Vegetarian Cabbage Balls
'Meat' and rice filled cabbage balls served with a simple basil sauce.
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Ingredients:
Filling:
2tsp Olitalia Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2tsp Cumin Seeds
1/4tsp Chili Flakes
1/4tsp Turmeric
1 Onion
1 Red Pepper
50g Tomato Sauce (sugo)
300g Quorn Mince
150g Cooked Rice
Salt & Pepper
Basil Sauce
1 jar Knorr Classic Soffritto
500g Tomato Sauce (sugo)
A Bunch of Fresh Basil
Salt & Pepper
1 Savoy Cabbage
Directions:
1. Let's start with the filling. Add the olive oil to a saucepan at a moderate flame and add the cumin seeds. Gently fry for about 30 seconds stirring continuously.
2. Chop the onion finely and add it to the cumin. Sweat it for about 5 minutes or until it gets translucent, then add the chili flakes and the chopped red pepper.
3. Fry for a couple of minutes then add the turmeric. Mix well.
4. Add the Quorn Mince directly from the freezer and mix everything well for a couple of minutes.
5. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Add the tomato sauce. Mix, then add the cooked rice.
7. mix everything well, check for salt levels then cover and simmer for 3 minutes. Set aside and allow it to cool down.
8. For the basil sauce add the soffritto to a small saucepan. Alternatively use the classic oil/carrot/onion/celery combination.
9. Fry for about 4 minutes on medium heat then add the tomato sauce. Add salt and cover. Simmer for at least 15 minutes on low heat. The more time you give it, the thicker it will get so it's up to you if you want to leave it more.
10. Turn off the heat, add freshly ground pepper and fresh basil leaves. Mix well and set aside.
11. For the cabbage preparation remove the outer leaves.
12. Cut the leaves from the bottom part and carefully remove them from the cabbage.
13. Chop off the bottom thicker part of the stalk from the leaves. This part can also be done after you boil them.
14. Wash them well under running water.
15. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, reduce the flame and add the leaves. Blanche for 3-4 minutes.
16. In the meantime prepare a large bowl of ice water.
17. Gently remove the leaves from the hot water and place them into ice water. This will stop the cooking.
18. Drip off the access water and transfer the leaves to a plate to start the filling.
19. Using a clean kitchen towel place a leaf on the palm of your hand, add 2 tablespoons of filling and gently wrap the leaf starting from the bottom segments. Wrap the kitchen towel around it and shape it firmly to create a ball. Hold it for about 10 seconds then unwrap. It will hold its shape.
20. Place them into a baking dish, top them with the basil sauce and cover with foil.
21. Bake for 30-40 minutes in a preheated 220°c oven.
22. Drizzle with finely chopped parsley before serving.
