Cabbage Rolls (crockpot or electric roaster)

The Menu:

Cabbage Rolls

My son's cabbage plant he brought home from school and we planted. His cabbage produced a large head of cabbage, so the recipe below only used this one head of cabbage! We got some big rolls!!



The Original Recipe:
My husband's mom makes these cabbage rolls. Now, growing up we had them a good bit, but I never cared for them. Until I tried these. Delicious! (I tend to say that a lot!). They are not my husband's moms recipe, but it does come from my husbands side of the family. His grandmother on his dad's side is the one who always made these. I had never had them when she made them, but the first time I ate them when my mother-in-law made them, I was in heaven. My  husband and I decided you cannot mess with a good thing. I make these exactly as she makes them. I don't try to add or subtract anything from them. They are good just as they were intended to be! (Ok, I added a bit of Montreal McCormick seasoning this time... shhhh!)

Kowboy's Cabbage Rolls


Ingredients
3 lbs. Ground meat (uncooked)
1 half lb. bacon chopped
1 medium onion chopped
3 cups cooked white rice (this is only 1 cup dry)
3 Eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Heads of cabbage (depending on size)
1 Large can tomato juice
1 jar Sauerkraut


Preparation

Combine bacon and onion in skillet and cook until onion is clear and bacon is crispy. Drain if desired. Mix raw meat, cooked rice, and bacon mixture together, add eggs, salt and pepper to taste. Mixing until combined.

Cut the cores out of cabbages. In a large Pot, boil water, adding one head of cabbage at a time, slightly boil water until leaves start to peal off cabbage. Adding the next head of cabbage to do the same. With each leaf, cut the tough ridged vein slightly so that you can fold the cabbage with the meat mixture.

Add raw meat mixture to cabbage leaves and roll leaves over meat pressing in the ends.

Place in crockpot(or electric roaster) side by side, until pot is full. Pour tomato juice and sauerkraut over all cabbage rolls.

I used my canned tomatoes from last year instead of tomato juice. I also used a can of sauerkraut, but I prefer the jars.

Don't mind my dirty crockpot. I only use it every now and then. I use my other one most of the time!

Cook on high one hour then turn down to low and cook 7-8 hours. Check cabbage roll to make sure meat is done before serving. Tastes Great with Mashed Potatoes.