Recipe: Pete's Red Cabbage Rolls

PETE'S RED CABBAGE ROLLS

"This recipe works especially well with leftover rice and/or tomato sauce. It also comes together quickly, looks beautiful and tastes even better. You can cook the leaves a day ahead, wrap them flat in plastic and refrigerate them until you're ready to make the rolls. For a wine pairing, I like to serve a nice, inexpensive verdicchio."

1 (2 1/2- to 3-pound) head red cabbage (you won't use it all for this recipe but it needs to be large enough to get leaves for the rolls)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
3 tablespoons minced shallot
1 clove minced garlic
1 heaping cup diced firm summer squash
1 medium bell pepper, stemmed, cored and minced (about 4 ounces)
3 tablespoons minced fresh oregano
1/4 to 1/2 cup white wine or broth
1 heaping cup cooked rice or quinoa
1 to 2 cups marinara or tomato sauce, or sauce of your liking
2 to 3 ounces grated hard cheese (I like Locatelli pecorino Romano)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring a deep, wide pot of water to a boil. Sever 8 whole leaves from the head of cabbage. (If the leaves are small, or your appetites big, cut 12 leaves.) Do not notch or cut the center rib out of the leaf yet.

Sink the whole leaves into the boiling water for 21/2 minutes. The leaves will remain underwater if you put the rounded sides down; it also makes them easier to remove. Near the stove, but not on it, set a colander inside a rimmed pan. Retrieve the cooked leaves with tongs by catching the thick end of the rib. Place the leaves directly in the colander, give them a little shake and allow them to cool and drain well; do not soak the leaves in a cold-water bath.

In a wide saute pan, heat olive oil over medium heat; toss in the salt, pepper, shallot, garlic, summer squash, bell pepper and oregano. Saute 3 minutes, turning gently with a wooden utensil.

Add the wine or broth. Gently fold in the cooked rice or quinoa just until it's mixed. Remove from heat.

If necessary, notch an inch of so of thick ribs from those leaves larger than about 7 inches in diameter; smaller leaves will be supple enough to roll. Turn the leaf on a work surface so the largest part of the rib is toward you and its natural cup is up. Place 3 tablespoons of the stuffing on the half of the leaf closest to you. Flop the leaf over the mound of stuffing, roll it forward slightly, then bring the sides over to the center and roll the leaf over into a nice package. Place the roll, seam side down, in a baking dish.

Drizzle sauce over the rolls, cover baking dish with foil or lid and bake about 25 minutes, or until rolls are hot throughout. Remove foil, top rolls with the grated cheese and broil until cheese melts. Serve cabbage rolls warm.

Makes 8 rolls, about 4 servings
Source: The Oregonian, October 9, 2007