Being Vegan forces you to think outside of the box when it comes to planning your meals. Stuffed Cabbage Rolls is something I never really ate until a few years ago, but I figured it would be a good break from my usual pasta, tacos, & soup dinners! I loved that I was able to even add rice to the stuffing. I served these rolls with mashed butternut squash, Sean also had brown rice, while I ate mine over more steamed cabbage 🙂

Ingredients

-1 large head cabbage

-1/4 Cup oil

-1 onion, diced

-3 stalks celery, diced

-3 large carrots, diced

-1 small eggplant, diced

-1 Cup brown rice

-2 Cups water

-1 teaspoon thyme

-1 teaspoon rosemary

-1 can tomato paste

-2 Tablespoons sugar or agave nectar

-1 can tomatoes

-Pepper to taste

Directions

-Set a large pot filled hallway with water, to a boil. Cut the stem of the cabbage off & pull off the crusty outer leaves

-In a large saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat

-Saute the onion, celery, & carrots until the onions are transparent

-Add the rice to vegetables & cook for 1 minute. Add the water & bring to a boil

-Add the thyme & rosemary into the rice mixture

-Once the water is boiling, reduce heat to low & cover. Cook the rice for about 12 minutes, or until al dente

-Add the cabbage to the boiling pot & cook, covered, for 10 – 12 minutes. Remove the cabbage & drain in colander for at least 10 minutes

-While the rice is cooking, heat the second 1/4 Cup of oil in a medium sauce pan on high heat. When the oil is hot, add the eggplant & cook until a little crisp on the outside

-Once the rice is down, add 2 Tablespoons tomato paste & 1 Tablespoon sugar to the rice mixture. Stir until combined

-Add in the eggplant. Stir until well combined. Add pepper to taste. Remove from heat

-Preheat oven to 350°F

-Once the cabbage is cool enough to handle, slowly & carefully peel each leaf off the head, being careful not to tear them

-Place about 1/4 Cup of the mixture on the bottom part of the leaf, fold the sides over & roll, kind of like you’re rolling a burrito

-Keep rolling until you run out of cabbage or filling

-In a bowl mix the tomatoes, tomato paste, & 1 Tablespoon sugar. Mix well. Pour into bottom of casserole dish, but save some for the tops of the rolls

-Place the rolls in a casserole dish & pour the remaining tomato mixture on top of the cabbage rolls

-Bake for 1 hour. Serve warm

xoxo