Life at Cloverhill

Recipe

Cabbage Beef Casserole

Did your grandmother ever make you cabbage rolls? Those little cabbage wrapped bundles of beef and rice with a lovely tomato sauce. Well my great aunt (who really is great and fantastic and wonderful) makes amazing ones that I regret I didn’t love more as a kid. I was really craving that kind of home cooking this week and I decided to make them, but I didn’t want to do all the work that goes into boiling the cabbage and rolling those suckers up.

So I decided to make up a deconstructed version of those beloved cabbage rolls – a casserole! And we all know that no casserole is complete without some cheese melted on top. Am I right?


This is one of those meals that may not look pretty, but tasted amazing. It was the perfect comfort food meal that is also good for you! Those little strips of cabbage may look like vegetables, but when paired with the tomato sauce, lean beef, seasonings and cheese, they tasted just like pasta. If you’re trying to go low carb, this is a wonderful alternative to a salad for dinner (yet again).

The hardest part was all the chopping of the onion and the cabbage, but once that was done, it was just a matter of cooking it in a skillet and then transferring to a baking dish. Next time I make this (because I can see this becoming a regular around here), I’m going to prep all the ingredients the night before and then just pop the casserole in the oven for dinner. I love when meals can be made ahead!

Before I show you the recipe, here is a little tip. If you want the best tomato sauce, try to find passata, which is sauce made with the finest quality of Italian tomatoes and is usually better than standard canned tomatoes. It’s widely available in Europe, but harder to find here in North America. I tend to get it from Unico here in Canada and when I do find it, I stock up on a few bottles to keep on hand. It makes a great base for spaghetti and meatballs too!

What you’ll need:

2 pounds Ground Beef
1/2 small Onion, chopped
1 small head of Cabbage, shredded
1 cup Tomato Sauce
2 cups Cheddar Cheese shredded
2 tsp Garlic Powder
2 tsp Onion Powder
Salt and Pepper to taste

In a large skillet, brown ground beef on medium low until cooked through. Drain.
Add onion, garlic powder and onion powder. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside. 

Add cabbage to pan and sauté until soft.


In a large bowl, mix ground beef mixture, cabbage, tomato sauce and 1 cup of cheese.

 Spread in a 9”x13” pan and top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.


If I could melt cheese on everything, I would.

Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

We both went back for seconds and I have to say it was even better the next day. We’ll be trying this again soon!

For a different spin on things, try my Tex Mex version of this dish!


Comments

  2. Yummy, I am going to print and try this recipe. I like to make beef bundles with is the same thing only you put the mix inside the dough of a thawed roll dough.