MOM’S STUFFED CABBAGE CASSEROLE WITH WHITE SAUCE

My mom’s stuffed cabbage casserole recipe is a family favorite! My mom took my grandma’s recipe & made it her own. It’s such a hearty meal & even tastes great the next day! It’s got a little bit of a twist on it with the creamy white sauce, but don’t knock it until you try it! The flavors are UNREAL.

INGREDIENTS

CASSEROLE

• 1 lb Italian sausage (casings removed)
• 1 sweet onion – chopped
• 1 green pepper – chopped
• 1 tomato –  chopped
• 3 cups rice – cooked
• whole head of cabbage – cut up
• 1/2 cp parmesan
• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds – crushed
• salt & pepper to taste

WHITE SAUCE

• 6 tbsp salted butter
• 6 tbsp flour
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 3 cups milk (or half & half)
• 1 egg yolk – beaten
• salt & pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Cook the rice according to the package. Once cooked, set aside for later.

Fill a large pot, about half way, with water. Bring to a boil & add the cut up cabbage. Cook for about 10-15 minutes or until cabbage is slightly wilted. It doesn’t need to be fully cooked because it will cook more in the oven. Once it’s done, lay over a towel & pat dry to remove excess water.

Heat large pan over medium heat, add Italian sausage & break it up. Add in the onion & cook until meat is browned. Stir in the green pepper & tomato – sautéing until the pepper is tender. In the same pan, stir in the rice & crushed fennel. Season to taste with salt & pepper. Take pan off heat & set aside.

For the cream sauce, melt the salted butter. Whisk in flour, dry mustard & milk. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Once it’s reached a boil, remove pan from heat & blend in 1 beaten egg yolk. Season with salt & pepper. Set aside.

ASSEMBLE

This recipe makes a lot, so in a 9×13 glass dish & a 8×8 or 9×9 glass dish, start by buttering the dishes so nothing sticks (I’ll take a stick of butter & run it around the bottom & sides of the dishes – using about 1-2 tbsp of the stick). Once the dishes are buttered, spread the cabbage over the bottom of the dishes – this will be the first layer. For the second layer, spoon the meat mixture evenly over both dishes. For the third layer, pour the white sauce evenly over both dishes. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese & dot with some cold butter. Cover the dishes with aluminum foil & cook for 45 minutes. Remove aluminum foil, cook another 5-10 minutes. Let sit for about 10-15 minutes before serving.

Serve & enjoy!

TIPS

• I like to serve this with a salad.
• If you have extra, you can freeze up to 1 month.
• This is not your typical “stuffed cabbage” recipe, so if you’d like to use a red sauce instead of the white, you could!