Vegetarian Spotlight: Mushroom Stuffed Cabbage Rolls


((Button Mushrooms wrapped in cabbage. Yummy! This Stuffed Cabbage recipe is vegetarian for all my non-meat-eating friends. The recipe does use some bread crumbs, and it is served with Sour Cream, so it’s not vegan. If you are Vegan, you can use your favourite vegan breadcrumb brand! To add a bit a tang in place of the Sour Cream, you can sprinkle a bit of yummy balsamic vinegar.)

**Easy Difficulty**
Serves 2 to 3


5 to 6 large Cabbage leaves
6 medium sized Red Tomatoes (approx. 1 lbs / 0.5 kg), quartered, seeds removed
¼ of a Cauliflower (approx. 2 cups / 240 g), chopped
1 red bell pepper (approx. 1 cup / 180 g), quartered
½ of a Red Onion (approx. 1 ½ cup / 240 g), quartered
16 oz / 450 g Button Mushrooms (I used a combination of brown and white), sliced
1 cup / 200 g Bread Crumbs
5 cloves of garlic (approx. 2 Tbsp) (use less if you don’t like garlic), minced
1 Bay Leaf
1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
3 Peppercorns
2 cloves
1 tsp Coriander Seeds
2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
1 tsp Ground Cumin
1 Tbsp Fresh Oregano, minced
2 Tbsp Fresh Chives, minced
2 Tbsp Fresh Thyme, minced
Salt to Taste
Sour Cream to Taste

1.) Begin by blanching the Cabbage Leaves and Cauliflower. Bring a pot of water to a boil, and submerge the cabbage leaves into the hot water for 30 seconds. Remove Cabbage from boiling water, and then add in the Cauliflower. Boil the Cauliflower for 5 min, or until the cauliflower is very soft. Cool all blanched vegetables in a bowl of ice water. Set aside

2.)Line an oven pan with aluminium foil, and place the Tomatoes, Onions, Red Bell Peppers, and Garlic on top of the pan. Drizzle with olive oil, and toss. Place the oven tray into an oven pre-heated at 375 degrees F. / 190 degrees C. Roast Tomatoes for 40 minutes, then turn temperature up to 400 degrees F. / 205 degrees C. for an additional 20 mins or until vegetables have a light char. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

3.) Place the cooled roasted vegetables into a food processor, or you can use a blender. Blitz the vegetables while adding a bit of water a little at the time to desired consistency. Then transfer sauce to a medium pot to simmer on low heat. Add in Balsamic vinegar, Oregano, Chives, and Thyme to the sauce, and let simmer for 20 min. Add Salt to Taste. Set aside when done.

4.) While Tomato sauce simmers, saute the Mushrooms with some olive oil in a pan set on Medium High heat. Brown the Mushrooms until they are tender and most of the moisture is drawn out of the Mushrooms. Set aside to cool.

5.) Next, Toast the Coriander Seeds, Bay Leaf, Cloves, and Pepper Flakes in a small pan set at Medium heat. Lightly brown the spices then place into a spice grinder or use a mortar and pestle. Add in Cumin, and grind the spices into a powder.

6.) In a large bowl, mix Mushrooms, toasted spices, cauliflower , and breadcrumbs together to make a stuffing. Be sure to break up the cauliflower. Add Salt to Taste. Stuff each of the Cabbage Leaves with the vegetarian stuffing and roll the cabbage. Place the cabbage rolls side by side, seam side down in a casserole dish and cover with the Tomato Sauce.

7.) In a 325 degree F. / 160 degree C. oven, place the casserole dish into the oven, and cook for 15 to 20 min. to warm all the way through. Serve with a dollop of sour cream, and Enjoy!


Extra Info and substitutions:
I really like Garlic. If you don’t really like garlic you can half the amount of Garlic in the recipe. I find for Vegetarian dishes, garlic and mushrooms together brings that nice umami flavours in that is so satisfying. If you are completely Vegan, you can choose a brand of breadcrumbs that you prefer, and omit the sour cream all together. A sprinkle of Balsamic vinegar does the trick nicely to add a bit of tang to the dish that Sour Cream would have brought.

There are a lot of little steps to this recipe, and it can get tedious, but they are all small steps you can take one at the time if you find yourself not good at multi-tasking. This recipe is nice for those who enjoy some time in the kitchen working with your hands. I find this is also a nice couple’s recipe because you can work together with most steps. Happy Eating!

Extra Photos:
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/16462260/
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/16462387/