Tag Archives: Cabbage

Recipes - Soups, Stews, & Chowders

Cabbage Patch Stew

The first hint of cooler weather in the air today was the impetus for trying this recipe for Cabbage Patch Stew.  I found the recipe in Thelma Carlile’s “Mealtimes and Memories” cookbook and adjusted it slightly (I wanted more than 1 cup of cabbage in the pot!).  The temperature dropped even more by suppertime yet I was completely happy enjoying this queen-of-comfort-food dish along with a tray of cornbread muffins.  If you are a fan of cabbage, stewed tomatoes, and mashed potatoes (and who isn’t?) then this is a recipe you will find yourself reaching for repeatedly as temperatures drop.

I did use more than the original amount of cabbage called for and added more stewed tomatoes than listed.  I adjusted the amount of water to allow for the extra vegetables and added a beef bouillon cube for a richer flavor to the broth.  Do prepare your vegetables before you begin browning the ground beef and allow the cabbage, onions, and celery to simmer slowly until softened.  Taste the broth as you go and season accordingly.

Prepare mashed potatoes for topping individual bowls of the stew. I used a packaged mashed potato mix as it made exactly the 2 cups I wanted. The potatoes add contrasting texture and thicken the broth slightly. A side of cornbread muffins is all I needed to complete this simple, yet satisfying meal. This light stew will have you feeling warm and cozy in no time,  reminding you that autumn is on her way.

Cabbage Patch Stew

Ingredients

1 lb. ground chuck, browned
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups cabbage, shredded
1/2 cup celery, sliced thinly
1-(16 oz.) can red kidney beans, drained
1-(16 oz.) can stewed tomatoes, drained and snipped smaller
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. chili powder
2 cups prepared mashed potatoes

Directions: In a pan sprayed with cooking spray, brown the meat over medium heat. Add onions, cabbage, and celery; cook until soft. Add water to cover (approximately 3 cups); simmer with lid on, 15 minutes. Add beans, tomatoes, and seasonings and cook 15-20 minutes more. Serve in bowls topped with spoonfuls of mashed potatoes.  Lightly add pepper to the potatoes and serve warm.

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Recipes - Side Dishes

Country Cabbage

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A rainy day seemed a good day for preparing this dish; it is colorful, nutritious, and mama and I love it!  Reasons enough to get out the electric skillet and mix up this combination of cabbage, vegetables, and bacon!  Mashed potatoes on the side a must!

This simple dish has a quick prep. Shred the cabbage and prepare the vegetables and you’re ready to go. Saute the vegetables in the reserved bacon drippings, add the cabbage, the seasonings and the tomatoes (with juice) and let it cook covered. With 5 cups of cabbage in this dish, I find my high-sided electric skillet best for mixing the cabbage well with the other vegetables and the liquid from the stewed tomatoes.  Cook only until the cabbage is fork tender.  I allow this to sit, covered, a few minutes after cooking to allow the flavors to mingle and the cabbage to soften. This makes a perfect side dish for meatloaf or a pot of beans and any leftovers are fine microwaved for one more serving.

It really is country good, y’all!

Country Cabbage

Ingredients

3-4 slices bacon, cooked, drained, crumbled
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup celery, chopped
5 cups cabbage, shredded
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1-(16 oz.) can stewed tomatoes, chopped small

Directions Fry bacon; drain, crumble, and set aside. Reserve drippings in pan. Add onion, green pepper and celery to bacon grease. Cook until tender but not browned, about 3 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to simmer in skillet. Reduce heat to medium low; cover, and cook 8-10 minutes longer or until the cabbage is tender. Top with the crumbled bacon and serve immediately.

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Recipes - Soups, Stews, & Chowders

Beef Barley Soup

Beef Barley Soup

I do guarantee that today’s post is the end of the ‘what to do with left over roast beef’ recipes, but, after discovering a few thick slices of the roast in the fridge yesterday, I knew today’s choice had to be a pot of Beef Barley Soup. When the temperature doesn’t get out of the 30’s all day, it is definitely soup and cornbread time. For lunch AND for supper because this soup only gets better as it sits, allowing the flavors to mingle.  It also reheats well the next day.

The barley’s rich nut-like flavor adds a robust pop to the broth in addition to the beef stock and red cooking wine and it also  serves as a thickener for the liquid, providing another layer of texture to the tender vegetables. Nothing fancy here as the vegetables are those you likely already have on hand: potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, and cabbage. Feel free to add vegetables of your choosing or to omit any I have listed; the recipe is versatile in that way.  The pieces of left over roast beef make for a savory dish all around, really a meal in itself, and just  one hour start to finish if you bake up the cornbread muffins while the soup simmers.  Nothing to do then but  sit down and enjoy with gusto and be happy you did!

