Stuffed Cabbage Casserole

It's Friday! Time for another Your Recipe-My Kitchen post.

When I saw this recipe  for Kalyn's Stuffed Cabbage Casserole at Gina's Skinny Recipes I knew it was only a matter of time before this made it to our tables.  One of my favorite things to eat is Stuffed Cabbage but it is so labor intensive and therefor I don't make it too often.  I make my mom's Sweet and Sour Meatballs a lot because it kind of reminds me of an unstuffed cabbage (I'll have to post that one for you guys soon - it's so good.)   I was so happy with this dish - it had all the flavors of a stuffed cabbage in a lot less time.  This one will definitely stay in the rotation.  Enjoy!!

recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes

What you need:
2 tsp olive oil, divided
1 lb ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 tbsp  minced garlic
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp sweet Hungarian Paprika
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 heads green cabbage, coarsely chopped
1 can (14.5 oz.) dice tomatoes with juice
1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
1/4 cup water
2 cups cooked brown rice
2 cups low-fat mozzarella cheese


What you do:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a large glass casserole dish(13 x 10) with non-stick spray. Heat a large pan over medium heat and add the ground beef to it. Cook until it's browned and no longer pink, breaking it apart as it cooks. Remove ground beef and set aside.  In the same pan, add 1 tsp olive oil and onion and saute over medium heat until the onion is translucent and starting to golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, dried thyme, and paprika and cook about 2 minutes more. Then add the diced tomatoes with juice, tomato sauce, and ground beef. Add water to the pan. Simmer until it's hot and slightly thickened, about 15-20 minutes. 

While the mixture simmers, cut cabbage in half, cut out the core, and remove any wilted outer leaves; chop the cabbage into small pieces.  Heat the remaining olive oil in a large pan or dutch oven; add the cabbage and cook over medium-high heat until the cabbage is wilted and about half cooked, mixing it a few times so all the pieces begin to wilt and cook. Season with salt and black pepper. Once the sauce mixture has cooked and thickened a bit, add in the 2 cups of cooked rice and combine. 

 Now begin to layer half the cabbage, half the meat mixture, remaining cabbage, and remaining meat mixture into the sprayed dish. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes, or until the mixture is just starting to bubble on the edges.  Remove foil and sprinkle on cheese. Bake uncovered an additional 20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and begins to slightly brown.

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