Ingredients
1.5 lb of chopped meat (can use ground turkey or vegan meat substitute)
1 large onion chopped finely
2-3 garlic cloves
1 medium white potato
2 eggs
1 Large head of green cabbage
1 extra large jar of marinara sauce (Grandma Shirley used Buitoni. Can use Ragu or Trader Joe’s Marinara sauce.)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup brown sugar
salt, pepper, and other seasonings to taste
Directions:
Prepare the cabbage leaves prior to stuffing and rolling
With a small paring knife, make a slice on each of the outer cabbage leaves as close to the cabbage core as possible. Do this all around the core.
In a large pot, boil water. Place the cabbage in the boiling water. The outer leaves that you have sliced near the core will fall off the cabbage into the water. Allow them to sit in the boiling water until they look somewhat wilted.
Remove the leaves onto a plate to drain and cool. Repeat steps 1-3 until the cabbage leaves have been separated from the core and are all wilted.
Prepare the potato-egg mixture
Finely grate the potato and add to a bowl (Can use grating blade in the Cuisinart)
Add lightly beaten eggs to the grated potato – (best if done with mixing blade in Cuisinart)
Add finely chopped onion, garlic and seasonings
Prepare the meat filling
Transfer the potato-egg mixture to a large bowl
Add the meat and stir until the potato-egg mixture is fully incorporated
Fill the cabbage leaves
Start with the largest leaves. Face the rounded outer part of the leaf away from you on a flat surface.
Use an ice cream scoop to scoop up some meat filling and place on leaf about 1/2 inch from the core-edge. Roll the core edge over the meat, fold the left and right side of the leaf over and then roll up the cabbage.
Continue stuffing the leaves from the larger to the smaller until you have used all the meat mixture
Prepare the sauce mixture
Combine the marinara sauce, lemon juice, and brown sugar
Combining and Cooking
Cover the bottom of a large pot or Dutch oven with a layer of sauce
Add a layer of rolled stuffed cabbages
Cover with sauce
Add another layer and cover with sauce
Add rest of sauce mixture to pot
Cook on the stove top for 90 minutes on medium to low heat
It works great to refrigerate in the pot overnight after cooking to allow the flavor to permeate the meat, then reheat in the same pot on low for an hour prior to serving.