Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

This recipe is best made on the weekends when you have a little more time. It takes approximately 1 hour to prepare and another hour to bake. Make a double batch and freeze for later. Make a tall stack of nalesniki, to serve with the dinner. Save the fresh cabbage heart leftover from this recipe for another day. One idea: make shredded cabbage in a lime-cumin vinaigrette.

Ingredients

Tomato Sauce:
1 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, sliced thin
3 c (or one 28-oz can) crushed tomatoes
1 T white wine vinegar
1/2 T sugar
Freshly ground black pepper

Stuffing:
2 T extra-virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, sliced thin
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 T sundried tomato paste
1 T chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 pound lean ground beef or ground beef style veggie ‘meat’
1 small egg
3/4 cups cooked quinoa
Freshly ground salt and black pepper
1 large head green cabbage, about 3 pounds

For the Sauce: Coat a 3-quart saucepan with the oil and place over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and sugar; simmer, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Season with pepper and remove from the heat.

For the Stuffing: Place a skillet over medium heat and coat with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Sauté the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes, until soft. Stir in the tomato paste, parsley, and 1/4 cup of the prepared tomato sauce, mix to incorporate and then take it off the heat. In a large mixing bowl, combine the raw ground beef or fake meat with the egg, the cooked quinoa, and the sautéed onion mixture. Mix the filling together with your hands to combine, season with a generous amount of pepper.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Remove the large, damaged outer leaves from the cabbages. Cut out the core of the cabbage with a sharp knife and carefully pull off several of the leaves, keeping them whole and as undamaged as possible, you’ll need about 7or 8. Blanch the cabbage leaves in the pot of boiling water for 2-5 minutes, or until pliable. Run the leaves under cool water then lay them out to cool. Next, carefully cut out the center vein from the leaves so they will be easier to roll up. Put about 1/2 cup of the filling in the center of a cabbage leaf and starting at what was the stem-end, fold the sides in and roll up the cabbage to enclose the filling. Place the cabbage rolls side by side in rows, seam-side down, in a casserole pan.
Pour the remaining tomato sauce over the cabbage rolls. Bake for 1 hour.

To freeze cabbage rolls: The rolls are best if they're frozen uncooked. Line a large baking pan with plastic wrap. Place the rolls spaced well apart from each other on the prepared baking sheet and freeze. Stack the frozen rolls in plastic freezer bags or containers.

To cook frozen cabbage rolls: Prepare the frozen rolls in the baking pan as you would above. Place the prepared casserole on the lowest rack level, in the oven; turn the oven to 500'F and bake for 30 minutes; then reduce the heat to 425'F and bake for 1 hour.