Fancy Pants Coleslaw
A loaded, fancy cole slaw recipe loaded with cheese, bacon, grapes, and sunflower seeds. A great addition to your summer picnic!
I’ve always been on the fence when it comes to coleslaw – I rarely like store-bought or from-the-deli coleslaws because more often than not, they are absolutely swimming in dressing, which I hate. However, I have always loved homemade coleslaws – they’re always much lighter on the dressing and significantly tastier than their store-bought counterparts.
And this particular recipe takes homemade coleslaw up a few notches! Not only does it have a great dressing-to-ingredients ratio, but it’s loaded with tons of delicious ingredients that make it an absolute star of a side dish, and not at all an afterthought.
I actually found this clipping from an old Taste of Home magazine and set it aside to make over Memorial Day weekend since we were going to be grilling for Sunday dinner. However, when I went to make it, I had misplaced the recipe, or accidentally thrown it away, and could not, for the life of me, find it. So I just winged it – I remembered the basic ingredients and threw it all together for dinner.
While we were eating, my mom, mother-in-law and aunt all asked if the recipe was on the blog because they loved it and wanted to write it down. I told them it wasn’t on there and I didn’t even measure anything! So, a few weeks later, I made it again, measuring everything out, so I could share it with them (and you!). I made it while my husband was outside washing our cars; when he came in I told him it was in the fridge, that I had re-made it to share on the blog. He didn’t know that I hadn’t photographed it yet, and polished it off before I had a chance.
Needless to say, this has become a REALLY popular recipe with my family! I made it a third time a couple of weeks ago, measured and photographed, and here it is, finally!
The original recipe in Taste of Home (which I found in the black hole that has become my side of the office weeks later) called for a combination of green and red grapes, but I keep a stash of red grapes in the house at all times, never green, so I used all red… It also called for blue cheese, but there are only one or two people in our family who like blue cheese, so I subbed aged cheddar – it still crumbled nicely and has a sharp flavor (you could also use feta!)… And finally, I used sunflower seeds instead of almonds since we’ve been keeping things pretty much nut-free since Joseph’s allergy diagnosis.
As you can see, there is TONS of room for playing around with this recipe to suit your individual tastes or seasonal flavors. It makes a great side dish for a summer picnic, or even to keep in the fridge for a quick and easy lunch!
Four years ago: Banana Split Ice Cream Cake
Five years ago: Lego Batman Birthday Cake
Nine years ago: Breakfast Scones
Fancy Pants Coleslaw
Ingredients
- 16 ounce (453.59 g) bag coleslaw mix
- 3 ounces (85.05 g) aged cheddar cheese, crumbled
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
- ½ cup (67 g) sunflower seeds
- 1 cup (151 g) red seedless grapes, halved
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) black pepper
- 1 cup (250 g) coleslaw dressing
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the coleslaw mix, cheese, bacon, sunflower seeds, grapes and black pepper. Drizzle over the coleslaw dressing and gently toss until all of the ingredients are evenly coated.
- Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day before serving.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
I’ve made this many times over the past few years. We love it! It is a fantastic recipe.
I love all the customization options.
These look amazing. They are definitely saying “eat me now!!!”.
Just wondering if you had ever used fresh green cabbage and your food processor to make slaw? We prefer a finer shred for slaw and thought you may like that also. Nothing beats using real mayo, vinegar and a little sugar to dress it. Love the blog and love seeing Joseph! Thanks for all you share!
Hi Shelby, I’ve done some Asian slaws using fresh purple cabbage. I actually don’t like a really fine shred, so even if I do use fresh cabbage, I typically just slice it finely with a knife.
This looks terrific! I love all the customization options – I am a total blue cheese fan, so I might have to use that, but I also can never say no to some good aged cheddar! Will definitely be trying this soon :)
Sounds so yummy! This recipe will be filed right next to your potato salad recipe. I can always depend on you to provide a reliable, good version of any recipe.
Glad to see the picture of the ingredients sometimes if there is a mystery ingredient we can figure it out with the picture! I didn’t get emails three days in a row and was having BEB withdrawals, I have a huge grin on my face that I got them today. I was worried my name got dropped when you did your updates. Can you tell I am a huge fan? Thanks again for the great site.
Hi Barbara, I apologize for the inconvenience with the email delivery – the service was having some technical issues, which I’m hoping have been permanently resolved.
Why do you not buy green grapes? Personal preference or otherwise?
Total personal preference!
If you were on the fence about the I-Pot 7 in 1, Amazon has it on their Prime Day special for 69.99! Good time to invest. Love your blog!