Shapiro's Stuffed Cabbage

Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 2 heads cabbage
• 3 slices bread
• 1/3 cup red wine
• 1 lb ground chuck
• 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
• 1 celery rib, finely chopped
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 cup cooked rice
• 1/4 cup tomato juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 cups stewed tomatoes
• 1/2 cup tomato puree
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 lemon, juice of
• 6 gingersnap cookies
• 1/2 cup golden raisin

Recipe

• 1 core cabbage and blanch in a large pot of boiling water until leaves begin to loosen.
• 2 soak bread in red wine.
• 3 combine ground chuck, onion, celery and egg; mix in wet bread (bare hands are the best tools for this.
• 4 add tomato juice, rice, salt and pepper.
• 5 carefully peel off cabbage leaves and roll each around 1 to 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture, tucking in the sides to hold it together.
• 6 repeat until all the beef is wrapped. there should be 18 to 20 packets.
• 7 chop remaining cabbage leaves and reserve 4 cups.
• 8 prepare sauce: in a large stock pot heat stewed tomatoes, puree, water, brown sugar and lemon juice. crumble gingersnaps and stir into mixture.
• 9 stir in raisins and chopped cabbage leaves. (taste at this point and add more salt and pepper if necessary).
• 10 carefully add stuffed cabbage packets to sauce.
• 11 cover and cook over medium-low heat for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
• 12 check occasionally and add 1/4 to 1/2 cup tomato juice to sauce if it seems to be drying out.