Cold Plate (Newfoundland)

canadian-newfoundland-coldplate A traditional post Christmas favourite. A Newfoundland cold plate is something everyone in the province will know. In such, every family will have their own variations of essential additions to their particular version. A cold plate can also be the theme for a coordinated potluck supper around the Holidays. Each person can be delegated to bring a particular cold sliced meat or a selected salad. It’s also a terrific buffet idea for parties or open houses during the Holidays which is how we most often serve it. Looking clockwise from the cranberry sauce at the top of the plate, you will see coleslaw, picked beet potato salad, mustard potato salad, egg and apple potato salad and a simple pasta salad. The pasta salad is shown using farfalle pasta, though it is mor commonly made with macaroni. Continuing past the pasta salad is leftover roast beef, ham and leftover turkey. Between the turkey and cranberry sauce is Traditional Newfoundland Dressing. This is a breadcrumb, onion and summer savoury based stuffing for poultry which is universally used in Newfoundland.

Coleslaw:
1 cup salad dressing
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 pinch sea salt
4 cups cabbage, shredded
1 cup carrot, grated

Beet Potato Salad:
6 cups potato, plain mashed
1 cup salad dressing
1 rounded Tbsp. sugar
4 Tbsp. picked beet juice
1 cup picked beets, finely diced

Mustard Potato Salad:
6 cups potato, plain mashed
1 cup salad dressing, such as Miracle Whip
1 rounded Tbsp. sugar
⅓ cup plain yellow mustard

Egg and Apple Potato Salad:
6 cups potato, cooked, diced or cut in small chunks
1 cup salad dressing
1 large Granny Smith Apple, diced or cut in small chunks
½ tsp. black pepper, coarsely ground
3 eggs, hard-boiled, roughly chopped
1 pinch sea salt

Macaroni Salad:
6 cups macaroni, cooked, rinsed in cold water, well drained
1 cup salad dressing
1 small carrot, finely grated
¼ cup sweet pickle relish
1 pinch sea salt
½ tsp. black pepper, coarsely ground
4 eggs, hard-boiled, roughly chopped

Pineapple Corn Salad:
3 cups frozen sweet corn
1 cup fresh golden pineapple, diced
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
½ cup salad dressing

Prepare the Coleslaw:
Mix together the salad dressing, vegetable oil, sugar, vinegar and salt. Let sit 5 minutes, then stir again. Toss with the carrot and cabbage. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Note: One variation I have seen on this basic recipe is to substitute the carrot for well drained crushed pineapple to make Pineapple Coleslaw.

Prepare the Beet Potato Salad, Mustard Potato Salad, Egg and Apple Potato Salad or Macaroni Salad:
Simply mix together all of the ingredients until very well combined. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Prepare the Pineapple Corn Salad:
Blanch the frozen corn in salted boiling water for 2-3 minutes. Drain well and plunge into cold water. Drain for 5 minutes to get rid of the excess water. Toss the drained corn with all of the other ingredients until well combined. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Makes 16.

Cook’s Notes:

Salad Dressing: Most potato and pasta salads call for salad dressing which is the jarred, spoonable type dressing, like Kraft Miracle Whip which looks much like mayonnaise. If you want to make a substitute using mayonnaise, simply mix together 1 cup mayonnaise with 2 Tbsp. of apple cider vinegar, 1 rounded Tbsp. of white sugar and a dash of paprika. Stir well and let stand for 5 minutes before stirring again and using in the recipe.
A cold plate is generally a make-ahead meal. Generally all of the salads are made a day in advance so that they are well chilled but a few hours refrigeration is will do.