cabbage rolls

About 10 years ago, in culinary school, I was assigned to make cabbage rolls. And I admit, I haven’t made them since then. They’re filled with rice and meet, and then take a little jacuzzi in some tangy tomato sauce. Recently my friend @theblacksunflowergarden posted that she was making them and it got me inspired to make them again. She shared her recipe that includes walnuts as the “meat”. We don’t usually use nuts because of an allergy so did a riff on her recipe with some vegan meat crumbles. Here’s how I made it:

INGREDIENTS

1 large green cabbage (you’ll have some leftover)

1 yellow onion, diced

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups tomato pure

1.5 cups vegan crumbles

1/2 cup cooked rice (I used brown basmati but I like this with white rice too)

1 tbsp grapeseed oil (or whatever kind you like)

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

salt, pepper + optional herbs like dill or parsley

MAKE IT

1. Preheat your oven to 375°

1. Cut the cabbage in half (through the core) and boil in salted water for about 20 minutes. You want it to be soft but not mushy. Flip them over every few minutes so they cook evenly. Drain + cool slightly, then carefully peel off the largest outer leaves. You need about 8-12. Remove the thick ribs of the leaves so they can lay relatively flat.

2. Take the remaining cabbage and remove core. Chop and put in the bottom of a 8x13 baking dish.

3. Heat oil in a saucepan and add your onion. Sauté until it starts to become translucent, then add the garlic and cook until it’s fragrant. Toss half of this mixture into a bowl and add your crumbles, cooked rice, a little salt & pepper plus whatever seasonings you dig.

4. Add tomato puree to the pan with the remaining onion & garlic along with the sugar and vinegar. Simmer with a lid on for about 10 minutes.

5. Pour half of the tomato sauce over the chopped cabbage in your baking dish. Add the other half of the tomato sauce to your rice mixture and stir until it’s well combined.

6. Lay out your first cabbage leaf and add 1/8th of the filling. You can use two leaves if they are small or have holes. fold in the sides around the filling and roll like a little burrito. Repeat with the remaining filling and leaves. Set the rolls in the baking dish, seam side down, on top of the cabbage and sauce.

7. Cover with foil, put on a baking sheet in case of spillage, and cook for about 40 minutes. Uncover and broil for another 5 minutes.

8. Serve & enjoy!