Jack-Be-Lucky: Stuffed Cabbage Leaves

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes—and ships—and sealing-wax—
Of cabbages—and kings—
And why the sea is boiling hot—
And whether pigs have wings."

 -Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass

In the spirit of St. Patrick, I decided to do a green cabbage recipe last week.  I'm not a huge fan of the traditional corned beef with boiled cabbage and potatoes, so I opted for cabbage leaves stuffed with a cheesy sweet potato filling and topped with a creamy ricotta and butternut squash sauce.  To round out the Irish experience, we paired it with a Guinness.  Sláinte!

• 6 green cabbage leaves (removed from outside of cabbage head)
• 1 1/2 cup shredded cabbage
• 3 small sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 cup corn (I used some leftover frozen corn that I had in the freezer)
• 1/2 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 bags frozen butternut squash, thawed
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 8 oz. low-fat ricotta cheese
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 tbsp garlic
• 1 1/2 cup water

Preheat your oven to 375, get a small pot of water boiling, and have another bowl of ice cold water out.  As you wait for the water to boil, add one of the chopped onions and the garlic to a non-stick skillet, and saute until onions are translucent.  Add the corn, cabbage, and carrot to the skillet, and cook another 3 minutes.  Pour vegetables into a bowl, and stir in the cheddar cheese and mashed potatoes.

At this point, your water should be boiling, so immerse each cabbage leaf in the boiling water for 30 seconds, and then immediately immerse it in the ice water.  Now you can stuff your leaves.  I did one roll, so that the leaf was covering the filling, then tucked the edges in, and then finished rolling.  Place your stuffed cabbage leaves in a greased baking dish.

Stuffed leaf

Place squash, water, and the second onion in a pot and simmer until everything is tender, and then blend the squash mixture in a vitamix or food processor.  Stir in ricotta and parsley after blending, and pour the sauce over the stuffed cabbage.  Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Fresh out of the oven - delicious!