Cabbage 'Un'rolls

Cabbage rolls are a big hit in my house. The only thing is, with two kids and a baby, it's hard to find the time to prepare them. I was excited when I came across a recipe on facebook for what I have renamed "cabbage UNrolls". I tweaked the recipe, because I can't ever follow a recipe to the T, I just can't. The original recipe called for tomato sauce, of which I had none, and it left out the rice. Here's my version of the recipe.

 

 

1lb lean ground beef

1/2 a medium cabbage

1 medium onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lg can diced tomatoes

1/2 jar original ragu

1/2 small can of tomato paste

Salt and pepper

Garlic powder

2 cups minute rice, prepared according to box directions

 

In large frying pan, cook ground beef until almost brown. Add onions and garlic and cook until onions are translucent and meat is browned.

 

(At this point I transferred the meat/onion/garlic mixture to a pot, since I don't have a big enough frying pan. Obviously if you have one large enough, you won't need to)

 

To meat mixture, add the can of diced tomatoes, ragu, tomato paste, and cabbage. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and garlic powder. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 30 minutes or until cabbage is soft.

 

While everything is simmering, in a separate pot, prepare minute rice according to box directions. When your cabbage is as soft as you like, add rice to the big pot. Stir it up, and adjust seasonings if necessary.

 

How much easier is that? The entire time it was cooking the kids were coming in and out of the kitchen going "I can't wait for dinner, it smells SO good in here!". It made enough for all four of us to have seconds, plus a container for Mike to take to work today. I'll definitely be making this one again soon!