Stuffed Cabbage with Rice Pilaf

The first dish I ever made for Jim after we were married was stuffed cabbage.  I had never cooked a thing before getting married.  My maid of honor asked me if I could boil water.  My mother did not cook either.  But I had received a cookbook for a present and as I was looking through it I saw this recipe for stuffed cabbage.  Once my father and I went down to visit his mother without my mother along.  When any of her daughter-in-laws were visiting, my Grandmother played Queen and they had to fix the meals.  We either went out or down the street to Dad’s best friend’s house.  That night she made for us stuffed cabbage.  I thought it was the most wonderful dish I had ever tasted.  Back to my first cooking experience, you can’t imagine the effort that went into it that day in the tiny little kitchen in married housing at Michigan State.  Jim sat down to dinner and I put my master piece on the table.  He said, “I used to throw up over this.”  I said fine, you cook, you make what you like.  When I cook, we have what I like.  He has never uttered a negative word since. 

Thanksgiving my brother and sister-in-law gifted me with the new Rachael Ray Cookbook.  There under January 8^th is Stuffed Cabbage with Rice Pilaf.  It is still after all these years of cooking labor intensive.  You can still plan on spending the day cooking and using about every pot in the kitchen.  However, having gained a little wisdom over the years, I first made Ida Gardner’s brownies from Foolpoof. 

Ingredients:  (Serves 4)

1 small head Savoy cabbage

Salt and pepper

2 T butter

1/3 C Orzo

1 C long-grain rice

4 C chicken stock

3 T dried currants

3 T EVOO

1 # meat loaf mix (ground beef, pork and veal combined) Meatloaf mix here does not contain the veal, so I bought them all separately and combined what I needed for the 1#.  The rest, I froze for future meatloaf.

2 T chopped fresh sage

1/8 t freshly grated nutmeg

1 onion, finely chopped

2 large cloves garlic, graded or finely chopped

¼ # pancetta, finely diced

1 fresh bay leaf (I used dried)

1 (14oz) can diced or crushed tomatoes

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce

3 T pine nuts, toasted

¼ C flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped

2/3 to ¾ C Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1 large egg, lightly beaten

Directions:

1.       Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Separate 12 large leaves of cabbage.  Salt the water, boil the leaves for 2-3 minutes, drain and cool in a single layer on kitchen towels.  (Depending on the size of your head you may want to cook a few more.  This filling recipe is large and some of the smaller leaves were hard to roll and contain the filling.)

2.       From the remaining uncooked cabbage, finely chop about 1 C and set aside.

3.       In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat.  When the butter foams, add the orzo.  Toss the pasta until very fragrant, deeply brown, and nutty. 

4.       Stir in the rice and add 2 ½ C chicken stock and the currants.

5.       Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the rice is tender, about 18 minutes.  Cool and set the pilaf aside.  (This actually worked, the rice was perfect)

6.       In a large skillet, heat 1 T of the EVOO over medium heat.  When the oil is hot, add the ground meat, breaking it up into crumbles as it browns.  Add the sage and season with the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. 

7.       Add half the onion, the reserved chopped cabbage, and 2/3 of the garlic, and cook 5-6 minutes.

8.       Adjust the seasoning to taste.  Remove from the heat. 

9.       In a saucepan, heat the remaining 2 T EVOO over medium to medium-high heat.  Add the pancetta and render for 2-3 minutes. 

10.   Add the remaining onion and the bay leaf, and cook the onion 5-6 minutes. 

11.   Add the remaining 1 ½ C chicken stock, the canned tomatoes, and tomato sauce, and season with salt and pepper.  (She never says what to do with the last third of garlic, but I put it in the sauce.)Simmer for 20 minutes. 

12.   Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

13.   In a large bowl. Combine the rice pilaf, the cooked meat, ½ C of the tomato sauch, the pine nuts, parsley, Parm, and egg. 

14.   Wrap and roll each leaf of cabbage burrito-style by placing a mound of filling in a log shape to one edge of each leaf, tuck in the sides, and roll the stuffed cabbage into logs.

15.   Arrange the stuffed cabbage logs in a 9”x 12” baking dish in a single layer and top with the rest of the tomato sauce.

16.   Bake until hot and bubbling, about 45 minutes. 

This is without a doubt the best stuffed cabbage I have ever tasted.  Jim uttered the word good, as I think he thought it was expected, but he did eat seconds.