Cabbage Roll Soup

(No, that's not my soup - forgot to photograph it! Just some cabbage rolls)

There are some Oklahoma restaurants we enjoyed for years that served delicious cabbage roll appetizers. I never tried to make them, since I was the only one in the family that loved them. So I decided to try for the taste, that marvelous flavor, even if I didn't have a good reason to make a pan of cabbage rolls. I can freeze the soup in individual servings to have later.

Success!! I took a variety of recipes and have created my memory of these delicious cabbage rolls in a soup. Of course the texture is a bit different, but the flavor is very good – if you like cabbage rolls. I do!!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon margarine
1 pound of ground beef
1 cup chopped onions
1 clove garlic, pressed
2 cups chopped cabbage (I like it bite sized)
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup lentils
½ cup rice
1 can tomato sauce
1 can diced tomatoes (I used DelMonte’s Garlic and Onion)
¼ teaspoon Allspice
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Fresh grated nutmeg

Preparation:

In a large stock pan, melt the butter, then sauté onion and garlic until softened, not browned. Remove and set aside. Do the same for the cabbage and set aside.

Brown the hamburger meat in the same pan, adding salt and pepper to taste. I grind mine so I won’t use as much as I used to. Helps to cut down on salt.

Add the onion and cabbage to the meat along with the cans of tomatoes. Season with the spices and add enough water to cover all and stir well. When it comes to a boil, add the lentils and the rice, then simmer for 30 minutes.

Reheating only makes it better! This is made for our church Ladies Meeting the night we have Soup and Salad.