Cabbage Rolls & Spring Break...

For us, Saturday was officially the first day of Spring Break.  We're nearing the end of the school year here, in the home stretch.  Kindergarten if officially two months from being over.  I'm full of mixed emotions about this... On one hand, I can't wait to have a break from homework, school projects, reading assignments, ect... But, on the other hand, my baby girls is growing up so fast!  I wish I could just slow it down a little bit.  Alas, as this weekend officially marked the beginning of Spring Break, we were super busy enjoying ourselves! So much so, that I didn't even get a chance to post a new recipe that I worked on last week.  I'm finally getting some time to write tonight, so I'm sharing my new recipe for Cabbage Rolls with you!

This recipes is hearty, sweet and savory, and oh, so, satisfying!  It does take a little effort in the prep, but definitely worth it!  Plus it makes enough for 8 people, and since I only needed enough to feed four, I froze the rest and have a pre-made dinner ready to pull out and bake at a minute's notice.  Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Ingredients
1 head of cabbage, core removed and leaves peeled off
1lb. of ground pork
1lb. of lean ground beef
1/2 cup of golden raisins, divided (1/4 for meat mixture, 1/4 for sauce)
1 can of diced tomatoes
3 tbs of tomato paste
1 tbs of brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp of pepper
2 tbs garlic powder, divided (1tbs for sauce, 1tbs for meat mixture)
2 dashes of Worcestershire sauce
2 tbs of apple cider vinegar
2 tbs of Italian seasoning, divided (1tbs for sauce, 1tbs for meat mixture)
1 cup of long grain white rice
1 onion finely diced
3 tbs olive oil
1/2 cup whole milk

Directions:
1.  In a large mixing bowl combine meat, rice, onion, 1 tbs Italian seasoning, 1 tbs garlic powder 1/4 cup of raisins, olive oil and milk.
2: Blanch cabbage leaves in boiling salted water for 2-3 minutes until pliable.
3. Spoon a couple of tablespoons of the meat mixture into each cabbage leaf.  Gently fold in the sides and roll up. (Similar to rolling an egg roll or burrito.)
4. In a small sauce pan add the diced tomatoes and tomato paste.  Add the vinegar, Worcestershire, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and the rest of the Italian seasoning, raisins and garlic powder.  Simmer over medium low heat for about 5 minutes.
5. Spoon about half of the sauce mixture into the bottom of a baking dish.  Add the Cabbage Rolls to the baking dish and spoon the rest of the sauce over the rolls.
6.  Cover the baking dish with foil and bake at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes.
7. Serve immediately & enjoy!!