We're Normal

Normal, or so the weatherman tells us. I feel a little sheepish having complained about rain, rain and rain. We had nothing compared to the central part of this country but, because ours all came at an odd time, late winter and early spring, it was a pain. And what did all that rain bring us? "Normal rainfall for the year"; it has been three, maybe four years, since we have heard that. We really are grateful.

The Abutilon is just gorgeous this year and more prolific than it has ever been. This deep red one is at the side kitchen window.

This one is next to the dining room window.

Those are the good things, Now, whether it was the rain, or the up and down temperature swings they endured, this was the worst allium crop I have ever seen. The shallots are small, the garlic is tiny and the onions might do well as boiled onions. The weather had nothing to do with the almost zero pea crop. The raccoons ate most of them and I haven't quite figured out what to do about them for next year. Raccoons are smart. I skipped planting a spring crop of peas.

The wet weather brought us a bumper crop of snails. They did a lot of damage before I managed to do something about them. (See cabbage leaves below.) Finely crushed egg shells scattered around the base of the plants they were eating seems to be deterring them. Apparently they do not like to crawl over sharp objects. Who would?

The local garden columnist was commiserating with local gardeners about the problems with the plants we had put in this spring, or what we thought was spring. The season started late, and then popped back and forth from winter to spring. The plants, and those who plant, all became very confused. Some plants thrived, others just looked terrible. She advised that it might be best to just start over; it was not too late. The growers would lose that self imposed race to have the first tomato by 4 July this year, but they would have tomatoes and cucumbers if they started again, now. I am doing both those things. I bought some plants, and am nursing some that have been weakened, mostly the San Marzanos and they seem to be recovering. Here is the first of the season. Maybe they will survive.

The cabbage and broccoli I planted early spring are doing fine. Again the local columnist said June should be a cool month and the cool crops should be fine until July. If this year had any normality, they would be but just a few days after I read that we had several days of 90 degrees. That is about 20 degrees above normal. I chickened out and picked the largest cabbage. I left the other two explaining to them they were not to bolt. One may make it.

The cabbage I picked went to stuffed cabbage. It is cool enough to work in the kitchen and still cool enough in the evening to enjoy it. Some went to the freezer.

Recipe

This is an old recipe and, it seems, that each of the middle European countries has their own version. Sometimes you can detect that the recipe has been in and out of several kitchen where things were added or subtracted and methods varied regardless of the country of origin. I suspect the recipe in this family is one of those.

Stuffed Cabbage Leaves

You will need one pot large enough to hold both the cabbage and enough water to cover it.

Filling:

2 tablespoons butter

1 onion, size of a baseball, diced fine

2 celery stalks, with leaves, finely diced

1 clove garlic minced

1/4 cup minced parsley

1 tablespoon oil

3/4 pounds lean ground beef

3/4 pounds lean ground pork (or all or part veal)

1 1/2 tablespoons salt, or more to taste

1 tablespoon freshly ground pepper, or more to taste

2 cups cooked rice

Sauce:

2 16 ounce cans tomato puree

1 16 ounce can tomato sauce

3 tablespoons cider vinegar

3 tablespoons brown sugar

Sour Cream to serve

Heat butter in large skillet. Saute onion, celery and garlic until the onions are soft, but not brown. Add parsley and heat through. Remove all the vegetables to a large bowl. Increase the heat under the same skillet and add the oil. Brown the beef and pork. You may have to do this in batches so as not to crowd the meat. When the meat has browned add it to the vegetables and add rice. Mix all these ingredients together well.

In the same skillet pour tomato puree, sauce, vinegar and brown sugar. Set heat to medium and bring the sauce to simmer while scraping the bottom of the pan to release the fond (the caramelization left by the meats). Simmer about 10 minutes.

Heat the water in the large pan. Cut the core out of the cabbage. If you can't get it all the first try, wait until several leaves have been removed and cut again. When the water comes to a boil gently drop the cabbage into the water for about 1 minute. With a fork stuck into the core, remove the cabbage and break off as many leaves as can be removed easily and place them on a plate. The leaves should now be soft and pliable. Continue this process as you need leaves.

Add about two ladles of cabbage water to the sauce. Stir well and then add about a cup and a half of the sauce to the meat mixture. Mix in well. Lay out one cabbage leaf. Remove about two or three inches of the main rib, just enough to allow the leaf to bend easily. Place meat mixture on the leaf and fold the leaf around this to make a nice package. Set in a baking dish. Continue with the rest. The bundles will not be the same size. The large leaves will have more filling and the smaller ones less.

When you have filled all the leaves that can be filled, spoon the sauce over the top, cover and place in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes. Check to be sure the sauce is bubbling and, if it is, remove the cover and continue cooking another 20 to 25 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

If you have leftover meat these can be made into small meat balls or perhaps a one serving meatloaf. If you have leftover cabbage, save that small head in the fridge and chop into your next soup or mixed green stir fry.