“Rolling up a Different Kind of Strudel” – via Tablet Magazine

INGREDIENTS

1 head cabbage (2 pounds)
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
8 sheets of phyllo dough
6 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
1/2 cup fine bread crumbs
1 egg white

PREPARATION

1. Remove the core and shred the cabbage, using a food processor or grater.
2. Sprinkle with the salt and let stand about 15 minutes. Squeeze out the excess water.
3. Place the oil in a heavy frying pan. Brown the onion until golden. Remove and begin sautéing the cabbage (you will probably have to do this in two batches), cooking carefully until wilted.
4. Mix the cabbage and onions. Sprinkle with the pepper, caraway seeds, sugar, and cinnamon. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
6. Cover a pastry board with a cloth. Take 1 phyllo sheet at a time and cover the rest with a damp towel to prevent drying. Lay the sheet on the board and brush with melted butter or olive oil, sprinkling on 1 tablespoon bread crumbs and some pepper. Lay the next phyllo sheet on top and cover with the identical combination. Continue until you have 4 layer of phyllo leaves and topping. Along the longer side of the phyllo, spoon out half of the cabbage filling about 4 inches from the edge of the dough. Fold the edge over the cabbage. Then, using both hands, lift the cloth and let the cabbage roll fall over and over itself, jelly-roll fashion, until the filling is completely enclosed in the pastry sheet. Place, seam side down, in a greased jelly-roll pan. If the roll is too long, cut it with a serrated knife to fit your pan.
7. Repeat the above process with the remaining 4 phyllo sheets, bread crumbs, cabbage, and pepper.
8. Brush the crust with additional melted butter or olive oil. Then brush with egg white that has been stirred slightly.
9. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden. Slice thin and serve immediately. Or serve lukewarm as a dessert, sprinkled with confectioner’s sugar.

Serves 8-12 as an hors d’oeuvre or vegetable accompaniment

NOTE: After the rolls have been formed, you can freeze them on cookie sheets and then remove them to plastic containers for freezer storage.