Grandma Marys Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

The first time I tried this treat skepticism flooded my thoughts and gave me a weary eye toward this unattractive meal. Although one taste was enough to encourage me to gulp down the roll with endorphins emanating with my smile. This is a peculiar entree that is a traditionally from Europe but was carried through generations from my great-grandparents immigration to Canada then my dad's immigration to the States. My grandma is known for her desserts yet this meal is strange, unappealing, and delicious. My grandma does not like to cook this meal for me very often because it takes a lot of time and effort to put it together, the cabbage gets torn while rolling the meat and rice inside. Between  moving the rolls from the precooking stage to the cooking stage to the serving stage many rolls will fall apart, so care must be taken to provide a perfectly arranged dish. This meal is composed of the rolls and the sauce.
The rolls have:

• 11/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• Splash dry red wine
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups steamed white rice
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 large heads green cabbage, about 3 pounds each

The sweet and sour sauce has:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 1/2 quarts crushed tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

To cook this meal:

Coat a 3-quart saucepan with the oil and place over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and sugar; simmer, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and remove from the heat.
Place a skillet over medium heat and coat with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Saute the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes, until soft. Stir in the tomato paste, a splash of wine, parsley, and 1/2 cup of the prepared sweet and sour tomato sauce, mix to incorporate and then take it off the heat. Combine the ground meat in a large mixing bowl. Add the egg, the cooked rice, and the sauteed onion mixture. Toss the filling together with your hands to combine, season with a generous amount of salt and pepper.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Remove the large, damaged outer leaves from the cabbages and set aside. Cut out the cores of the cabbages with a sharp knife and carefully pull off all the rest of the leaves, keeping them whole and as undamaged as possible. Blanch the cabbage leaves in the pot of boiling water for 5 minutes, or until pliable. Run the leaves under cool water then lay them out so you can assess just how many blankets you have to wrap up the filling. Next, carefully cut out the center vein from the leaves so they will be easier to roll up. Take the reserved big outer leaves and lay them on the bottom of a casserole pan, let part of the leaves hang out the sides of the pan. This insulation will prevent the cabbage rolls from burning on the bottom when baked. Use all the good looking leaves to make the cabbage rolls. Put about 1/2 cup of the meat filling in the center of the cabbage and starting at what was the stem-end, fold the sides in and roll up the cabbage to enclose the filling. Place the cabbage rolls side by side in rows, seam-side down, in a casserole pan. And enjoy!!