Cabbage Rolls

1. Wash rice thoroughly. Combine rice with 4 cups water in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until all of the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, remove cabbage cores using a thin, long knife. Place one cabbage in a microwave-proof container with the cored part facing down. Pour 1/2 cup water into the container, cover, and microwave on high for 10 minutes.

3. Carefully turn cabbage over, and cook, covered, for an additional 10 minutes. Let cabbage sit until it is cool enough to handle, then separate leaves carefully and remove any tough ribs. Cook the second cabbage in the same manner.

4. Sauté 1/2 of the onions in 3 tablespoons butter; cook just until translucent (do not brown). Combine the cooked and uncooked rice, cooked and uncooked onions, ground beef, pork sausage, garlic, dill weed, salt, black pepper, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Mix until incorporated.

5. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of mixture onto each cabbage leaf. Bring one end of the cabbage leaf over the mixture, rolling and tucking in the ends to prevent the filling from falling out.

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place leftover cabbage leaves on the bottoms of two 9x13-inch casserole dishes. Arrange cabbage rolls in a single layer so they are tight against each other.

7. Purée tomatoes and condensed tomato soup in a food processor or blender. Pour tomato mixture over the cabbage rolls until just covered. Place 4 bay leaves on top of sauce in each dish. Cover each dish tightly with foil.

8. Bake in the preheated oven for 2 hours. Remove from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes before removing the foil. Serve hot.

Editor's Note:

This recipe appeared in Allrecipes Magazine and was modified to use tomato juice in place of tomato soup. Please note differences in ingredient amounts and cooking time when following the magazine version of this recipe.