Originally Posted by wraez

Yes, boil the leaves to tender BUT then take a paring knife and shave down the spine, don't cut it out, just shave it thinner to make the leaf pliable to roll your stuffing in it.

warm quilt hugs, sue in CA

Originally Posted by Catherine Marie

My Ukrainian mom taught me how to make cabbage rolls but an Hungarian friend helped me tweak them so that they are even better. I like to cook mine in a large dutch oven. First I line the bottom of the pot with pieces of the discarded or small leaves. Then I layer them into the pot but on top of each layer, I place a heaping helping of sauerkraut. When I finish with each layer and have filled the pot, I pour in a large can of tomato juice. Enough so that I can see the juice come up the sides. Cover the pot, turn on the burner to low and then let them bubble and cook away.

Originally Posted by Feather3

I just made 106 of them! I make a years worth at a time. I buy large heads of cabbage. Make sure they are not split. I make up my filling before I start the cabbage. Remove outter leaves. Using a heavy blade knife, I cut around the core & remove it. I then place it in a large pot of boiling water, core end up. The head needs to be completely under the water. It takes a few to several minutes for the leaves to get soft enough to remove. I use tongs to pull the leaves off as they soften. I lay them on a large platter to cool a few minutes. As the leaves soften & start to turn translucent I keep pulling them off. If I need to cut more core out I remove the head from the water(I use a 2 prong meat fork in the core), let the water drain out, set it on cutting board, cut it & put it back in. I use as many leaves as I can, even down to the tiny ones. I make baby sized rolls :). Hate waste. While I wait for leaves to soften in the water I stuff the ones I already took off. Place leaf with stem end towards you. Place your filling in. Fold the sides in (right, then left), then fold the leaf end, then the stem end. Your filling should not squish out. They don't need toothpicks to hold them shut if you fold this way. After I have them all made I divide them up into portions for meals, place them in a plastic bag & freeze them. After 24 hours in the freezer I then put the packages in a paper bag. Paper bags help keep things from getting freezer burn. They'll keep for a full year this way. When you remove them from the freezer let them set at room temp for abut 30 minutes. They'll break apart easy, with no damage. Been doing them this way for over 40 years now.