Savoy Cabbage Rolls with Ground Turkey and Wild Rice Blend

I had such a disaster making cabbage rolls the last time I did it, I swore I would never do them again, or only make "unstuffed cabbage rolls".   It's not what you'd consider a swift weeknight dinner either.  I thought I'd give Savoy cabbage a try this time and see what happened...this recipe inspired me tonight though I did my own thing.  What I used:

• 1 large head of Savoy cabbage, core removed
• 1 lb extra lean ground turkey
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 jar of Rao's Vodka sauce (680 ml)
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon of "Kitchen Bouquet" (I have an aversion to the whiteness of cooked ground turkey so this was for color purposes)
• Few good shakes of Worcestershire sauce, to taste
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon Trader Joe's no salt "21 Seasoning Salute"
• 2 cups of cooked "Lundberg" wild rice blend
• Kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
• Fresh parsley, finely chopped for garnish

I was going to make homemade "Marinara" sauce, but after work (tough day) I made a detour on the way to my car and bought some Rao's instead.  

I made the rice the night before.  It takes 45 minutes to cook and I wanted it ready and cooled down when I started.  I started with the cabbage.  

I cored it, and then hammered a heavy fork into it.  

This was handy as it worked as a handle.  I brought a large dutch oven pot of salted water to a boil.  I placed the cabbage in and turned gently until it was easy to pull the leaves off.  I left them in the water, but it was not boiling now.  I turned the heat off at this point.  

Honestly, this was so painless, I was done in under 5 minutes.  I left a ball of small yellow leaves to the side.  I dumped into a strainer and drained them well.  

I cut the tough rib out of each leaf and then put them on a plate until needed.  For the filling, I sauteed the onion and garlic in the olive oil until soft.  I mixed in the turkey and stirred until cooked.  I sprinkled in the seasoning, S&P and liquid seasonings.  Then I put the rice in and combined well.  I tasted.  Mmm good, and that was done.  I let it cool down.

I used cooking spray on a 9" x 13" baking dish.  I spread a thin layer of vodka sauce down.  

Then I went about stuffing the leaves.  I rolled them like you would do for a wrap or burrito.  

I had a couple of tears as in rips, but this was pretty easy and I actually had lots of leaves leftover.  However, the filling worked out just right for the dish and leaves I made.  

I spread the rolls with the remaining sauce and covered with tinfoil.  I put these into a preheated 350°F oven for 1 hour.  It was boiling, so I let it cool 15 minutes after it came out.  I garnished with parsley and served.  The recipe I looked at garnished with sour cream.  That was only appealing to me if pierogies were going to be involved.  However, my son thought it was a great idea, so he got some.  

Lets' just say I like Savoy cabbage way more than regular green cabbage.  It is sweeter and doesn't take as long to cook as it's not so tough (though at an hour, it was still under cooked, ever so slightly.  I should have boiled it which I didn't do).  These were really tasty.  I can say this is the first serving of cabbage rolls my son has ever liked/eaten.  Savoy cabbage for the win (at least when it's in season)...And, I've made weeknight dinners that were much more time consuming than this dish took tonight.