Grandma Taylor’s Cabbage Rolls

an·tic·i·pa·tion

noun

1.the act of anticipating or the state of being anticipated.

2.realization in advance; foretaste.

3.expectation or hope.

4.previous notion; slight previous impression.

5.intuition, foreknowledge, or prescience.

Origin:  1540–50; (< Middle French ) < Latin anticipātiōn- (stem of anticipātiō ), equivalent to anticipāt ( us ) (past participle; see anticipate) + -iōn- -ion

Why did I start my blog off with the definition of anticipation?

To enrich my readings vocabulary?

Sure…but I am confident you already frequent this word in your daily life.

To educate you in the origin?

Ok….I do love finding the derivation from a source.

To make my readers wait just a few more seconds for my most requested recipe?

YES!!

                                                                                                       

SO…..here it is the most requested recipe.  When I make these or my mother makes these for parties everyone asks “Can I PLEASE have the recipe?”

BUT…before I divulge the secret,  I have to tell you how this recipe started in my family.

Here goes….

As you have read in my other posts, I had the most wonderful Grandma in the world.  She was smart, and funny, and beautiful.  I loved her with all my heart and I wanted to grow up to be just like her.  She worked in the Trumbull County Recorders office. Anything that when through the courts, crossed my Grandmother’s desk and she recorded it in huge ledger books. I used to love to go to her office. Anyhow…

She was friends with the”local” celebrity Norma Antenucci.  Norma had a local cooking show back in the 60′s, and she published a cookbook called “Norma presents….. a collection of her favorite recipes. (I have my Grandma’s signed copy)

My Grandma would make these cabbage rolls when I was growing up and it was always a big family favorite.  My mother carried on the family tradition after my Grandma passed. And now it is my turn.

My family isn’t one of those richly ethnic families with great traditions passed down generation to generation. I always dreamed of being in a family that was so lucky .  But I do have some stories and recipes that come close. We were a very close family and I always loved my Sunday’s with my Grandma and Grandpa Taylor.

I hope you love this recipe as much as I do and my family does.  And I would be honored if it became one of your traditions and much-anticipated recipes in your repertoire.

Hope you enjoy and Happy Cooking,

Vonnie

Grandma Taylor’s Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef

1/2 pound pork sausage or ground pork

3/4 cup raw rice

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. garlic salt

1/8 tsp. celery salt

1 large head cabbage

1 large can sauerkraut, drained

1 can tomato paste diluted with 3 cans of water.

Directions:

Cook head of cabbage, core side up, in saucepan with about 2 inches of water.  Cover.  Steam just long enough for the leaves to become pliable and easily removed.  Cut off tough core at bottom of leaf.

Combine meat, raw rice, slightly beaten eggs and seasonings.

Place a large spoonful of meat mixture on cabbage leaf and roll leaf starting at the bottom end of leaf.  Tuck under the sides to give packaged look.  Make as many rolls until you’ve used all the meat mixture.

Make a layer of sauerkraut in bottom of roasting pan.  Place a layer of cabbage rolls on top of kraut.  Repeat until all cabbage rolls are used and end with sauerkraut on the top.  Pour tomato sauce over all.  Cover tightly.  Bake in a moderate oven 350 degrees for about 1 1/2 hours.

My Grandma and my mother always serve these with Mashed potatoes.

*I have also done this recipe in the crockpot and it comes out perfectly.

Chili

Jesse James (1847-1882), outlaw and desperado of the old American West, refused to rob a bank in McKinney, Texas because that is where his favorite chili parlor was located.  

It is said that Will Rogers judge a town by the quality of its chili. He sampled chili in hundreds of towns, especially in Texas and Oklahoma and kept a box score. He concluded that the finest chili (in his judgment was from a small cafe in Coleman, Texas. 

Mrs. Lady Bird Johnson had “chili pangs” for President Lyndon Johnson’s, 36th President of the United States, “Pedernales River Chili” and had cards printed with the LBJ chili recipe. “It has been almost as popular as the government pamphlet on the care and feeding of children.” 

We have a love affair chili. You can’t pick up a recipe book without a couple of chili recipes in it. I acquired my recipe in 1990. It’s a traditional chili recipe with tomatoes, beans, beef, onions and peppers.

Hope you enjoy and Happy Cooking~                                          

Vonnie

 Ingredients:

2 pounds ground beef

1 TBSP. shortening

1 1/2 cup onions, diced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 cup green peppers, diced

2 large can tomato sauce

2-14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes

4 TBSP. chili powder

2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. sugar

2 TBSP. Worcestershire sauce

2 cans red kidney beans, drained

 Directions:

Brown ground beef in shortening. Add garlic, onions, and green peppers. Cook until onions are transparent. Drain off fat. Add tomato sauce,  diced tomatoes, chili powder, salt, sugar, Worcestershire sauce. Mix well. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.

Vegetarian Chili with Cornbread

 The lazy days of summer are coming to a close. If you are a parent of school aged children like me, then you are juggling  your regular daily functions, plus getting all the back to school things they need. In honor of second to last Meatless Monday in the month of August, I chose to share a recipe for vegetarian chili with cornbread . I know there is a lot of ingredients, but it is so worth a trip to the grocery store if you don’t have everything. I love to make this time to time because it is a great way to “clean” out my panty. You can also throw all your ingredients in a crock pot and let it do all the work. Put the setting on low and let it cook for a few hours.  YUM:)
Hope you enjoy and Happy Cooking.

Ingredients:
4 cloves garlic, pressed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer( I use a red ale)
4 tablespoons chili powder, or to taste
1 tablespoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2-3 dashes hot pepper sauce, optional
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained and rinsed
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 box Jiffy cornbread mix

Directions:
In a 4 quart pot, saute garlic in oil.
Add diced tomatoes (undrained), tomato sauce, tomato paste, beer, chili powder, mustard powder, oregano, pepper, cumin, hot pepper sauce. Stir in the pinto beans, garbanzo beans, black beans, red and white kidney beans, and corn. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat, and let simmer for 20 minutes. While soup is simmering make your cornbread.  To serve, Top each bowl with cheddar cheese and a slice of cornbread.

Enjoy!!