The Cabbage Bowl
Originally, this post began as The State of the Cabbage, but there’s been enough shredding in that competition this week. I’m going to switch to an equally attention-grabbing tradition with epic rivalries, wanton excess, pledged loyalty, and statement-making food to mark the occasion. Grilling in game gear and repping your colors is as American as apple pie, but apples aren’t really in season right now, however, you can still find fresh apples (and maybe even a whole pie) at the market. But if you really want to up your score against every judgmental hipster in your sports-watching circle, this is the year to pull out one of those reach-across the isle dishes that is sure to hit all the bases of seasonal, local, nutritious, and delicious for everyone who gathers together to watch football, music, and commercials. The best part is you can pick up all the ingredients Sunday morning at market and have the perfect meal to share with a crowd ready to go long before kick-off.
Football season will come to an end on Sunday, but cabbage season is still going strong. There are varieties from which to choose—cannon ball, napa, savoy, and red. All are members of the Brassica family. Their dense, leafy heads range from pale green, almost white smooth leaves to textured leaves of deep green to contrasting purple and white. Cabbages offer a big bang for the buck in terms of both nutrition and volume. True story: when my elementary school field trip when to a local pumpkin patch each student was allowed to pick a pumpkin out of one of the large harvest bins. Beside the pumpkins was a bin of cabbages. I asked if I could have one of those instead and picked out the biggest one I could carry. What was going through my head at the time? Grandma Miller’s coleslaw she always made for Thanksgiving.
Often the underdog in fine dining, cabbage has long held the championship for winter storage. Last week one of the veggie vendors passed around several large heads of cabbage to fellow farmers stating the obvious as we felt the wilting outer leaves that had been previously frozen. While we knew that peeling off the outer layers would reveal a perfectly fine cabbage, the customers might not be too keen on the injured players. Mine has fed me all week as I roasted the entire thing and have been using bits and pieces for assorted meals like bubbles & squeak and in soup.
But in honor of the game between the Chiefs and Eagles I’m deeming stuffed cabbage leaves the official bipartisan meal for mixed company pot lucks on game day. You’ve got your green leaves and the red tomato sauce giving each team their due. There are plenty of recipes out on the web, including the directions for cooking and stuffing the cabbage leaves. Some are stuffed with meat and rice, others using strictly vegetarian ingredients. Hint: don’t mix meat and vegetarian cabbage rolls in the same baking dish. This will earn you a penalty from the non-meat eaters. If you really want to cheat, though, procure your favorite sausage and simply wrap them in the cabbage leaves and cover with a good tomato sauce. You’ll be the winner no matter how the game turns out.
And if you’re like me who’d rather watch paint dry than sports on television, check out the gorgeous artwork of Edward Weston (1886-1958) whose photographs of cabbages inspired the subject for Dishing the Dirt this week.