Shelly's Recipe

STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS

Category: Ground

2 medium-size cabbages, cored
2 pounds ground round or chuck
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped ( 1/2-inch pieces), about 1 cup
1 cup raw long-grain white rice (not converted rice)
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons dried parsley flakes
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
Salt and ground black pepper
1 pound sauerkraut, from a bag, drained and rinsed
28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 cups tomato juice

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat and add a cabbage. Reduce heat slightly and blanch cabbage, turning a few times, about 5 minutes, until leaves begin loosening and look translucent. With cabbage in water, use long-handled fork or tongs to pull off leaves as they loosen. Remove what's left of cabbage and repeat with other cabbage. Don't discard inner leaves or broken leaves. Reserve water. Let cabbage cool.

In large bowl or tub, put ground beef, onion, celery, rice, eggs, parsley flakes, garlic salt, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Mix well with hands, adding 1/4 cup water if mixture feels "tight."

With paring knife, trim thick cores from outer sides of cabbage leaves. Coarsely chop smaller leaves and cabbage bits; strew half in bottom of an 18-by-10-by-3-inch heavy-duty foil roasting pan.

Pour reserved cabbage water over sauerkraut in a colander to rinse more, if you like. Drain well. Strew half the kraut over cabbage in pan. Pour in half the crushed tomatoes and 1 cup tomato juice. Season with salt and pepper; mix well.

For rolls, shape about 1/4 cup meat into a sausage (not too tight) for a large leaf, less for a smaller leaf. Use your hand as a cup to shape rolls, with curved side of leaf facing her palm and core end toward her wrist. Put filling on the bottom of the leaf, and folds the bottom over the filling, pressing in and then fold in the sides, pressing and rolling, but not too tight, not worrying if a leaf breaks. Filled leaves are placed seam-side down in pan, in even rows, 5 or 6 across, making 25 to 28 rolls.

Strew remaining chopped cabbage (chop any unused leaves) and sauerkraut over the rolls. Top with remaining crushed tomatoes and tomato juice. Salt and pepper generously. Rinse crushed tomato can with about 1/2 can water. Pour water over top; don't worry about mixing it.

Cover pan tightly with foil. Bake in 325-degree oven 1 hour. Check after 30 minutes to be sure it's bubbling. If not, turn oven to 350 degrees. After 1 hour, reduce temperature to 250 degrees. Bake 1 to 1 1/2 hours longer, until rolls are tender and meat and rice fully cooked (cut open a roll to check).

Serves 8 to 10.