Every year on Sukkos, one of the things I look forward to most is my grandmother’s stuffed cabbage, or her beloved cabbage soup. It’s one of those recipes that tastes like home, filled with memories and nostalgia, and no Sukkos feels quite complete without it. This year, I spent Sukkos in Peru, and while it was an incredible experience, I came home craving that familiar taste of my grandmother’s recipe. I hadn’t gotten my annual fix, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Bubby’s cabbage soup has always been one of my ultimate comfort foods. Her secret ingredients were green apple and golden raisins, which gave the sweet-and-sour sauce its signature flavor. It’s the kind of dish that takes me right back to my childhood with just one bite. Unfortunately, my kids don’t share my enthusiasm for the soup and while I’ve made countless variations of my grandmother’s recipe over the years, including stuffed cabbage cocktail dogs and stuffed cabbage Bolognese, I wanted to come up with something that would satisfy my craving while being something my kids would actually get excited about.
Enter stuffed cabbage meatballs! All the nostalgic flavors of my grandmother’s stuffed cabbage, but in a familiar form!
And wouldn’t you know it? The kids absolutely loved them! They got a meatball dinner they were excited to eat, and I got all the comfort and nostalgia of my grandmother’s stuffed cabbage. A win-win for all!
Stuffed Cabbage Meatballs
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lg onion, peeled and sliced thinly into half rings
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 heaping tbsp tomato paste
1/2 large head of cabbage, shredded (about 1 1/2 bags preshredded)
28oz. can crushed tomatoes
3 cups water
Juice of 2 lemons
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 green apple, grated
1/4 cup golden raisins
salt and pepper, to taste
Meatballs:
2 lbs ground beef
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 eggs
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Method:
In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until softened, add garlic and saute until fragrant. Add the tomato paste and continue to saute for 2 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, water, lemon juice, brown sugar, apple and raisins and bring the mixture to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper, add the cabbage and cook until wilted, about 10 minutes. If the sauce seems too thick (this will depend on how big your cabbage is), you may add a bit more water before adding the meatballs (if it seems too thin, it will thicken as it cooks). Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking (adding more brown sugar if you like it sweeter, or more lemon juice if you like it more sour).
In a medium bowl, combine the meatball ingredients. Form into small balls and drop into the simmering sauce. Simmer, covered, for 1 hour.
Related Recipes:
Bubby’s Cabbage Soup with Flanken
Stuffed Cabbage Cocktail Dogs
Stuffed Cabbage Bolognese
Passover Stuffed Cabbage
Can you do it with the instant pot.
I don’t see why not.
How about adding some rice to the meatballs and some raisins to the sauce?
Did you read the recipe? There are raisins in the sauce.
I have made the meatballs with rice in the past, I prefer it without.