Cabbage Rolls with Spanish Rice
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a casserole dish.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Remove the core from the middle of the cabbage and discard. Place the cabbage in the boiling water. Cook for 5 minutes or until the leaves have softened. Use a wooden spoon to gently remove the outer leaves from the cabbage. Continue until you have removed all the leaves or as many as you need (depending on how much Spanish Rice you have left over). Drain the leaves and dry on paper towels.
Heat the oil in a frying pan. Add the Spanish Rice and heat through.
Lay out a cabbage leaf flat. Place ¼ to⅔ cup of Spanish Rice in the center of the leaf. Fold over the right side of the leaf, then the bottom, then the left side, and roll up the cabbage leaf. Fasten with a toothpick if desired.
Place the rolls in the prepared casserole dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 45 minutes or until heated through.
Preparing Cabbage Leaves for Cabbage Rolls
Want an easier alternative to softening cabbage leaves in boiling water? The day before you plan to make the cabbage rolls, place the head of cabbage in the freezer. The next morning, take the cabbage out of the freezer to thaw. By the time you return home from classes that afternoon, the leaves will be easy to peel off the thawed cabbage. Pat dry with paper towels to remove excess water before using.
Yields 6–8 cabbage rolls
Boiling the cabbage before removing the leaves makes it much easier to keep them whole. This recipe can easily be adapted to make more or fewer cabbage rolls, depending on how much Spanish Rice you have left over.
