A wholesome tradition

Published 1:30 am Thursday, February 19, 2026

Her name means sunrise, and she lights up my life. My twin sister’s daughter is my daughter as well, and she looks just like me. She is a creative, like her mother and grandmother, and always needs to express herself and make her mark wherever she goes. She has up until now dressed herself for comfort first, opting to wear fleece pants and cotton shirts and always in vibrant colors and patterns, but she told my sister one day that she wants to “dress like Auntie now,” and I was thrilled and honored to be her style inspiration.

So, for her birthday, I took her on our very first private shopping trip together to the thrift store to create her new wardrobe. We spent some time narrowing down her aesthetic, searching for inspiration, and identifying key pieces that would be her staples. We talked about styling options, silhouettes, fabrics, and all the tools she will need to curate her own style as she grows. We spent our special time together talking about school and life and how she can wear her new items to best highlight her personality. The last thing we found was her very first pair of (modest and age-appropriate) heels, and she was so excited to wear them to school with her new brown wool skirt and a blue silk button-down top. I had been dreaming about shopping with that sweet girl since long before she was born, and I only cried a little.

She likes to cook with me, too, but the smell of the boiled cabbage was too much for her very sensitive nose, so she hid out in the basement with the boys while I prepared our dinner. These stuffed cabbage rolls are wholesome and traditional, like a knee-length wool skirt with kitten heels. This dish is most often made with ground beef or pork, but I opted for ground turkey. Crumbled extra-firm tofu would make a perfect vegan substitute.

Ingredients:

1 cabbage

1 pound ground turkey

1 cup cooked long grain rice

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 carrot, grated

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

8 ounces white mushrooms, finely chopped

6 cloves fresh garlic, minced

¼ cup fresh parsley, minced

1 egg

1 can petite diced tomatoes in tomato juice

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

Salt to taste

Directions:

Cut out the core of the cabbage and place in a large pot of boiling water.

As the cabbage cooks, pull the leaves off one at a time and lay flat on a plate to cool.

When about half the leaves have been removed, the remaining leaves will be too small to roll, so remove the rest and refrigerate. (I used the rest of the cabbage the next day in a breakfast scramble.)

Wash and chop the vegetables.

Cook the onion, garlic, and mushrooms in the olive oil until the onions are browned and the mushrooms have released their moisture. The pan should be dry when they are done.

Add in the ground turkey and cook until done.

Stir in the grated carrot and cook briefly until it has softened.

Turn off the heat and transfer to a mixing bowl.

Add the cooked and cooled rice, fresh herbs, dried herbs and spices, and egg, and mix well.

Line the bottom of a baking dish with a layer of cabbage leaves.

Place a generous amount of filling into a single cabbage leaf and roll all the way up. Stuff the ends of the cabbage into the roll before setting into the baking dish.

Continue until you run out of cabbage or filling. Leftover leaves can be used in a breakfast scramble and leftover filling can be reheated and eaten in a wrap or out of a bowl.

Blend the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and some salt and pepper, then pour over the rolls.

Cover the rolls with a few more leaves to prevent browning and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Serve with sour cream or plain Greek yogurt and extra parsley.