The only thing that excites me more than food itself, is meeting other “foodies” who share a similar love and passion towards eating. So when I had the privellage of meeting two wonderful food lovers, Sarah & Kate, this semester in Nutrition class I was beyond ecstatic.
"YOU SPEAK FOOD TOO!?"
These two ladies not only spoke food, but they also spoke bacon. I knew we were going to become great friends.
After countless hours of spending our precious class time food blogging, food gawking, and near salivating, we decided that a girl’s night with good wine & food was long overdue.
So what does a girl’s night look like when you put three food loving nutrition dorks in a room together? Good food. No, extremely good food. A lot of food pictures (with no complaining or rolling of the eyes), and a lot of I should have gone to culinary school talks.
I brought to the table Avocado Deviled Eggs, Katie brought some killer Zucchini Brownies (recipe post soon to come) & Sarah made these wonderful savory Quinoa Cabbage Rolls.
The cabbage rolls were mind blowing! I kept thinking—“I can’t wait to share this recipe, I can’t wait to share this recipe” during each and every bite. So ladies & gents, I present to you…..
Quinoa & Bacon Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
Recipe Adapted From:
Return of the Garden Food Blog & The Lovely Sarah Slocombe
1 medium head of cabbage
2 c. cooked quinoa
1 – 2 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
3 celery sticks, finely chopped
3 clove of garlic, minced
6 thick strips of bacon
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1/8 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp. fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. dried rosemary
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tbsp. corn starch
2 cups of tomato or pasta sauce
- Core the end of the cabbage (be careful to keep the leaves intact). Steam the entire cabbage in a large pot until soft (about 8-10 minutes).
2. While the cabbage is steaming, slice the bacon & cook on medium-high heat until brown & crispy. Remove from heat & transfer to a plate lined with paper towel.
3. Saute the onion, celery & carrot in the bacon fat until soft. Add in the minced garlic, salt, pepper, cornstarch and all the herbs/seasonings. Saute for 1 minute and remove from heat.
4. In a mixing bowl combine cooked quinoa, sautéed vegetables, bacon, and ½- ¾ cup of the tomato or pasta sauce. Mix well.
5. Carefully remove the cabbage from the pot. Very gently, pull each cabbage leaf away from the head. Lay a cabbage leaf on your work surface and add a spoonful of filling in the center. Fold in the side of the leaf and roll it up; tuck it into the prepared baking dish seam side down. Repeat for the remaining leaves and filling.
6. Once the dish is full, slowly pour the remaining tomato or pasta sauce over the rolls.
7.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes. Serves 4-6.
