Anna Sultana's Kabocca Moqlija bil-Bacon / Cabbage and Bacon, Maltese Style

Like I said yesterday, it's time to cook vegetables with more heft.

Frankly, I'm a little tired of lettuce.

Lettuce is great when it's too hot to cook.

And when folks don't have much of an appetite.

Eating lettuce doesn't feel like you're eating anything.

But now it's time for real meals.

Something steaming... soups, casseroles, cooked vegetables.

Broccoli is nice.

Cabbage is nice, too.

Cabbage - green or red - is one of those good-for-what-ails-you veggies.

Remember the boys' Ma cooking red cabbage in the movie A Christmas Story?

Winter... meatloaf... mashed potoes... boiled cabbage.

Yeah, cabbage!

My Ma had a cabbage recipe that was a meal in itself.

Well, it was when there was some crusty bread on the side.

Or some pasta.

                           

                    Kaboċċa moqlija bil-bacon

Shred

1 cabbage

Into a large pot pour

1/2 Cup water

Add the shredded cabbage.

Simmer until tender.  Drain.

Chop

4 rashers of bacon

In a dutch oven pour

2 Tablespoons olive oil

Add the bacon and fry.

Add the cooked cabbage.

Stir until reheated thoroughly.

Serve hot.

This, served with bread or pasta, made a meal.

Ground meat - whatever you have (as in Ma's meat pie) - could be used 

instead of bacon.

For a little variety, Ma sometimes made a one pot meal.

After adding the cabbage to the cooked bacon:

Stir in 1 cup of rice and 2 cups of water and 1 teaspoon salt.

Cover and cook until the rice is done, about 20 minutes.

Some folks stuff cabbage leaves with cooked rice.

This is way easier.

Someone should tell them...