RCP: Cabbage Patch Stew

I've decided we need to eat more cabbage. Not only is it cheap (it alone fed Charlie Bucket's family of seven), but it's good for you. The problem is that it can be, well, boring. So I've been trawling the internet to find interesting recipes. Last week I came across this one for Cabbage Patch Stew, based on an old Betty Crocker recipe from 1954. It's really very good - it had never occurred to me before to put mince in a soup, but it works surprisingly well. Plus it lets me use up all the excess veggies in my fridge.

My variation had the following ingredients :

500g (about 1lb) mince beef
1 onion, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1/2 leek, sliced
1/4 cabbage, chopped
2 sticks celery, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large zucchini, chopped
1 can rinsed baked beans
2 cups tomato puree
2 tsp moroccan spice mix
1/2 cup beef stock
2 diablo chillis, chopped with seeds
salt

Easy to make - brown beef, then add onion, shallot, leek, cabbage, celery, carrot, garlic and spice mix, cook until veggies are a bit wilted (I put the lid on for a bit). Then add everything else, plus some water and simmer until all the flavours amalgamate (took me about 45mins on low simmer, lid on for the first bit of cooking).

The original recipe is served with mash potatoes, but I didn't need the extra carbs this time. I did think it would be nice with a batch of Jo Ann's cornbread over the top..

[Jenise]

Girlfriend, clarification is needed re "1/4 cabbage". Am I reading this right, as one quarter of one head? If so, I'm surprised, given the title and your lead-in. A quarter doesn't seem like much--depending on the size and density of the particular cabbage (and at this time of the year, we're getting young small, light, sweet spring cabbages--the best!), that could be as little as a cup. I'd think you'd want at least two cups here.

p.s. for anyone unfamiliar, "mince beef" is the same as "ground beef"

Maybe our cabbages are bigger ? My 1/4 cabbage was about 2 cups worth, chopped. I think original recipe specifies 1.5 cups of chopped cabbage.

Just had this for lunch, feeling very virtuous...

Celia, here's our favorite cabbage dish, cheap, filling, gets better over time. Janet taught it to me, and we both love it:

Polish Cabbage and Noodles, sometimes called Halusky

Recipe: Serves four, two on the first day, two on the second or third day after refrigeration which seems to improve the flavor.

Ingredients

1 TBS Benecol
One head cabbage – 9 inches in diameter – chopped relatively fine.
One or more large onions, small dice
– 3 inches in diameter – “You can’t have too many onions, Bob.”
2 tablespoons caraway seeds
Pepper – to taste.
6 oz egg noodles.

Method

Cook noodles according to instructions on package, leaving them quite firm; e.g. 8 minutes for 10 to 12 minute instructions.

Heat large Sauté pan.
Heat Benecol
Sauté onions until translucent, but not browned.
Add cabbage. Sauté cabbage and onions until mixture is reduced by one third – about ½ hour. Do not cover the pan.
Add pepper and caraway seeds stir well.
Add noodles and stir well.
Serve or put in refrigerator and reheat or both – the dish improves with reheating.

What is Benecol? It doesn't sound Polish.

-Paul W.

Bob, that sounds wonderful - thank you. I love caraway seeds ! One question though - what is Benecol ? Is it a fat or oil ?

Thanks, Celia

Benecol is a brand name of a spread that contains plant sterol esters. According to our cardiologist, the esters are helpful in lowering blood cholesterol levels.

From the FDA decision:

The FDA has authorized use of labeling health claims about the role of plant sterol or plant stanol esters in reducing the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) for foods containing these substances. This interim final rule is based on FDA's conclusion that plant sterol esters and plant stanol esters may reduce the risk of CHD by lowering blood cholesterol levels.

Coronary heart disease, one of the most common and serious forms of cardiovascular disease, causes more deaths in the U.S. than any other disease. Risk factors for CHD include high total cholesterol levels and high levels of low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.

This new health claim is based on evidence that plant sterol or plant stanol esters may help to reduce the risk of CHD. Plant sterols are present in small quantities in many fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, cereals, legumes, and other plant sources. Plant stanols occur naturally in even smaller quantities from some of the same sources. For example, both plant sterols and stanols are found in vegetable oils.

