the making of... golabki

here is the beginning of my polish culinary adventures. the recipes are based on 'from a polish country house kitchen' cookbook. i have taken the liberty to tweak the recipes where i saw fit based on how i ate the dishes in my family. first up, golabki...

2 heads of green cabbage
5 tbsp unsalted butter
1 onion, chopped
1.5 cups rice, cooked (i used 2 cups in this try - too much)
3/4 lb ground pork
3/4 lb ground veal
salt and pepper
vegeta (i use adobo as a fine substitute)
2 cups chicken stock
1 tsp tomato paste
2 cups crushed tomatoes

1. fill a large pot with water - one in which you can submerge a whole head of cabbage - and bring to a boil. add the first head of cabbage and parboil for about 10 minutes. 
2. gently pull off the outer leaves of the cabbage while it is still in the pot (use a knife and tongs to help you. some may rip, those will be used for lining the pan). let the inner leaves boil until softened and remove those. do so until you have removed most of the leaves. repeat with second cabbage.
3. with a paring knife, cut off the main thick vein that goes through the cabbage leave (will help with the rolling), and set leaves aside.
4. heat 2 tbsp butter in a pan and cook the onion until lightly brown. then add it to the cooked rice, and mix all with the ground meat, season with salt, pepper, vegeta to taste.
5. put some of the filling in each unripped cabbage leaf (you should have about 16) and wrap (like you would a burrito).
6. line a baking dish with leftover or ripped leaves.  rest the rolls on top, seam side down; they can be crowded together. 
7. in a pot heat up the stock and combine with the tomato paste and crushed tomatoes. boil for a couple minutes. then pour over the golabki in the baking dish. 
8. dollop each golabek with the remaining butter, and cover them with any remaining leaves. bake in a 350F oven for about an hour.
9. after baking pour the sauce from baking to a pot, add butter (supplement with additional crushed tomatoes if not enough), adjust the seasoning. cook until slightly thickened. pour sauce over golabki when serving.