Slow Cooker Stuffed Cabbage Rolls (Pigs in a Blanket)

On the way to my in-laws house several years ago, my husband mentioned his mother was fixing 'Pigs in a Blanket'. When we arrived, I was confused when I didn't see any hot dogs or breading anywhere on the table. Instead, his mother served what looked like rolls of cabbage leaves in a red tomato sauce. It was good and something I had never seen before. After we left I explained to him what MY 'Pigs in a Blanket' were: hot dogs wrapped in crescent rolls with ketchup or mustard for dipping. He ended up finding (through Google, of course) that the Pennsylvania/Dutch version was what he grew up on- but most photos and recipes had come up as the hot dog snack I was used to.

I decided to search the web for what sounded the best to me for HIS kind of 'Pigs in a Blanket'. After coming across Melissa Norris' Cabbage Roll Recipe, I made some minor tweaking and ended up with something both my husband and I could agree was tasty. (And I even gave him my word I would include HIS name of the dish in my blog title. How sweet am I, right?)

I am sure you could bake these in the oven, but I always trust my crock pot to cook things tender and extra delicious.

12 leaves of Cabbage
1 lb Ground Beef
1/2 cup Jasmine rice, uncooked
1/4 cup Milk
1 Egg, beaten
1 Tablespoon Garlic Powder
2 teaspoon Onion Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
2 (15oz) cans Tomato Sauce
4 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
4 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
4 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce

Boil cabbage head in large pot of water for a few minutes until leaves are soft enough to wrap. (I had to boil mine for about 5 minutes, peal off 5 leaves- and then return the head to boil another 5 minutes and peal off a few more)

In a medium bowl, mix ground beef, rice, milk, egg, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Spoon beef mixture into cabbage leaves, tuck in the sides of the leaves and roll tight. Place in crock pot with the seam side down.

In separate bowl, combine tomato sauce, brown sugar, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce. Mix well then pour over the cabbage rolls.

Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or on LOW for 8 hours.