Savoy Cabbage Soup with Sausage and Arborio Rice

Cabbage. I never liked the horrid stuff my mother plunked into the corned beef pot. She used common cabbage, but there are dozens of cabbages suited to different purposes. Cabbage is good for you, and as we all know, that doesn't mean it has to taste (or smell) bad.

My mother-in-law whipped up delicious cabbage rolls, one of many Syrian dishes made by stuffing various vegetables with ground lamb, rice, and Middle Eastern spices. A while ago, Dawn shared a wonderful stuffed cabbage recipe here on Kitchen Excursions (Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage -Töltött Káposzta).

I first tried Savoy cabbage in Ireland. Shredded and cooked in cream and Irish bacon, it served as a bed for a roasted meat I can't recall, the cabbage was so good. Savoy cabbage is milder than common cabbage. Prettier too, with its curly leaves.

I've made this Savoy Cabbage Soup, my version of a classic Italian dish, several times. It's a perfect autumn/winter dish. Delizioso!

SAVOY CABBAGE SOUP WITH SAUSAGE AND ARBORIO RICE

32 oz. fat free beef broth
32 oz. fat free chicken broth
3 Tbs. butter
1 Vidalia onion, chopped
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage (4-5 sausages), casings removed
6 cups (about 1¼ lbs.) shredded Savoy cabbage
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 large bay leaf
½ cup arborio rice
Fresh chopped parsley

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1. Combine broths and bring to a simmer.

2. Melt butter in 6-8 quart pot. Add onion and sauté until soft and golden.

3. Add sausage, breaking up with wooden spoon. Cook until well browned.

4. Prepare cabbage. Remove and discard outer leaves and core, removing thick "ribs" from the larger leaves as you work. Thinly slice cabbage (I use my food processor with thickest slicing blade), add to sausage, and cook until wilted.

5. Add broth, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 30 minutes.

6. Add rice. Cover and simmer 20 more minutes. Remove bay leaf. Add parsley and serve with crusty bread. Serves 6-8.

Savoy Cabbage Soup with Sausage and Arborio Rice

Cabbage. I never liked the horrid stuff my mother plunked into the corned beef pot. She used common cabbage, but there are dozens of cabbages suited to different purposes. Cabbage is good for you, and as we all know, that doesn't mean it has to taste (or smell) bad.

My mother-in-law whipped up delicious cabbage rolls, one of many Syrian dishes made by stuffing various vegetables with ground lamb, rice, and Middle Eastern spices. Last year, Dawn shared a wonderful stuffed cabbage recipe (Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage -Töltött Káposzta).

I first tried Savoy cabbage in Ireland. Shredded and cooked in cream and Irish bacon, it served as a bed for a roasted meat I can't recall, the cabbage was so good. Savoy cabbage is milder than common cabbage. Prettier too, with its curly leaves.

I've made this Savoy Cabbage Soup, my version of a classic Italian dish, several times. It's a perfect autumn/winter dish. Delizioso!

SAVOY CABBAGE SOUP WITH SAUSAGE AND ARBORIO RICE

32 oz. fat free beef broth
32 oz. fat free chicken broth
3 Tbs. butter
1 Vidalia onion, chopped
1 lb. sweet Italian sausage (4-5 sausages), casings removed
6 cups (about 1¼ lbs.) shredded Savoy cabbage
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 large bay leaf
½ cup arborio rice
Fresh chopped parsley

---

1. Combine broths and bring to a simmer.

2. Melt butter in 6-8 quart pot. Add onion and sauté until soft and golden.

3. Add sausage, breaking up with wooden spoon. Cook until well browned.

4. Prepare cabbage. Remove and discard outer leaves and core, removing thick "ribs" from the larger leaves as you work. Thinly slice cabbage (I use my food processor with thickest slicing blade), add to sausage, and cook until wilted.

5. Add broth, thyme, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 30 minutes.

6. Add rice. Cover and simmer 20 more minutes. Remove bay leaf. Add parsley and serve with crusty bread. Serves 6-8.

Hungarian Cabbage and Noodles

Contributed by Dawn Marie Hamilton

I mentioned in a previous post, Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage, my grandmother in-law, Anna, and the little pamphlet of Hungarian recipes she gave to me. Within its pages, I found a clipping with a recipe for Hungarian Cabbage and Noodles. My husband doesn't remember her serving it, so I made it this weekend. His statement on the dish—delectable.

We had the cabbage and noodles as a main course, though I think it would make a nice side dish for a buffet. Here is the slightly tweaked recipe.

Ingredients:

6 slices bacon
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
6 cups chopped cabbage
4 ounces wide egg noodles, cooked
1/2 cup sour cream
paprika


1. Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Remove from skillet, and set aside.

2. Stir sugar and salt into bacon drippings in skillet. Add cabbage and toss to coat. Cover and cook over medium heat until cabbage is tender (about ten minutes.)

3. Crumble the bacon and combine with cabbage and cooked noodles then transfer to a 1 ½ quart baking dish with lid. Cover and bake in a 325 degree oven for 45 minutes.

4. Remove from the oven and uncover. Add dollops of sour cream to the top and sprinkle heavily with paprika. (Use Hungarian paprika if you can.) Cover once more and return to the oven for 5 additional minutes.

2 to 4 servings. Delectable. Enjoy!

Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage (Töltött Káposzta)

Contributed by Dawn Marie Hamilton

Last weekend's cold snap and snow in Southern Maryland had us craving something warm and satisfying. Stuffed cabbage.

Shortly after we married, my husband asked me to attempt some of his favorite Hungarian recipes. We called his paternal grandmother (nagyanya) and she provided me with a terrific little pamphlet from 1957.

Anna emigrated from Hungary to the United States at the age of fourteen with her soon-to-be husband's family. She lived a hearty ninety-seven years. We fondly called her Nagy-mama. We miss her terribly.

This recipe combines Anna's variation of the original recipe along with my modernization.

Ingredients:

1 large head of cabbage
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup onion, chopped
1 pound meatloaf mix (beef, pork, and veal)
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup brown rice
2 14-ounce kielbasa
water (approximately 5 cups)
16-ounce refrigerated sauerkraut
Spicy Hot V8 juice (approximately 3 cups)
1 cup sour cream

1. Core cabbage and place in enough boiling water to cover. With a fork in one hand and a knife in the other, cut off the cabbage leaves as they wilt. Drain and trim the thick center vein from each cabbage leaf.


2. Sauté onion in olive oil until limp. Transfer to a large bowl. Add meat, seasonings, and rice and mix well. Place a rounded tablespoon of filling on each cabbage leaf and roll, tucking sides in.

3. Place kielbasa in the bottom of a large pot. Arrange rolled cabbage leaves over top. Add water until two thirds full. Cover cabbage with sauerkraut. Add V8 juice to fill. Cover and cook on a low simmer for 2 hours. (1.5 hours if you substitute white rice for brown.) Pour sour cream on top and cook for an additional 5 minutes.

6 to 8 servings. Enjoy!