Cabbage rolls
from an undated SJ Mercury News clipping.
This is a very old-fashioned very basic and simple recipe for a real winter comfort food. Rolls are better the next day and can be frozen. They suggest serving the rolls over wide egg noodles. Note that although the recipe calls for 2 heads of cabbage, you can easily halve it (or wait until we get another head of cabbage, probably next week!). Also it doesn't matter if you use red or green cabbage.
2 heads cabbage
2 lbs. ground beef
1 onion, grated
1 C cold, cooked rice
1 tsp. salt
Sauce
½ C dark brown sugar
½ C raisins
Juice of one lemon
1 28-oz can chopped tomatoes, with juice [recipe says 'Italian-style tomatoes' which generally have seasoning like basil and such, so if you use plain tomatoes, feel free to include a little Italian-type seasonings of your choice]
Cut core from cabbage heads** and boil in a large deep pot of water for about 5 minutes [this loosens the leaves so they can be removed from the head]. Mix together beef, onion, rice and salt. Pull off cabbage leaves, and place [a scoop of; maybe ¼ C or so?] in individual leaves, folding like an envelope. [I remember making these in Home-Ec in Jr. High School!! ;-) Takes me back.] Place rolls on a layer of chopped cabbage in a large pot. Spread chopped cabbage on top.
**Since further on in the process it talks about chopped cabbage as well, I'd suggest boiling the heads to remove the big outer leaves, and then when they start getting small, stop peeling leaves and use the inner part of the head for the chopped part!
Mix brown sugar, raisins, lemon juice and tomatoes and pour over everything. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 3 hours. Baste with juices every hour, being careful not to stir.
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