IMAGINATION FOR CABBAGE

New Zealand Listener, Volume 13, Issue 327, 28 September 1945, Page 22

IMAGINATION FOR CABBAGE

N American food specialist has called the cabbage the Vitamin King of Vegetables. It certainly has been moved forward, lately, from the back seat it used to occupy. Even the outside green leaves, which we used to throw away, are now discovered to be important. A few years ago, spinach ranked highest among vitamin-rich vegetables; now it is found to be not so wonderful after all, and carrots, cabbages, and onions have the spotlight. However, we might use a little more imagination in the serv« ing of cabbage. Even when shredded small, steamed tender for only a short time in very little water, then welldrained and chopped and seasoned, it still remains the old boiled cabbage, although the flavour is a hundred times better than when it used to be covered with water and boiled for an indefinitely long time. Still, here are some modern ideas: Five-Minute Cabbage (from Illinois) They reckon their shredded raw cabbage by a quart measure, and sayBring 3 cups of milk to boiling point. Add 1% quarts of shredded cabbage, and boil for 2 minutes. Add % cup thin cream (top milk?) and 3 tablespoons butter, 3 tablespoons flour, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste, all blended well together. Cook rapidly for 3 or 4 minutes.

scalloped Cabbage (from Illinois) ‘ Place 4 cups chopped cabbage in a mixing bowl; sprinkle over it 2 teaspoons flour; 42 teaspoon paprika; 14 teaspoon salt; a shake of pepper; 14 teaspoon mustard; and 1 cup milk. Mix and place in a greased baking dish. Cover with strips of very thin bacon. Cover with lid, and cook in a 400deg. oven until cabbage is tender. Remove lid for last few minutes so that the bacon is brown and crisp. Cabbage Curry Cut well-washed cabbage into strips; put into saucepan with very little water, and about 2o0z. ham; cook till tender. Have ready prepared % cup desiccated coconut, 3 powdered chilies (or some chili powder); % grated onion; some chopped parsley; 2 teaspoons good curry powder, 44 teaspoon cinnamon, and: a dash of Worcester sauce. Mix all together with the cooked cabbage, add a good squeeze of lemon juice, make very hot and serve. A Daisy Chain Idea : This one came from one of ourselves, The idea is to help out with the meat coupons. Grease a pudding basin and line it with a layer of cabbage leaves which have been parboiled whole. Cover with a thick layer of sausage meat, which has beer’ mixed with a little grated onign, or herbs or chopped parsley, or all three. Some breadcrumbs, too, may be mixed with the sausage meat if liked. Cover this with another

layer of parboiled whole cabbage leaves. Repeat layers till basin is full. Cover with greased paper and boil or steam for an hour or two, the longer the better. Scottish Method Trim off outside leaves, Cut in thin slices right across the heart of the cabbage; wash, shake, press out most of the water, and then put into a clean fryingpan or stew-pan (shallow), and cover with a lid-no water. Steam gently till tender-about 15 minutes or less. Add butter, pepper, and salt and serve with toast-fingers. : Stuffed Cabbage (with fresh meat) This is a Scandinavian idea. Make a forcemeat with minced fresh meat-veal and a little bacon make a nice mixture, Mix the meat with soaked bread squeezed dry, pepper, salt, nutmeg, and a little milk or beaten egg. Hollow out a firm cabbage by slicing off the stalk end and scooping out the centre with!a sharp knife. Fill the hollow with the forcemeat, and cover the opening with cabbage leaves, or with the cut-off top as a lid. Secure with fine string. Steam in tightly covered saucepan with very little water for 2 hours. Stuffed Cabbage (with left-over meat) Cook until half-tender a mediumsized, well-rounded cabbage, whole. Then turn it upside-down to drain. Meanwhile, make the stuffing with any minced cold-meat mixed with bread-

crumbs, chopped onion, chopped parsley and seasoned with pepper and salt and a little mace or nutmeg or curry powder as desired. The stuffing can be moistened with beaten egg, or even milk, as usual, but have it fairly dry. Take the drained cabbage, turn the leaves back carefully, and arrange the stuffing in between. Form a circle of strips of bacon around the. outside of the cabbage, and tie round with fine string to keep it together. Return to steamer and cook until tender-not very long.