Tofu Cookery: Jewish-Style Cabbage Rolls

Both my husband and I come from Ukrainian-Canadian families. So I’ve had my share of cabbage rolls (holubtsi). However, Ukrainian-Canadian cabbage rolls, at least in our families (I realize each family is going to differ on this), are typically just rice and sauteed onion rolled up in cabbage, baked with Campbell’s tomato soup (very traditional, I’m sure).

I’m certainly not a cabbage roll expert. My understanding is that Polish-style cabbage rolls (globaki) are more likely to have meat in them. There are about a bajillion other versions of cabbage rolls from other countries as well.

Anyhoo, Tofu Cookery has a recipe for Jewish-style cabbage rolls, or holishkes. Wikipedia tells me that these also typically have meat. Can you guess what’s in the Louise Hagler version? That’s right, tofu.

The filling consists of cooked rice, mashed up tofu, onion, and garlic. Alright, I”m on board with that. Where this fell apart for me was the sauce. The sauce is made with water, tomato paste, raisins, and sweetener. I was not a fan. The sweetness was a real turn-off. Give me my tomato soup cabbage rolls any day.

They weren’t perfect, but I was pretty proud of my rolling capabilities. My mother-in-law rolls them absolutely perfect, but she’s probably made thousands upon thousands throughout her life. When we lived closer to her, she would make me a batch of vegan cabbage rolls (basically she just subs out dairy butter for vegan butter to saute the onions, the rest of her recipe is already vegan) and stash them in her freezer. Yum!