Parenting Under the Stars

I rarely go exactly by a recipe, which is how I end up creating new things our family likes but thought I would share this cabbage roll recipe with you. Cabbage is a good source of vitamin C, K, B6, calcium and fiber.

I began with Cabbage Rolls II, thanks to Dasha on All Recipes. I could have simply thrown some rice and meat together but wanted an idea about proportions.

I haven’t made these in ages but the kids went nuts. It’s probably partially because I have been feeding them the same old things for weeks and a change is as good as a rest. I boiled the cabbage for a couple minutes and the first few leaves came off fine but underneath they were stiff so had to cook them again.

The filling

• I used about a pound and a half of ground pork because that’s what I happened to have but beef would work.
• For the rice I used two cups of cooked leftover curried basmati rice that had peas in it.
• I small chopped onion because I add onion to just about everything.
• 1 clove of minced garlic
• 2 eggs helped hold it all together. (Mix it all together like you would meatloaf)

If the leaves are soft enough they roll up easily. I put about a quarter cup of filling in each and wrapped it the same way you would a burrito. I did not add the milk that Dasha had in her recipe, but if you want a juicier filling, go for it.

The sauce

• For the sauce, I used a large can of tomato paste with two cans of water, two tablespoons of lemon juice and two teaspoons of sugar. A bit of salt and pepper too.

After all the cabbage rolls were filed in the roasting pan I poured the sauce on top and cooked them for a little over two hours in the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you’re taking off for the day, do like Dasha and use the slow cooker on low for eight or nine hours.

Vegetarian Cabbage Rolls

Try carrots, onions, celery, zucchini, peppers, mushrooms, peas or any combination of these or others in place of the meat and mix with rice. Here’s a vegetarian cabbage roll recipe video that sounds delicious. Maria J. Ronquillo uses crumbled veggie burgers along with the veggies and brown rice. Maybe next time.