Cabbage Roll Lasagna

This Cabbage Roll Lasagna is full of whole food ingredients and delicious too!

To any of you that think this “healthified” lasagna recipe isn’t for you.

You are wrong. There is no way around it.

You can tell me it isn’t for you AFTER you try it.

Then and ONLY then will I entertain the thought that this recipe “isn’t for you”! 😉

Healthy lasagna? Yes, it's real! This gluten free cabbage roll lasagna is perfect for families.

I am SO excited to finally share this recipe with you all! Sarah Koontz is the inspiration behind this Cabbag Roll Lasagna. She made it. Loved it. And NEEDED me to make it!

The two months leading up to me making this recipe, Sarah must have asked me 59,000 times if I had tried it yet and what my thoughts were. Finally, I prepared it. Holy guacamole! No wonder she was on my case, it was AMAZING!

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This simple and super healthy fake out lasagna is PACKED and I mean PACKED with flavor and so filling. Just as filling as a typical lasagna. Honestly!

I knew I loved cabbage, but layering it with rice, tomatoes, ground meat, and Italian spices created something spectacular.

If you are looking at the list of ingredients and recipe steps for this Cabbage Roll Lasagna and feeling overwhelmed let me help.

  • Blanch your cabbage the day before and store in the fridge. blanching the cabbage is THE SECRET to this fake out lasagna. It takes the bite out of the cabbage and leaves you not missing typical noodles at all!
  • Store a few pounds of browned ground meat IN YOUR FREEZER for recipes such as this. (Just saute the onion and garlic in your pan before you add in the thawed browned meat.)
  • Use leftover rice or prepare the rice days before and STORE IN THE FRIDGE.

With these shortcuts you will have your gluten free lasagna oven-ready in a snap! 

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Layers of cabbage, ground meat, and tomatoes are all you need for a cabbage roll lasagna.

Now without further adieu, here is the delicious Cabbage Roll Lasagna recipe!

Cabbage Roll Lasagna

Healthy lasagna? Yes, it's real! This fake out low carb casserole is easy to prepare and the best way to feed your family more whole foods! Layers of blanched cabbage, rice, tomatoes, ground meat (turkey or beef), Italian spices, and cheese combine to produce the MOST hearty and delicious weeknight dinner EVER! Don't waste your precious time on cabbage rolls, try this simple clean eating recipe instead!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Total Time1 hour 15 minutes
Course: Leftovers, Main Dish
Cuisine: American, Italian
Keyword: cabbage, cabbage rolls, fakeout, gluten free, healthy, lasagna, low carb
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 440kcal
Cost: $8.00

Equipment

  • 8x8 pan
  • large soup pot
  • wooden spoon
  • cutting board
  • knife

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs cabbage, 1 head of cabbage or 1/2 of a large one
  • 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 lb ground turkey or any ground meat will work
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder or 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 can (15oz) petite diced tomatoes, drained
  • 1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
  • 2 Tbsp Italian seasoning spice blend
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked rice
  • 1 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheeseor cheese of choice

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350. Spray a glass 8x8 or 2 qt casserole dish lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

Cabbage Layer (Noodles, if you will)

  • Start boiling a large pot of water. While your water heats, roughly chop the cabbage into 2 inch x 2 inch pieces. Blanch it in boiling water for 4 minutes. Then drain and rinse cabbage in cold water to stop the cooking process. Place the blanched and cooled cabbage on a kitchen towel to dry further while you prepare the meat filling.

Meat & Rice Filling

  • Heat a pan on medium-high heat and add the Tbsp of oil, ground meat, onion, and garlic. Cook until the meat is browned.
  • Next, stir in remaining ingredients: tomato sauce, drained diced tomatoes, cooked rice, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes or until the mixture starts to simmer. Remove from heat.

Layering the Ingredients

  • Finally, lets start layering! Place half your cabbage mixture in the bottom of the pan. Next add ½ of your meat mixture, other half of cabbage, then the final layer being the remainder of the meat mixture.
  • Place in your oven for 30 minutes then add the ½ cup cheese to the top and bake an additional 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and the sides of the casserole are bubbling.

