These are store cupboard and pantry days in the kitchen. Meals assembled from the toughest veg standing out in the garden, combined with those brought in to dry storage last autumn together with our own preserves and frozen supplies put away during the last growing season. With soft herbs, oriental greens and winter lettuce in the polytunnel, a variety of lentils, beans and grains in the pantry, a well-stocked spice cupboard and those ingredients that add depth and savour – think anchovies, capers, parmesan, olives, tahini, miso – there is little need to venture to the shops. And so, over the past couple of chilly weeks, we have hunkered down and eaten simply and mostly our own.
In the vegetable garden a continuation of last year’s blighted season saw all our early purple sprouting broccoli, many of the kales and even the red cabbages succumbing to the brutal freeze in early December. On one night it got down to minus 10ºC and many of the potatoes stored in paper sacks in the uninsulated barn were also frosted beyond use. ‘blue Danube’ was. the exception, retaining it’s firm, pure white flesh, so I’ve just placed an order for tubers to grow again this year. Adding insult to injury, after I had carefully nursed them through the heatwaves last summer, all but five of the sixteen celeriac were reduced to balls of slime. And the chard, usually our most dependable, productive and frostproof winter crop, have been eaten repeatedly by deer. So, although we are eating mostly our own, this year it has been a more limited diet than usual of beetroot, cabbage, pumpkin and potatoes.
When you put so much time, energy and resource into raising vegetables it is no joke when a large proportion of them don’t thrive. Of course, I can still go to the greengrocer if I need something, but there is great satisfaction in being as self-sufficient as we can be.
‘Stanton’ is the cabbage that has weathered the winter and didn’t flinch at the frosts both in December and more recently. It has proven itself to be most dependable in previous years too, producing large tight heads of crisp, pale green leaves, and weighing up to 2 kilos. Next year I plan to grow more.
Building a library of good local cultivars, shared with neighbours, is one of the great things about village gardening. Over the years of growing vegetables here I have become aware of the more reliable varieties for us, both through observation and on recommendation. The varieties that you don’t need to cosset or even think about.
Although we eat brassicas of one sort or another nearly every evening, they are always the accompaniment. Steamed or lightly boiled, dressed with butter or oil and lemon juice, perhaps a scrape of nutmeg, some garlic or chilli. But the hardy cabbages that have survived the frosts demand a more considered approach. One that pays tribute to their stalwartness and ability to provide when all else has failed.
Stuffed cabbage leaves appear in peasant cuisines across the world from Scandinavia in the north to Eastern Europe and Russia, from Central to Southern Europe and in Western Asia and China. Each country has its own version, but there are many similarities between them. The stuffing usually includes rice or breadcrumbs, ground meat – beef, lamb or pork – onions, herbs and spices. Sauces range from soured cream or yogurt through tomato, mushroom and lemon. In Asia they might contain tofu, spring onions, ginger and shitake mushrooms and be served in a crystal clear broth.
Taking inspiration from Eastern European recipes – Poland, Hungary, Ukraine – of the ingredients listed below only the oat groats and wild mushrooms were not grown at Hillside. Even the walnuts were a gift from our neighbours across the valley. When the meal on my plate has so few miles of any sort associated with it I can forgive its rather pallid appearance and appreciate it for its origins. There is something grounding about eating something so much of its place.
A tomato sauce is traditionally served with stuffed cabbage rolls from Hungary to Poland, Ukraine to Sweden and with our stores of homemade passata this was the obvious choice for me. It also cheers the plate of pale food. The tomato is quite strident, however, and a mushroom sauce (thinly sliced, sweated in butter with shallots, some flour to make a roux, cream, chopped parsley, chervil and dill) would be a good and perhaps better match, to these delicately flavoured rolls. I’ll be trying it tonight.
1 white or savoy cabbage
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 sticks celery, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
40g dried wild mushrooms or 125g fresh
75g pumpkin, deseeded and peeled and cut into 5mm dice
75g carrots, peeled and cut into 5mm dice
200g whole oat groats, farro or spelt
75g coarsely chopped walnuts, lightly toasted
10 sprigs of winter savory, leaves picked off (about 2 tablespoons) and finely chopped
5 branches of thyme, leaves picked off (about a tablespoon) and finely chopped
A generous bunch of flat leaf parsley, leaves picked off (about 4 tablespoons) and finely chopped
8 juniper berries, finely crushed
2 teaspoons sweet smoked paprika
Sauce
500 ml tomato passata
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Makes 24 to 30 – enough for 10 people as a starter or 6 as a main course
Firstly put the dried mushrooms into a small bowl and pour over boiling water to cover. Weight down with a saucer and leave to soak.
Bring to the boil a pan of water large enough to take the whole cabbage.
Remove the unsightly outer leaves from the cabbage, wash and retain. With a sharp knife cut out the core from the cabbage, so that bases of the leaf ribs are free. Carefully lower the cabbage into the boiling water. After three to four minutes use a pair of tongs to remove the first few leaves. Put them straight into a bowl of cold water for a minute or two, then drain. Keep removing leaves in the same manner every few minutes until you have about twelve to fifteen of them.
To make the stuffing heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a pan, then sweat the onion, celery, carrot, pumpkin and garlic on a low heat for 15 minutes until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the oats, walnuts, winter savory, thyme and juniper berries and cook for a few minutes more, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat.
While the vegetables are cooking drain the mushrooms, retaining the soaking liquid. Using your hands squeeze as much liquid from the mushrooms as possible. Chop finely and add to the oat mixture with the walnuts, parsley and smoked paprika. Season liberally with salt and pepper and stir well.
Line a cast iron casserole with a tight fitting lid with some of the retained cabbage leaves to cover the base and sides.
Take a blanched cabbage leaf and cut out the stiffest part of the midrib. If the leaves are large, cut them in half lengthwise. Lay the leaf out on the worktop with the smooth side facing up. Place a scant two teaspoons of stuffing about a third of the way up the leaf. Slowly roll the leaf over the stuffing, tucking in the sides as you go to make a secure parcel. Place in the lined casserole with the seam facing down. Repeat, packing the rolls tightly together until you have used up all of the leaves. You may have some stuffing left, which can be frozen. As the leaves become smaller use them whole, removing the base of the midrib to aid rolling.
Pour over enough water to come two thirds of the way up the casserole. Pour over a small glassful of olive oil. Take the reserved cabbage leaves and cover the cabbage rolls thoroughly. Put on the lid. Bring to a simmer and cook for 45 to 60 minutes over a gentle heat.
While the rolls are cooking, make the sauce. Heat four tablespoons of olive oil in a pan over a medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic together with some salt until soft. Add the passata and the retained mushroom soaking water. Bring to the boil and reduce over a high heat by about a quarter. Liquidise or pass through a food mill to make a smooth sauce. Season with salt, pepper and sugar to taste.
Once the cabbage rolls are done leave the casserole to stand for 10 minutes, before serving with mashed potato or soft polenta and the sauce spooned over.
Recipe & photographs: Huw Morgan
Published 28 January 2023