Beef Barley Soup

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1-1/2 cups onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup carrots chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
10 cups beef-flavored stock
3/4 cup barley
1 bay leaf
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/2 cup red cooking wine
2 cups potatoes, peeled & cubed
2 cups leftover roast beef, diced
1-1/2 cups cabbage, chopped

Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, combine the oil, onions, celery, carrots, and garlic; sauté for 5 minutes, or until tender. Add the beef stock, barley, bay leaf and thyme and simmer until barley is softened but not mushy, about 10 minutes. Add the wine, potatoes and beef; simmer another 15 minutes and add the cabbage. Allow to simmer another 15 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot.

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Recipes - Soups, Stews, & Chowders

Vegetable Beef Soup

Vegetable Beef Soup to serve

One of the nicest things about preparing an Italian Beef Roast, aside from it being used for French Dip Sandwiches the first time around, is using the leftover roast for Vegetable Beef Soup. You can use your roast for another meal by preparing this hearty soup, and, if the day is overcast and chilly, all the better, for this soup will definitely warm your tummy AND your kitchen.

I used the recipe from my cookbook today to prepare this soup but did add 3/4 cup of the left over au jus broth from the roast for added flavor since it was available and I knew it would enhance the store-bought beef broth listed in the recipe; I also added a can of stewed tomatoes, snipped small, because I wanted to stretch my servings as the soup is for sharing tonight with my mom and her friends. Because the meat was already cooked, it didn’t need to be sauteed before beginning. Once the soup finished cooking, a quick stirring up of my favorite garlic and red pepper-flavored croutons, using French bread also left from this week’s dinner party, found both lunch and supper ready, waiting, and tempting.

You can substitute vegetables of your choice as the V8 juice base of this soup allows for many possibilities. I sometimes add lima beans, corn, or peas but today wanted to follow the cookbook recipe as closely as possible. You might also like a pan of cornbread in place of croutons; just about anything you fancy works easily with this recipe. Thirty minutes of prep work and thirty minutes of cooking and you can call everybody to the table!

Vegetable Beef Soup

Ingredients

1 T. vegetable oil
3/4 lb. boneless beef sirloin steak or beef top round steak, cut 1/2” cubes
3 cups V8 100% Vegetable Juice
1-3/4 cups beef broth
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves, crushed
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 cup potato, cut into cubes
1/2 cup carrot
1/2 cup onion, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup celery, sliced thick
Shredded cabbage, to taste

Directions Heat the oil in a 4-qt. Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until it is well-browned, stirring often. Pour off any fat. Stir the vegetable juice, broth, thyme, pepper, potato, carrot, onion and celery in the sauce pot and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 30 minutes or until the vegetables and meat are tender. If you want a thinner broth, add water as soup cooks.

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Food for Thought

Braised Cabbage & Spicy Croutons

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Braised Cabbage Croutons
croutons prepared in electric skillet

 

Braised Cabbage & Spicy Croutons 6

Not sure about you but there’s something about winter that leads to a craving for cabbage, turnips or carrots at my house. I bought cabbage yesterday but wasn’t sure what I was going to use it for. Until lunch time today.

This recipe from my cookbook collection has just enough  bite from the red pepper flakes to thoroughly warm you and your kitchen on a very cold day. The croutons are quickly prepared and set aside then a quick simmer of the cabbage and you’re all set.  25 minutes from start to finish resulting in a dish that can stand alone as it did for my lunch or a large bowl for serving on the side, its intended purpose  at my house tonight with  meatloaf.

I did use 2 T. of butter today instead of the one tablespoon the original recipe calls for because I cut the bread into two-bite pieces. Eating the croutons with your fingers provides the chance to really taste their olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flake seasonings. 15 minutes at 300 is perfect for braising the cabbage until it is just tender.  Use your electric skillet for preparing  this as you will need the room to spread out the six large cabbage wedges.  I drizzled 1/2 tsp. more olive oil over the bowl before digging in.

Thanks to friend, Dodie Conrad, for supplying me with the fresh parsley sprigs from her indoor pot.  Our market didn’t have fresh parsley today, and Dodie rescued the recipe by bringing over that small, but essential, ingredient.  Yet another advantage of living in a small town to be sure.  =)

Braised Cabbage & Spicy Croutons

Ingredients

1 T. olive oil
1 T. butter
1/3 coarse bread baguette torn into 1” cubes to equal 2 cups
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 small head cabbage cut into six wedges
1/2 cup water
Salt and pepper, to taste
Fresh parsley for garnish
Lemon wedges for garnish

Directions In large skillet, heat oil and butter over medium heat. Add bread, garlic powder, and crushed red pepper flakes. Cook and stir 3-5 minutes until golden brown. Remove croutons from skillet with slotted spoon and cool on paper towel.

Add cabbage to skillet, overlapping wedges if needed. Season with salt and pepper and add water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer, covered, 15 minutes or until tender. Place cabbage on serving platter, drizzle with small amount olive oil if needed. Sprinkle with croutons and garnish with parsley and lemon wedges.

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