Stuffed Cabbages

today i am making stuffed cabbages.  we were talking about them recently and i really got into the mood.
i bought nice fresh cabbages at the farmers market.  normally, one would go to steelton, pa. and purchase
heads of cabbage that have been soaked in a brine......however, today i am just using the regular cabbages.

i used to boil the whole heads of cabbage til the leaves were soft and pliable.  then someone told me about
microwaving the outer leaves and smaller heads so that is what i have been doing and i find it makes things
move right along.

after microwaving the leaves, i trim the center rib so it will lay flat and be really pliable.

the filling is seasoned ground beef (salt and pepper) and a small amount of uncooked rice.  to one lb.
of ground beef i use about 1/2 c. of uncooked long grain rice.

laying the cabbage leaf flat on the board, i put a small amount of beef at the top middle of the leaf, about
1/4 cup.  (if the leaf is very large, you might want to put more meat filling in).

then turn the left and right sides in and roll up.  you should have a nice firm little packet.

i take the tough outer leaves of the cabbage head and line my pot. i put a little bit of water over these leaves. then i put some sauerkrout on the bottom of the pan over the leaves.  then i start stacking my packets and putting more sauerkrout on top of each layer of packets.  

then i put some tomato sauce over all the packets and the sauerkrout and bring to a boil.  then i turn the

heat down and cook for several hours.....til the cabbage is nice and soft and the sauerkrout is really cooked.

typically, these cabbages are served with mashed potatoes.  it really is sort of a winter item but, as i said,

after we were talking about them i just had to make them.  i will be putting these in freezer bags and freezing

them for the fall/winter.  all i will have to do is defrost and heat up!