Cabbage and Kielbasa is filling but not fattening

When it comes to fall foods the trick is to satisfy the primitive urge to fatten up for hibernation without actually fattening up. This simple Cabbage and Kielbasa recipe is one of my favorites. It completely indulges the desire to fill my belly with cozy food but I won’t need to loosen my belt at the end of the meal.

A slow cooker is your best friend for this rustic one-pot meal. Toss everything in and flip it on early in the day then walk away and let it simmer until dinner time. After slogging through rainy traffic it is hard to beat walking into a house that smells like your house keeper has been cooking all day. A slow cooker meal means sitting down to a hearty dinner in a matter of minutes. Best of all you get to drive straight home after work, no precious time wasted navigating dark and soggy fast food parking lots.

I recommend serving Cabbage and Kielbasa along side a baked potato. The starchy side soaks up the sweet and sour juices that pool at the bottom of the pot. To keep it quick “bake” your potatoes in the microwave. Poke each potato a few times with a fork then give them a few minutes on high to get soft and flakey. Take advantage of the cooking time to change into fuzzy socks and your favorite oversized sweater.

Slow cooked Cabbage and Kielbasa is my favorite take on “fast food” for Fall. Dig in and get ready to hibernate but leave your “fat pants” in the back of the closet where they belong.

Cabbage and Kielbasa

A warm and cozy dish that won’t add any bulk under your long johns. This recipe works fabulously in an electric slow cooker but can also be made in a dutch oven or foil covered casserole dish. Just pile everything in the pot and simmer slowly in a medium oven.

Ingredients

• 1 14 oz. Smoked Sausage – Turkey or Chicken recommended

• 1/2 head of green cabbage sliced in 1/2 inch strips

• 1 large yellow or sweet onion cut in half and sliced in 1/2 inch crescents

• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon caraway seeds

• a few pinches of coarse salt

• 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper

• optional additions: any dark leafy green (chard, kale, etc.), 1 bell pepper sliced into 1/2 inch strips, 1 -2 apple sliced in thin wedges

Method

1. Cut the sausage into 5-6 shorter pieces then halve each piece from end to end (variation: slice sausage into 3/4 inch rounds)

2. Pile the veggies into the slow cooker pot and top with the cut sausage. Pour cider vinegar over the top and sprinkle in the caraway seeds and season with salt and pepper.

3.Cook on low setting for 6 – 8 hours or high setting for 3 -4 hours.

Nutritional Information will depend primarily on your choice of sausage. Please read the labels before purchasing so you know what you will be eating.

Read more from Rose McAvoy at Our Lady of Second Helpings.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Life

Brandon Hailey of Cytrus, center, plays the saxophone during a headlining show at Madam Lou’s on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lynnwood-based funk octet Cytrus has the juice

Resilience and brotherhood take center stage with ‘friends-first’ band.

FILE - In this April 11, 2014 file photo, Neko Case performs at the Coachella Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Fire investigators are looking for the cause of a fire on Monday, Sept. 18, 2017, that heavily damaged Case’s 225-year-old Vermont home. There were no injuries, though a barn was destroyed. It took firefighters two hours to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Singer-songwriter Neko Case, an indie music icon from Tacoma, performs Sunday in Edmonds.

The Moonlight Swing Orchestra will play classic sounds of the Big Band Era on April 21 in Everett. (submitted photo)
Music, theater and more: What’s happening in Snohomish County

Relive the Big Band Era at the Port Gardner Music Society’s final concert of the season in Everett.

2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD (Honda)
2024 Honda Ridgeline TrailSport AWD

Honda cedes big boy pickup trucks to the likes of Ford, Dodge… Continue reading

Would you want to give something as elaborate as this a name as mundane as “bread box”? A French Provincial piece practically demands the French name panetiere.
A panetiere isn’t your modern bread box. It’s a treasure of French culture

This elaborately carved French antique may be old, but it’s still capable of keeping its leavened contents perfectly fresh.

(Judy Newton / Great Plant Picks)
Great Plant Pick: Mouse plant

What: Arisarum proboscideum, also known as mouse plant, is an herbaceous woodland… Continue reading

Bright green Japanese maple leaves are illuminated by spring sunlight. (Getty Images)
Confessions of a ‘plantophile’: I’m a bit of a junky for Japanese maples

In fact, my addiction to these glorious, all-season specimens seems to be contagious. Fortunately, there’s no known cure.

2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited (Hyundai)
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited

The 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Limited is a sporty, all-electric, all-wheel drive sedan that will quickly win your heart.

The 2024 Dodge Hornet R/T hybrid’s face has the twin red lines signifying the brand’s focus on performance. (Dodge)
2024 Hornet R/T is first electrified performance vehicle from Dodge

The all-new compact SUV travels 32 miles on pure electric power, and up to 360 miles in hybrid mode.

chris elliott.
Vrbo promised to cover her rental bill in Hawaii, so why won’t it?

When Cheryl Mander’s Vrbo rental in Hawaii is uninhabitable, the rental platform agrees to cover her new accommodations. But then it backs out. What happened?

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli
Tangier’s market boasts piles of fruits, veggies, and olives, countless varieties of bread, and nonperishables, like clothing and electronics.
Rick Steves on the cultural kaleidoscope of Tangier in Morocco

Walking through the city, I think to myself, “How could anyone be in southern Spain — so close — and not hop over to experience this wonderland?”

Don’t blow a bundle on glass supposedly made by the Henry William Stiegel

Why? Faked signatures, reused molds and imitated styles can make it unclear who actually made any given piece of glass.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.