There are many forking ways to make cabbage rolls. I thought today I’d make them very reasonably light and healthy. I used 93% lean beef and instead of rice I used kamut. I used next to no oil at all and no butter. Whole wheat panko was also used instead of bread crumbs. Instead of sautéing the onions I left them raw so the liquid would come out in the lean meat to help keep it moist and add flavor to the beef instead of just being onions that taste good.
Cabbage rolls are suppose to be a little sweet and sour and for a little sweet I used Hot and sweet cherry peppers in the meat and for a little sweet and sour in the sauce my secret ingredient was date syrup that’s also sweet and a little sour. My recipe isn’t traditional but it is close to the way that I think cabbage rolls should taste like.
Set your oven to 350 degrees. This recipe makes 25 cabbage rolls with 4 oz. portion of meat filling (you can freeze them for an instant meal)
Ingredients
2 Cabbage Heads- (one at a time Microwave with a little water in a covered bowl for about 9 minutes while you work on your meat filling)
3.5 lbs of 93% lean ground beef
4 whole eggs beaten
2 Cups of raw chopped onion (fine chop)
1 shredded carrot
2 cups cooked kamut
10 hot and sweet jarred cherry peppers (fine chopped)
1 cup whole wheat panko
2 teaspoons thyme
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 Tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
3 cups vegetable broth
For the sauce….
2-28oz. cans tomatoes (I used whole pears pealed and blended but crushed would be fine)
4 cups more vegetable broth
about 3/4 cup date syrup
Directions
Combine beef, eggs, onion, carrot, kamut, cherry peppers, panko, thyme, paprika, salt, black and cayenne peppers.
Your cabbage heads are cool enough for you to handle now.
Insert a knife by the core and cut the core out so you can pull off leaves as you need them. I used about 3/4 of each cabbage and found the center leaves just too small. I kept them for a latter use as a vegetable or for soup.
Now measure out 4 oz. of your meat mixture. You will need a lightly sprayed baking pan to roast your cabbage rolls.
Place the meat mixture about two thirds down and near the thick stem of leaf.
Roll up the bottom.
Roll up the sides.
Roll up till your finished like a burrito. Keep going and loading up your pans till your out of meat.
Now you want to pour vegetable broth over the rolls. Cover the pan with foil and roast 1/2 hour at 350 degrees. You forking need to use a deeper pan than I did or you will have to cook your extra sauce on the side.
Now make your sauce.
I just blended up 2-28oz. cans of tomatoes with about 4 cups of vegetable broth and about 3/4 cup of date syrup. This simple sauce has a similar flavor to what I remember on cabbage rolls.
After a 1/2 hour I pull out the cabbage rolls and drain the liquid. I pour the tomato sauce on the cabbage rolls and cover again with foil and roast another 1/2 hour.
The next day these cabbage rolls were awesome!
Now you have Cabbage Rolls.
Forking Good!
