Tags
cabbage, ethnic, food, foodie, galumpkis, golabki, green cabbage, postaday2011, purple cabbage, recipe, red cabbage, rice
I loved when my mom used to make galumpkis for dinner. A few weeks ago I was going to make some, but I wanted to jazz up the traditional galumpkis by using green and purple cabbage. I went to my fridge only to find what I thought was cabbage was a head of lettuce and radicchio, so I ended up baking the filling in a pie dish. Galumpkis Lesson #1, lettuce does not work!
Yesterday, I knew I had purple cabbage and green cabbage. So it was round two in my kitchen, game on!
Galumpkis Before Baking
Ingredients:
6 purple cabbage leaves, 6 green cabbage leaves, 1 Tbsp. celery seeds, 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, 1/4 c. dry red wine, 1 egg, 1 lb. ground meat (I use chicken), 3 c. cooked rice, tomato sauce, minced garlic, minced onions, fresh ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper, 1/2 c. extra sharp grated cheddar cheese (optional, I separate the filling and add this to Hubster’s, but not mine.)
Directions:
Bring a pot of water and celery seeds to a slow boil. Preheat oven 350ºF. Warm olive oil in skillet over medium heat and brown meat with garlic and onions. Remove from heat and mix in red wine, cooked rice, 3 Tbsp. tomato sauce, egg, salt and pepper. Combine ingredients throughly. Add purple cabbage leaves to water and allow to slowly boil for about 5 minutes. Add green cabbage leaves and boil for 3 minutes. Galumpkis Lesson #2, purple cabbage leaves are thicker and take longer to soften. Remove leaves from water with tongs. Galumpkis Lesson #3, purple cabbage leaves will stain your fingernails. Add filling to base of the leaf, fold bottom up and sides in and roll towards the top. Place galumpkis in casserole dish. Continue with remaining leaves and filling. Pour tomato sauce over galumpkis and bake for 45 minutes. Serve hot.
Galumpkis
*I used scissors to trim the bottom of the purple cabbage. Galumpkis Lesson #4, remember common sense! When you knock your scissors into the small space between the counter & hot oven, do not reach for them with your hand.
*My friend gave me her Grandmother’s Polish tip… she suggested I mix sweet & sour sauce with traditional tomato sauce for this recipe. I mixed up a small batch to taste before adding… and was really glad I didn’t waste all my sauce. Galumpkis Lesson #5, make sure your friend’s Grandmother is really Polish (not Italian) before taking her advice.
Last night’s dinner was definitely a production. What have you learned or relearned in the kitchen recently?
Young Wifey's Blog 
My grandmother always called these pigs in a blanket for some reason, even though there was no pig in there. In my Jewish cookbook they’re called Holishkis. Both my grandma’s and the cookbook use a bit of vinegar with the tomato sauce, so I guess its similar to the sweet and sour mix your friend mentioned! I’ve never tried it with chicken–will have to give it a go!
The sweet and sour mix was just not what I thought, I’d rather have an actual recipe for sour tomato sauce. Maybe I’ll try vinegar next time.
Oh my – talk about a blast from the past – an Italian friend of mines mother taught me to make this when I was in junior school and I vividly remember making it for my family and nobody was allowed into the kitchen while I was cooking. Hee hee.
🙂 Mandy
Cute memory!
I make mine very similarly to you but never used red wine. I have 2 tips for you (and yes, I have a Polish grandma and a Ukrainian Grandpa). Tip #1 – Before rolling the cabbage, use a paring knife to thin the vein, slice it on the outside of the leaf to make it uniform thickness. Tip # 2 – I also use fresh dill. I brown onions, celery and dill in butter and add it to the cooked rice and egg before I add the meat. It seems to get away from the Italian taste , omit the garlic and use tomato paste instead of tomato sauce. Weird as it may sound (and this may be a trade secret), My grandma uses a mix of Hunt’s tomato paste and Campbells tomato soup!
Also, for what I have dubbed “Lazy Golubki” I make the mix and mince cabbage into a casserole dish, I find that if I save the big green leaves to cover it all, you don’t get those burned bits, or just use foil loose.
Next time you are in England, look for the cabbage that they have there (not sure what kind it is). They have cabbage that is more football shaped as opposed to round, it is SO much easier to fill and roll.
Thanks Amanda! Sounds great!
Thanks for coming by my place. I enjoyed reading your blog and seeing your great recipes. Your header made me drool! Have a great weekend.
Oh, thank you!
Haha, I love reading all your lessons… especially #4! That sounds like one I would need to keep in mind. 😉
Haha!
Mmm…it’s been a while since I’ve had these! But I’ve never made them myself. Do you think it would taste like it’s missing something to omit the meat? Sometimes I do curse being a vegetarian…Any suggestions in place of it?
I was veggie until college… My mom used TVP in them! I loved them just as much!