I grew up eating stuffed cabbage. My grandmom and grandfather on my mom’s side were Polish and came to the United States after WWII. My grandfather died in 1963 when my mom was only two weeks old. My grandmom raised four children on her own and played a large role raising all of her grandchildren as well. She was a WONDERFUL cook. Polish food to me is pure comfort food because it takes me back to being young and spending time with my extended family, especially my grandmom. My grandmom passed away in 2011 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. My grandmom was the kind of cook who never followed a recipe and never measured ingredients. She always just threw things into a bowl and it turned out amazing. Before she passed, my family was able to watch her preparing some of her signature dishes and write down the recipes to the best of their ability. Through this method, we have her Pierogi recipe and her Gołąbki recipe. If you’re not familiar with a gołąbki, it’s a traditional Polish dish consisting of boiled cabbage leaves stuffed with a beef, rice, and onion mixture and topped with tomato sauce. I haven’t had a real gołąbki since becoming a pescetarian, but when I came across this recipe for Vegetarian Stuffed Cabbage, I KNEW I had to give it a shot. These are not my grandmom’s gołąbki, but the flavor and texture is similar enough that it truly hits the spot for me. The filling is made primarily of mushrooms, rice, and onions. This recipe is Crock-Pot recipe, which is amazingly convenient. HOWEVER, it does require a good amount of chopping veggies and boiling/rolling cabbage, so this might be a recipe that’s better suited for a weekend. Prepare it in the morning, spend your Saturday or Sunday doing whatever you please, and have dinner ready to go when ever you get home. I hope you enjoy this Vegetarian Stuffed Cabbage as much as I do!
P.S. All pictures are of pre-cooked cabbage rolls as I ran out of daylight by the time they were finished cooking!
Active Time: 25 minutes Total Time: 6.5-8.5 hours
Serves: 5-6
Ingredients:
1 large head green cabbage
For the Filling: 1 lb baby portobello mushrooms (or white button mushrooms), chopped 1 egg ¾ cup breadcrumbs 1 cup basmati rice, uncooked 3 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 onion (white or yellow), minced 1 teaspoon garlic powder ¼ teaspoon paprika 1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Sauce:
1 tablespoon olive oil 3 cloves garlic, minced 2 cans diced peeled tomatoes, (14.5 oz cans) 2 cans tomato sauce, (14.5 oz cans) 1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Directions:
Take a large stockpot and fill with water, enough to submerge the cabbage whole. Bring to boil. Add the cabbage, and let boil for one minute. Take out with tongs, and gently remove the outer two leaves. Return cabbage to water for another minute, and repeat until you’ve removed all of the cabbage leaves. I yielded 10 good leaves (don’t throw away the cabbage leaves that break, or aren’t big enough. Use them to line the inside of your crock pot). Set aside while you prepare the filling. Grind the mushrooms and onion in a food processor until fine. Add to small bowl and combine the rest of the ingredients. Mix together with your hands, cover and set aside. (You can also chop all of your veggies by hand, it just takes longer and you need to make sure they are very finely minced.) Set aside while you prepare the sauce. Combine all sauce ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Gently stuff the cabbage leaves with the mushroom mixture, roughly ¼ – ½ cup depending on how many leaves you have. Cut off the hard stem at the base of the leaf, this will make it easier to roll up. Start at the middle, roll once, then roll in the sides, then finish rolling. Pack them in as tight as you can, making sure the stuffing won’t get out.
Line the finished rolls in your crock pot in layers. I had about 6 on the first layer, and 4 on the second. After you put in the first layer, completely cover it in the sauce. Then add the second layer, and do the same. Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Serve warm with sauce spooned over the top.
Nutrition Information per serving (2 cabbage rolls):
Calories: 253 Fat: 5g Carbs: 45g Protein: 7g Sodium: 1065mg Sugar: 2g
*Nutrition information is based on the products I used personally in this recipe. Different products may yield slightly different information.
Source: http://www.rivercitysammon.com/2012/07/vegetarian-stuffed-cabbage-slow-cooker.html
