Stuffed cabbage loaf or cake recipe, a delicious alternative to cabbage rolls, blanched cabbage leaves are layered with spiced ground beef, flavorful and comforting!
Although this dish is made of very simple ingredients, I find that it is quite spectacular, so delicious and flavorful. I think it is the ultimate comfort food, perfectly suited for cold winter days.
To make this dish, you need to blanch the cabbage leaves until they are pliable, then it is a matter of layering like you would for lasagna. I also blanched a few carrots for more flavoring.
One advantage of making stuffed cabbage is that it freezes well, I sliced my pie and froze the leftover slices in freezer bags, and when needed, you can just re-heat them without thawing for your weekday dinners, very handy and even more delicious.
Over the years, I have become a great fan of cabbage, it is quickly prepared and cooked. Also it mixes well with other vegetables, I very much like to mix it with carrots and/or peppers, it makes awesome broths that I freeze in 1/2 cup portions into freezer bags and use for my sauces, plus it is excellent for the health.
Vegetables:
1 large head savoy cabbage, leaves separated, large stems removed
4 carrots, peeled, split lengthwise
Beef:
18 oz. (500 g) ground beef
1 egg, beaten
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp. white wine
3 slices of white bread, dipped in milk
1 tbsp. dry herbs, parsley, basil, thyme, etc.
Salt, pepper and paprika to taste
Some olive oil
Into a large pan, bring water to boil on medium high heat, add the cabbage leaves and blanch them for about 4 minutes until they are pliable, remove from water and drain
Blanch carrots for about 4 minutes, remove from water and drain
Into a large bowl, add the ground beef, egg, minced garlic cloves, herbs, salt, pepper and paprika, chop the small leaves from the heart of the cabbage and add them, press the bread into your hands to remove the milk, crush it and add to the ground beef, mix all the ingredients until well incorporated
To taste, cook a little bit of the mixture into microwave and adjust seasoning
Preheat your oven to 390°F (200°C)
Lightly spray a bread mold with cooking spray, line bottom and sides of mold with the largest and prettiest cabbage leaves, letting them hang over the edges of mold of about 6 inches (15 cm)
Add a layer of ground meat mixture (we are going to add 4 layers of meat)
Cover with a layer of cabbage leaves
Again, a layer of ground meat mixture and a layer of cabbage
Arrange carrots in the center of pie, then proceed layering meat and cabbage leaves for two more layers
Cover the last layer with cabbage leaves and fold the leaves hanging on sides over the top
Into the oven for about 50 to 60 minutes
Caution: The pie will release a lot of water whilst cooking, get rid of the water before unmolding it! Then place a cooling rack over a baking pan, unmold the pie and drain it
Here I served this pie with a sauce made of mayonnaise, a little ketchup and lots of herbs
Hello! All photos and content are my property. Please do not use my photos without prior written permission. If you wish to republish this recipe, please rewrite the recipe in your own unique words and link back to Stuffed Cabbage Loaf