Notes

This original recipe from Zerrin at Give Recipe was our inspiration.

38 Comments

  1. This sounds very much like a cabbage soup my landlady shared with me this past winter; if the lasagna is anywhere near as good as her “Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Soup” is, then I’m going to double the recipe to share with my minister and his family, knowing they’d probably want to add some of their home grown vegetables to it. It sure reads as something good, especially if I double the Parmesan cheese!

    • Hi Joyce! Yes, it is very similar to stuffed cabbage soup..only in pan form! Ha! I hope you and your minister enjoy this recipe as much as we do. 🙂 Blessings!

  2. John mitchelmore

    Thanks for sharing your recipe.
    I will give it a wirrl this weekend. I usually make moussaka. As it similar and pasta free.

  3. This was amazing! We added a few extra veggies and used ground venison and quinoa! Delicious!

    • Woohoo! It sounds delicious 🙂 I have yet to try quinoa in it but we use ground venison or buffalo in most meals too. Thanks for letting me know your recipe experience, Jena! Blessings!

  4. Katie Baltz

    Have you ever tried adding cottage cheese in addition to or in place of rice?

  5. Ashley Laws

    I would love to make this! Is this freezable, either in individual portions or in a pan?

    • Absolutely! I think freezing in individual portions is genius that way you can throw one in your lunch box each day 🙂 Thanks for your comment and be sure to stop back and let me know how it turned out!

  6. This recipe is delicious, healthy and easy to make. Everyone who eats it asks for the recipe.

  7. What a genius idea to use cabbage, it looks amazing and so much healthier! Thanks so much for sharing at You Link It, We Make It! Hope to see you back this week! http://bit.ly/1LqkYTN

  8. This sounds so good and I love that it uses cabbage! How clever! Thanks for sharing at the Healthy Living Link Party. I’ve pinned it to my personal board as well as the party board.
    Blessings, Leigh

  9. Cabbage roll lasagna looks delicious, thanks for sharing with Hearth and soul blog hop. pinning and tweeting.

  10. Thanks for sharing on Let’s Get Real Friday Party.

  11. Hi ladies – I have to admit that I am skeptical of any recipe that includes the words “cabbage” and “lasagna!” But, since you endorse it so highly, I’m going to pin it and give it a try. Thanks so much for linking up with the Let’s Get Real party.

  12. Love it! I made almost this exact same dish and call it cabbage casserole. Fake Out Lasagna sounds so much better ha ha. And I love that it actually does resemble lasagna. Good way to get my husband to eat more veggies! Thank you, as always, for sharing on the #SundayBlogHop I love *seeing* you and what you are cooking 🙂

  13. Looks yummy and so healthy!

  14. This looks delicious. I love cabbage so can’t wait to try it.

  15. This looks amazing! Like stuffed cabbage and lasagna all in one! thanks for sharing on healthy living link party.

  16. That sounds delicious! I love the helpful tips for doing some of the prep ahead of time. Thanks for sharing, I’m visiting through the Hearth and Soul link up.

  17. What a clever way of missing out the pasta. Will have to try this.

  18. This looks amazing! My kids love lasagna, so I am eager to try out this “fake-out” version 🙂 Pinned! Thank you for sharing at Sunday Fitness & Food Link-Up.

    • We love lasagna too, Angela! But honest to goodness, my daughter had two helpings! She said, “Mommy, I think I like cabbage. I never knew that before.” LOL So cute!

  19. This recipe is amazing! What an awesome way to skip the pasta in lasagna. Thanks for the tip of blanching the cabbage leafs the day before you use them. Two thumbs up!

  20. This looks amazing, and my husband and I can have it on our diet plan. Thank you!

  21. Oh, Sammi! I am so excited to finally have this recipe up on the blog. I’ve got all the ingredients in my fridge and plans to make this for my family tomorrow night. Yummy….yummy…yummy. Even my cabbage hating daughter has admitted that this dish is tasty.

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