Cabbage Roll Casserole
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. ground beef (or other ground meat of choice)
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cans (15 oz. each) crushed tomatoes, divided (or pureed fresh tomatoes)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon dill weed
- 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 cups cooked rice
- 4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
- 1 medium head cabbage (2 lbs.), shredded
- 1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (or other cheese of choice)
- Coarsely ground pepper, optional
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375°. In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat, crumbling beef, until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Drain. Stir in 1 can tomato sauce and next 6 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, 5 minutes. Stir in rice and bacon; remove from heat.
- Layer a third of the cabbage in a greased 13×9-in. baking dish. Top with half the meat mixture. Repeat layers; top with remaining cabbage. Pour remaining tomato sauce over top.
- Cover and bake 45 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with cheese. Bake until cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. If desired, sprinkle with coarsely ground pepper. Makes 12 servings.
TEST KITCHEN TIP: Try serving with a splash of red wine or cider vinegar.
(In my regular recipe I add vinegar to the tomato sauce. I think you could do that here as well. My recipe also uses golden raisins in the sauce which, along with the vinegar gives a sweet & sour tang to it that is a good counterpoint to the richness of the filling.)
Check our recipe archive for more crazy-good cabbage recipes.
