A NEW YEARS TRADITION-PIGS IN A BLANKET

New Years is a time for new beginnings, second chances. There is a long history of eating sauerkraut and pork on New Years with the family. It is supposed to bring wealth, blessings and good luck to those who participate. I have been making pigs in a blanket for over 30 years on New Years. My family never made them but our neighbor, Kate Johnson, always made them for her family and I gladly partook. Two of my best friends were Terry and John Johnson, Kate's sons. I always looked forward to watching the Rose Bowl with them and eating pigs.

My recipe is not the one Kate made. She used sour head cabbages, and there were other differences. However, my recipe is clearly inspired by Kate. I owe this to her. We always called these pigs in a blanket. Others have different names for it such as cabbage rolls, etc. There are pig recipes that are nothing like this one. It doesn't really matter what you call it, it is what it is.

Part of my goal for this blog is collecting favorite family recipes. We have shared some already. This one is mine and I would like to share it with you,

PIGS IN A BLANKET

3 LB Ground Beef

2 LB Ground Pork

1 1/2 Cups Long Grain Rice

6 Eggs Beaten

3/4 Tsp. Paprika

1/2 Cup Parsley

1/2 Tsp. Thyme

1 Tbl Caraway Seed

2 Heads Cabbage (I use one regular and one red)

1 QT. V8 Juice

1 QT. Tomato Juice

1 Cup Minced Onion

1 Tsp. Garlic Minced

4 LB Sauerkraut ( I use 2 Lbs. Polish Style, One LB regular, and 1 LB sweet Bavarian style)

Preparing the cabbage:

Cut the stems from the cabbage so that the leaves can be separated. Like peeling an onion, separate the outer leaves of the cabbage until all are separated and the remaining leaves are to small to be used. Once separated, place leaves in boiling water for a couple minutes to soften them and then cool under running cold water to stop the cooking process. This will take some time to get through all the leaves so be patient. Once completed, set aside.

Preparing the mixture:

Mix beef, pork, spices except caraway seed, rice, and eggs thoroughly together.

Assembling:

Take the mixture, about 1 Tbl.  at a time and wrap in a cabbage leaf. Place in the bottom  of a deep roasting pan. Once you have a layer in the bottom, add some sauerkraut to the top of the layer, add some caraway seed and then pour some V8 juice over that.. Continue process layer after layer until mixture is gone. Alternate between the V8 juice and tomato juice.

Cooking:

Preheat the oven to 325 and place roasting pan in oven Cook for about 3-4 hours until done. This can be frozen, served later, or served immediately.

Options:

I usually place in the bottom of the roasting plan before creating my first layer, a small slab of St. Louis Style spare ribs. It adds another dimension of flavor and texture to the dish.

If you try them, let me know what you think and any variations you use. I am getting ready to continue the tradition at my home. My kids are on their own now and my daughter is making them and my son is still eating them.

Happy New Years