Whole30 Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients:

1 head cabbage

1 onion, chopped fine

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups grated cauliflower (cauliflower rice)

2 pounds good quality ground beef

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Oil (coconut, avocado or olive oil) to sautee cauliflower, onions, etc.

Sauce:

2 cans (14.5 oz) crushed tomato

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 onion, chopped fine

1/4 cup coconut milk (I use Thai Kitchen in Red/Black can)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prep Cabbage Leaves:

Boil whole cabbage in large pot for about 10 minutes. Put lid on pot for last 5 minutes. Drain water and let cabbage sit to cool off.

Filling:

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Sautee onion and minced garlic until onion is soft and just starting to turn golden.

Add riced cauliflower and stir fry for 4-5 minutes.  Cauliflower should be soft.

Put all into a mixing bowl and allow ingredients to cool.

Brown ground beef and spices, drain fat.  Allow meat to cool while you prepare the sauce. 

Sauce:

Add more oil to skillet and add crushed tomatoes, coconut milk, salt, and pepper. Add onion/garlic mix that you prepared earlier and combine well.

Spoon a thin layer of sauce to the bottom of a large baking dish.

Assemble the Cabbage Rolls:

Carefully remove the cabbage leaves one leaf at a time. Try to be careful not to tear the leaves. You want them to be as whole as possible. Trim of any part of stem that is super thick. Pat dry any remaining moisture from leaves with a paper towel. The leaves should be able to lay open kind of like a bowl. Spoon about a quarter of a cup of filling into the leaf. Start at the bottom edge of the leaf and roll the meat up into the leaf, like a burrito/eggroll. Tuck in edges half way half-way to prevent your filling from falling out and continue rolling.

Lay each roll, seam side down, in the baking dish.

Pour remaining sauce over cabbage rolls and cook in oven for about 40 minutes.

Enjoy!

Not as pretty, but this was lunch the next day. They heat up very well and can even be prepared ahead of time and frozen to heat up a quick meal on a busy evening!