Cabbage Rolls

I realize cabbage isn't for everyone but you should really give this recipe a try. It may just change your view of cabbage. The meat and rice is the most overpowering taste in this dish so just forget you're eating something good for you! You'll need to preheat your oven to 350...

1 medium head of cabbage

1 lb uncooked ground pork sausage

1 can of tomato sauce

1 small onion, chopped

1 cup of long grain rice (I used a mixture of white, brown and wild)

1 tbsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp dill weed

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1 can diced tomatoes (I used the Hunt's brand that has celery and onion in with it)

1/2 tsp sugar

Cook the cabbage in boiling water until outer leaves can be pulled away easily. In a bowl, combine pork, 1/2 cup of tomato sauce, onion, rice, parsley, salt, dill weed and cayenne. Mix it together really well. Cut out the vein from the cabbage leaves. It will make a v-shape. Put a tablespoon or so of meat mixture into the leaf and fold it up. Do this until leaves/meat is gone. Put any leftover cabbage as a layer on the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan. Combine the tomatoes, sugar and remaining tomato sauce and pour it over the rolls. Cover and bake for 1.5 hours or until cabbage rolls are tender and meat/rice is fully cooked.

Delicious! It takes a little effort but it's worth it and it's an entire, filling meal in a pan. Enjoy! 

Mardi Gras Fried Cabbage

I dubbed this dish Mardis Gras Fried Cabbage because the bright colors make it look like a party in a pan. I liked using the red cabbage instead of the regular green cabbage because it didn't wilt completely so there was still some crunch to each bite. It made for a more enjoyable texture in my opinion. 

You'll need:

1 package smoked turkey sausage, chopped

1/2 red cabbage, chopped

1/2 white onion, chopped

4-5 baby Bella mushrooms, chopped

2 tbsp minced garlic

2 tbsp fat (can be oil, bacon grease, lard...it's up to you!)

2 tbsp Nature's Seasons (seasoning)

Salt and Pepper to taste 

Melt your fat source in a skillet (I used cast iron) and then add your cabbage, onion, mushroom and garlic to sauté. In another skillet brown your sausage. After the veggies have fried for about 25-30 minutes, season them and add the sausage to the skillet and cook together for another 5-10 minutes. 

This turned out to be surprisingly filling and delicious. It was my first experience with fried cabbage and definitely won't be my last. Enjoy! 

Crockpot Spicy Cabbage Soup

Cabbage soup. I had never attempted to make cabbage soup. I had never eaten cabbage soup. But, this morning cabbage soup sounded like a great idea. I put the following ingredients into the crockpot...

1/2 head of cabbage, chopped

1 can of crushed tomatoes with green pepper, onion and celery 

3 cups beef broth 

1 cup matchstick carrots

2 stalks celery, chopped

1-2 tsp crushed red pepper (depending on how spicy you like it)

2 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp Mrs. Dash table blend seasoning

Salt & pepper to taste

Cook on low for 6-8 hours and then brown 1 pack of chopped smoked turkey sausage and 1/2 cup of chopped onions in a skillet with 1 tbsp of olive oil and add it to the crockpot as well and let simmer for another 15-30 minutes. I could only hope that these 12 ingredients would come together and produce cabbage soup at the end of the day. 

Well, I'm happy to report that this was a major success! Probably right up there in my top 3-5 favorite recipes. It's perfect for a cold fall or winter day and it's minimal effort to create a delicious meal. Enjoy!