Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 1 1/2 s water
- 1 large head, green cabbage, very outer leaves discarded, core removed
- 1 (4 oz.) pkg. soy ground beef, or use lean ground beef or turkey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes in juice
- 1/4 apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 light brown sugar
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper spice
Directions
Combine rice and water in small saucepan and bring to boil. Lower to simmer and cook 10 minutes until half cooked. Rice will continue to cook in sauce.
Bring large pot of water to boil for blanching cabbage leaves. Have large bowl filled with ice and water next to stove for cooling and ?shocking? cabbage leaves. This makes them soft enough to layer. When water boils, add whole head of cabbage and blanch one minute until outer leaves fall off. Using tongs, place these leaves in ice water to cool and repeat process until most all outer green leaves come off. Will end up with about 15 to 18 leaves to layer depending on size of head. Cool and chop remaining heart of cabbage into small pieces and reserve.
Prepare soy ground beef according to package directions. Heat oil in large saute pan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, saute 1 minute until softened. Add hydrated soy ground beef and Italian seasoning and stir in well. Add partially cooked rice. Cook 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add remaining ingredients; diced tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, thyme, bay leaves and lemon pepper. Remove bay leaves, thyme sprigs and chopped cabbage. Bring to boil and simmer 15 minutes to form thick sauce. Preheat oven to 375°.
In large 2 1/2 quart baking dish, layer blanched cabbage and soy mixture repeating layers until all ingredients are used. End with soy mixture on surface. Bake 15 to 20 minutes until heated through and serve.
As used in ?Simply Soy? by the
Iowa Soybean Promotion Board
This recipe is courtesy of syndicated columnist, cookbook author and chef, Steve Petusevsky. Steve is chef/owner of Chef Steve?s Carried Away Cuisine in Weston, Florida, which furnishes fresh, natural, made from scratch dishes to go.
