Stuffed Cabbage ( Lahana Dolmasi )

 My mom was cooking stuffed cabbage but I never cook it before because I always think that it is hard to roll them. I tried it this time  and it wasn't hard at all. It takes time but it wasn't difficult to make them. 


 Ingredients
Filling

1 lb ground meat or turkey or ground chicken
2 big onion, chopped finely
1 cup chopped parsley
1 cup chopped dill
1/2 cup chopped basil ( optional )
1 tablespoon dry mint
1/2 cup rice, washed and drained
2 tomato, diced/1 cup crashed
1 tsp tomato paste
1 tbsp salt to taste
½ tsp black pepper
1-2 tbsp olive oil

1 head cabbage
1-2 tbsp butter, diced or olive oil
½ lemon’s juice

Preparation Method

Mix all the filling ingredients  in a bowl with a tablespoon.
Take out the outer leaves of cabbage. In a large pot place the cabbage and cover it with lightly salted water. Bring it to boil and turn the heat down to medium high. Boil it till the outer leaves start to loosen and get softer (2-3 minutes). Remove the soft leaves from the core and place them on a big plate or tray. Return the cabbage to the pot and repeat the first step until all leaves get soft and removed. Let the leaves cool for 8-10 minutes.Remove the center stalks from the leaves with a knife. Then cut the large leaves into three triangular parts and the smaller leaves into two equal parts.
Line up all the rolls in a pot. Cut the butter or olive oil  in a small pieces and place on top. Pour enough hot water mix with the 1 tablespoon tomato paste. Cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes. After the rolls are cooked squeeze lemon juice all over.