Best Grandma Milkas Sodoma Croatian Cabbage Rolls Recipes

CROATIAN SARMA RECIPE (STUFFED CABBAGE ROLLS)

Steps:

• Take an entire pickled cabbage head. You'll find these on Amazon or in European delicatessens in the chilled section. Wash each leaf thoroughly. Remove the thick part of the stem without tearing the leaves. It's best to allow the leaves to drain on some paper towel or pat each one dry
• Take a large mixing bowl, and combine mincemeat, speck, garlic, parsley leaves, soda water or bicarbonate soda, rice, Vegeta, hot paprika (optional), sweet paprika (optional), breadcrumbs (optional), Salt and pepper, egg & olive oil
• Mix all of the ingredients until well combined
• You want each of the leaves to be about the same size so that each cabbage roll cooks at the same time. So go ahead and cut any large leaves in half, and also join two smaller leaves together as you go
• Take approx 3 tablespoons of the minced meat, and gently combine in the palm of your hand. Do not roll or compress as this will make them too dense when you eat them
• Place the meat on the edge of the cabbage leaf and roll away from you. Then tuck in the sides of the leaf gently into the meat. There should be no exposed meat. If there is, remove some of the filling
• Set the sarma aside, and prepare the sauce
• In a shallow saucepan, or even better, a Le Creuset cast-Iron dish, splash in some extra virgin olive oil, add the 2 diced onions and cook until transparent on low heat. Then add the 2 diced carrots, diced speck, and parsley. Continue to fry on low heat until carrots start to soften
• Add the shredded sauerkraut and create a layer on the bottom of the saucepan. Now, pack the Croatian sarma into the saucepan. They should be packed close together.
• Pour in boiling water so that it just covers the sarma. Add the passata and a pinch of salt and pepper. Every 20 minutes, give the saucepan a shake (do not stir them or they will break) and let them simmer for 2 hours on a low-medium heat

GREAT GRANDMA SABIN'S SOUR MILK COOKIES

Steps:

• 1. Beat eggs well. Add sugar and beat. Add shortening and be continue beating. Sift dry ingredients (use 4 cups flour) together and alternating with the sour milk add to egg mixture , continue beating...slowly add additional flour until dough forms a sticky ball.
• 2. Turn dough out unto a floured surface. Slowly kneed in additional flour until the dough is not sticky on the outside but still a soft dough. divide in half and roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness. My Grandma had this large circle cookie cutter she used to make these over sized cookies. And they do work better if you make them large. I just use a glass dipped in flour to make my cookies. You can use shaped cutters but use large ones. Once you have your cookies on the tray, sprinkle with plain white sugar. You can be festive and colored sugar but I like the more traditional white sugar.
• 3. Bake about 10 minutes at 375* degrees. Bake until cookies puff up a bit and dough looks dry. Do not over cook them or they will be hard.

GRANDMA'S CABBAGE ROLLS

Steps:

• Cook cabbage in boiling water just until outer leaves pull away easily from head. Set aside 12 large leaves for rolls. Refrigerate remaining cabbage for another use. Cut out the thick vein from the bottom of each leaf, making a V-shaped cut., In a large bowl, combine the egg, onion, rice, dill, paprika, savory, salt and pepper. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Place 1/3 cup meat mixture on a cabbage leaf; overlap cut ends of leaf. Fold in sides. Beginning from the cut end, roll up. Repeat with remaining cabbage leaves and filling., Combine the sauerkraut, tomatoes and bacon. Spoon half into a 6-qt. slow cooker. Arrange six cabbage rolls, seam side down, over sauerkraut mixture. Top with remaining sauerkraut mixture and rolls. Add broth to slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until a thermometer inserted in rolls reads 160°.

SODOMA

Steps:

• Boil cabbage 45 mins (so cabbage can be used to make rolls) set aside to cool.
• cover uncooked rice with water and soak until softened.
• combine beef, pork, rice in large bowl and mix, salt and pepper to taste.
• place a cabbage leaves flat on surface, place 1-2 TBS meat and rice mixture in leaf and fold up side then roll up.
• Strain sauerkraut retaining juice, set aside juice.
• rinse sauerkraut with cool tap water.
• sprinkle sauerkraut on bottom of large roasting pan.
• place cabbage rolls and 1-2 inch pieces of kielbasa covering bottom of roasting pan, then sprinkle with sauerkraut, continue to layer rolls and sausage then saurkraut until until pan is full.
• cover with water.
• place in oven at 350 for 1 1/2 hour.
• remove from oven, add juice from sauerkraut to broth in pan as needed.
• return to oven and cook for additional 1 1/2 hour.
• leftovers freeze very well.