Insider’s Viewpoint: A Polish Easter Tradition

Holidays are filled with family traditions and Easter is no exception: decorating and hunting eggs, visiting Easter bunnies, and wearing beautifully elaborate bonnets. After visiting a friend on Easter, there is one traditional food that stole my heart, the Golabki, often referred to as Golumpki in the United States. Golumpkis are cabbage rolls often filled with meat, rice, veggies, and stewed in a tomato sauce. They smell and taste incredible! Whether or not you decide to add these to your Easter meal, you should give Golumpkis a try for a delicious way to get more veggies on your plate.

Vegetarian Golumpki
Makes 12 ‘rolls’

Ingredients

• 1 large head cabbage (green or red)
• 1 jar of tomato sauce
• 1½ cups brown rice
• 1½ cups lentils
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasonings
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste
• Parsley for garnish

Directions

1. Cook lentils according to package directions, set aside.
2. Cook brown rice according to package directions, set aside.
3. Place the cabbage on the counter, and using a sharp knife, cut out and remove the stem from the cabbage head.
4. In a large stock pot, boil water, and season with sea salt. Add the whole cabbage head to the boiling water, let boil for 5 minutes, or until the outer leaf starts to pull away from the head. Using tongs, remove leaf by leaf until you have 10-12 large leaves. Let cool on a plate. Cut out one inch of the think rib, at the base of each leaf.
5. In a large pan over medium heat, sauté your diced onion in olive oil for 10-12 minutes.
6. Add the cooked lentils, cooked rice, Italian seasonings, minced garlic, and pepper to the onions. Mix to combine, let cook for 2 minutes to allow flavors to meld. Remove pan from heat.
7. Spread ½ cup of tomato sauce on the bottom of a casserole dish.
8. Lay out your cabbage leaf, and spoon ⅓ cup of the filling into the leaf. Roll in the sides, and up from the bottom. Place seam side down in the casserole dish.
9. Pour the remaining sauce over the top.
10. Cover with foil, and bake in a 350° F oven for 1 hour.

Nutrition Facts per roll: 120 calories; 3g Fat, 21g Carbohydrate, 6g Fiber, 5g Protein

Melissa Hehmann, RD CDE ACE-CPT RYT
Healthy Living Advisor
Meijer, Inc
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