(Kåldolmar)
This has often been a traditional part of our Smörgåsbord, but technically it has no business being there. It’s just that Lars’ Dad decided he wanted to make it part of the whole spread and so it has been for 35 years now. Like the meatballs, Cabbage Rolls freeze well, so you can make them ahead, and freeze them by the same method as meatballs.
1 medium-sized head of white cabbage
For the filling:
60 ml uncooked rice
225 ml water
225 ml milk
150 g lean ground beef
110 g lean ground pork
1 egg
80 ml skim evaporated milk or cream
7.5 ml salt
1 ml white pepper
To fry:
30 ml butter
15 ml brown sugar or molasses
250 ml beef bouillon
For gravy:
pan drippings
25 ml flour
120 ml cream or skim evaporated milk
salt and white pepper, to taste
Bring the 225 ml of water to a boil. Add the rice, reduce heat and simmer until the water disappears. Add the milk and cook over very low heat until the rice is tender, about 30 minutes. Cool. Mix with ground meat, egg, milk and seasonings.
Bring to a boil a large pot of salted water (large enough to comfortably hold the head of cabbage). Remove the wilted and discolored outer leaves of the cabbage, and submerge the head in the boiling water until the outermost leaves are tender. Remove and peel off those leaves that come off easier. If the center vein is thick, trim it.
Lay out each leaf. Put about 15-30 ml of filling in the middle. Fold the sides inward and then roll gently, Fasten with string or toothpicks. Repeat the process with the head of cabbage, each time removing those leaves that come off easily, until you reach those that are too small to roll. (You can use the left-overs in a soup.)
Meanwhile melt butter in a heavy skillet. As you finish each roll, transfer it gently into the skillet and brown on all sides. Then place in a Dutch oven and sprinkle with brown sugar. Rinse out the skillet with a little water after each load of cabbage rolls and pour into Dutch oven over cabbage rolls. When all are browned, add the bouillon, cover and cook slowly for an hour or until tender.
To serve, arrange in a deep serving dish, removing string or toothpicks. Blend flour and cream and add to pan juice while stirring. Simmer about 10 minutes, adding a little water if it gets too thick. Season to taste and pour over cabbage rolls.
VARIATION: Stuffed Onions: In place of cabbage, use eight to 10 medium onions. Boil them in lightly salted water. Remove centers, stuff with filling as above, tie with string and follow recipe above for frying and simmering.