Cooking by Connie

APRIL

April is a great month.  The weather up North is getting warmer and it is warm and sunny and great in Fort Myers, Florida.  April has April Fools Day and that is always fun for playing a funny trick on someone.  It is Alcohol Awareness Month and Jazz Appreciation Month.  National Pecan Month and many others.  It is also Brussels Sprouts and Cabbage Month.  So I figured I would use the Cabbage idea and see what I can find.  I grow cabbage and there is one just about ripe so I will use it in this soup.  This is a soup that ‘sticks to your bones’.  It is thick and rich and very tasty.  Hope you enjoy. There are not a lot of spices in this soup, but you can always add some parsley, or just a little rosemary to change the favorite a bit.

 

Polish Meatball Cabbage Soup

2 heads cabbage-cut in quarter cuts then sliced thin

6   14 oz cans diced tomatoes or tomato sauce

1 large onion, chopped

3 Tablespoons lemon juice (fresh is best)

3 Tablespoons sugar

1 Fresh tomato, cut in quarters

2 beef cubes in 1 cup boiling water

Mix for meatballs (see below) 

 

To make meat balls:

2 pounds fat free ground meat (or turkey ground meat)

3 eggs

1 cup bread crumbs

½ cup cooked rice

 

Combine meat ball ingredients and roll into meat balls.

I put then in the microwave and just heat them a little to

make sure as much fat is out of them.  Place them

    on a paper towel. (You can also use  pre-made meatballs.)

For Soup:

Combine  all ingredients except meat balls.

Cook slowly for several hours.

Add meat balls and cook for 1 hour more.

Serves 6-8