Foods that may qualify for the health claim based on plant sterol ester content include spreads and salad dressings. Among the foods that may qualify for claims based on plant stanol ester content are spreads, salad dressings, snack bars, and dietary supplements in softgel form.


http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/ANSWERS/ANS01033.html

We use, Take Control, a different brand these days that can make the same claim. The science appears to be pretty sound as far as I can tell. I think some folks here did a taste test a while back, and most folks preferred Benecol. We switched to Take Control after I wrote the recipe; it has the same benefits and costs 40% less than Benecol here. Also sodium levels are lower, important to Janet and perhaps why Benecol tastes better.

Sounds delicious Celia and Bob!

I usually just saute cabbage strips in a fry pan with a little butter, some salt and pepper as a veggie with dinner. I also add cabbage to Manhattan style clam chowder when I make it.

Have you ever heard of the cabbage soup diet? I did it back in college...the soup is actually pretty good...hehe!

[Jenise]

Benecol is a brand name of a spread that contains plant sterol esters.

In other words, it's a butter substitute. For someone without that dietary concern, think "butter".

Thanks Bob. I'm surprised you can cook with the Benecol, though, as all the cholesterol reducing margarines here specifically say "not for baking or frying" - and I've read that heating them does something weird to their chemical composition ? It would be lovely to have something like that I could use for baking...

Maria, the old cabbage soup diet - the soup had so many ingredients in it, it was more like vegetable soup ! And yes, it's very nice, I still keep a version of it today in the freezer.

Talking about freezing soup, I found this idea really fun - this lady has her own "soup library".
http://tastingspoons.blogspot.com/2007/ ... brary.html

It's marked "Not for baking or frying" here, Celia. But I brown the onion so gently that I'm pretty sure it's ok. Maybe I'll switch to butter -- we like it better, that's for sure. Thanks for catching me up.

Actually, Bob, I did a google search, and apparently your Benecol CAN be used for frying (have a look at the small print in the yellow box):

http://www.benecolphysicians.com/prodin ... /taste.inc

Looks like it has to be the regular stuff though, not the light. And it appears the stuff we have here is the same too - guess I got myself confused - my apologies for being alarmist. Going to get myself some regular ProActive for baking now..thanks, Bob !

My variation had the following ingredients :

500g (about 1lb) mince beef
1 onion, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1/2 leek, sliced
1/4 cabbage, chopped
2 sticks celery, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large zucchini, chopped
1 can rinsed baked beans
2 cups tomato puree
2 tsp moroccan spice mix
1/2 cup beef stock
2 diablo chillis, chopped with seeds
salt

"C" my wife has been making a variation of this dish for probably 40 years. She uses most of a head of cabbage, and leaves out the zucchini. Instead of baked beans (probably a different thing here vs there) and uses red kidney beans instead. I am not sure which spices or things like chilies. But I do prefer it over rice, instead of mashers. A big rough provencal red wine goes well, heck even a tannant would fit the bill.

Bob, the original recipe which I linked above actually used red kidney beans (and no zucchinis). This is really a great recipe - glad to know you guys think so too.

Celia, here is a recipe from Martha Schulman.

Sweet and Sour Cabbage

2 Tbsp. EVOO
1 small Onion
1 medium Cabbage, quartered, cored, and thinly sliced
3 large Tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped (or 1 can [14oz.] chopped tomatoes, with some juice from the can).
2 Tbsp. Red or White Wine Vinegar
1 Tbsp. Sugar
S & P to taste

Heat the EVOO in a skillet over medium-high heat and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until tender. Add teh cabbatge and cook, stirring, until it begins to wilt, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. Stir together and cook, uncovered, stirring often, for another 20 minuets or until the cabbage is tender and fragrant. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Keeps well for 3-4 days and is even better the next day.

rwj

Thanks Robert ! I'll add it to the list to try !

Jenise asked me how big our cabbages were, so I took a pic of the one I bought today. That's a standard tin of tomatoes next to it for comparison - this thing was huuuuge :

cabbage.jpg