Southern Style Pulled Pork BBQ that is done in a slow cooker. The key is the low setting and longer cooking time.

Southern Style

Pulled Pork BBQ

1 pork roast (5 pounds)

1 Tbsp salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 1/2 cups cider vinegar

2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp hot sauce

1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Put roast in slow cooker and sprinkle salt and pepper over. Pour cider vinegar over. Cover with lid and cook on low for twelve hours. Remove pork roast and shred with two forks (this will be very easy). Drain juices from slow cooker, reserving two cups of the liquid. Return pork to slow cooker. To the reserved liquid add: hot sauce and crushed pepper flakes. Stir well. Pour over shredded pork and place lid back on. Place on low or warm setting until ready to serve. This can also be made ahead of time and refrigerated, reheating in the microwave. Yield: about 8 large sandwiches, give or take.

Note: this is not real spicy. If you prefer a spicier sauce, double the hot sauce and crushed red pepper flakes, or more to taste. Also, these ingredients are for a five pound roast. If your roast is smaller, reduce the amounts accordingly, or increase if your roast is larger.

Large roasts are hard to come by unless you ask the meat cutter to special order. This may be more expensive, so using two smaller roasts to equal the weight is a more economical choice.

Speaking of economical, making sure food doesn’t go to waste is important to budget conscious families. Often summer meals include menu items calling for hotdog and hamburger buns, or other sandwich rolls. The bags stay open on the buffet table and the leftover rolls dry out a little bit. These left over breads are perfect for Pan French Toast.

Pan French Toast

2 hamburger or hot dog buns

2 large eggs

3 Tbsp milk

Dash cinnamon

Drop of vanilla extract

Butter or cooking spray

Gently flatten bun halves to 1/2 inch thick with the palm of your hand. In a shallow bowl beat eggs with milk, cinnamon and vanilla. Dip bun halves in egg mixture, coating both sides. Heat buttered or sprayed skillet over medium high heat. Cook dipped bun halves until golden brown on each side. Serve immediately with your favorite French toast toppings or cool on wire racks. When cool, layer between sheets of parchment or waxed paper and freeze in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Reheat in toaster as for any frozen pastry.

Share your favorite recipes by sending them to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Odessa Record, P.O. Box 458, Odessa, WA 99159, email to therecord@odessaoffice. com or drop them in the Welcome to My Kitchen mail tin in The Odessa Record office. Now is the time to pull all those small weeds before they become giants, robbing your plants of water and nutrients.