Vegan Cabbage Rolls

March has certainly come in with a lion’s roar this year. Snow, ice, gusting arctic blasts, plummeting temperatures… you get the idea.  The kind of weather only a comforting bowl of something hearty and warm will cure. Enter cabbage rolls.. humble and peasantry and hugging your chilled bones as if you’ve been enveloped by a kerchiefed grandmother insisting you have yet another helping.

Oh, and I wanted to say thank you to you all for your responses to when I posted the step-by-step of this recipe on my Instagram story. It seemed well received by you all and I will continue sharing live recipes of other simple dishes we prepare.

Kaity xx

recipe after the jump…

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Vegan Cabbage Rolls

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Suffice to say cabbage rolls have found a welcome spot in our winter-resurgence menu. {btw, February, I never thought I’d say this but I miss you.} This vegan-friendly version of a classic Eastern European dish has a filling of seasoned vegetables and tofu and is baked in a simple tomato based sauce. We like them served with rice on the side, but many recipes call for the grain in the filling, and you can certainly adjust this recipe and add some cooked rice to the filling if you so desire.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 6 large green or savoy cabbage leaves
• 1 large sweet onion, peeled and halved
• 2 carrots, peeled and trimmed
• 1/2 sweet red pepper, seeds removed
• 1/2 green sweet pepper, seeds removed
• 1 cup bunapi mushrooms
• 2 large garlic cloves, divided
• 8 oz extra firm tofu, pressed if needed
• 3–4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, halved
• 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1–1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, divided
• 1 teaspoon sea salt, halved
• 1 tablespoon low sodium tamari
• 1 lb tomatoes, campari or plum (or 16oz. canned diced tomatoes)
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425˚F.
2. Bring 2-3 quarts of water to a boil and add a large pinch of sea salt to the pot. Carefully remove 6 large outer leaves from a head of cabbage. Blanch cabbage leaves in salted boiling water for 4 minutes then strain and rinse under cold running water. Set cabbage aside while you prepare the filling.
3. Mince 1/2 of sweet onion, carrots, peppers, and 1 clove of garlic in a food processor.
4. Heat a skillet on medium-high heat. Once hot, add 2 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil to skillet and then sauté minced veggies until translucent and beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in bunapi mushrooms and paprika, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, caraway, fennel, 1 teaspoon oregano, and 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Cook for another minute or so until mushrooms are browned and transfer veggies to a mixing bowl.
5. Crumble tofu in food processor (no need to clean the bowl beforehand). Add crumbled tofu to veggies along with tamari. Taste filling for seasoning and add more salt or tamari if needed.
6. Divide filling into 6 equal portions. Working with one cabbage leaf at a time fill and roll them up burrito-style, tucking the side closest to you up and over the filling then folding in the sides and rolling away from you. Tuck the filled rolls together into a baking dish.
7. Purée tomatoes, remaining 1/2 of onion and garlic in food processor (again no need to clean bowl first). Stir 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon oregano and 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil into purée.
8. Pour mixture over cabbage rolls and tuck bay leaves into the sauce. Drizzle tops with extra-virgin olive oil.
9. Place baking dish onto a foil lined baking sheet to catch any drippings.
10. Cover cabbage rolls with foil and bake at 425˚F for 30-35 minutes until the sauce in bubbling. At this point remove foil and sprinkle nutritional yeast over cabbage rolls and bake uncovered for an additional 10 minutes until lightly browned.
11. Serve cabbage rolls hot over white or brown rice. Left overs will keep covered and refrigerated for 2 days. Heat to serve. Enjoy!

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