Stuffed Broccoli Leaves

Bring a large pot of water to the boil.

Wash the broccoli leaves and put ten or so into the boiling water. Simmer for 3 minutes and remove to a plate to drain. Continue until all of the leaves have been blanched.

Prepare the filling;

Peel the onions and grate them into a bowl.
Grate the tomatoes into the same bowl. You don't need to peel them as you are automatically left with the skins at the end of grating.

Wash the rice and add to the bowl along with the mince, 1 Tbsp. tomato paste, 1 tsp salt and pepper.

Mix together well with your hands.

When the broccoli leaves are cool enough to handle, place a leaf on a board in front of you and cut out the stem using a small knife.

Fold one cut side over the other about half a centimetre so that there is no gap.

Stuff the leaf by putting 1 - 2 tablespoons of the mince mixture at the base of the leaf, fold over the sides and roll up.

Place the stuffed leaf (sarma) into a pot and continue to stuff the leaves until the either the leaves or the mince are finished.

When placing the stuffed leaves (sarma) in the pot they should be firmly packed but not squeezed in very tightly. Enough so that they stay put during cooking.

Mix together 2 cups of water, 1 tspn of salt and 1 Tbsp. Tomato Paste.  Pour this over the finished stuffed leaves (sarma). Add more water if necessary to bring the level of the liquid to the top of the stuffed leaves.

Put the lid on the pot and simmer for about half an hour. I usually test one to make sure that the rice is cooked and the leaf is tender. Sometimes the leaves take longer to cook.

Serve hot with Greek style Yogurt and a little of the cooking liquid. Serve with bread to mop up the liquid.

In the Black Sea region of Turkey they grow Black Cabbage (Kara Lahana). It is the same as Chinese Broccoli except the leaves are a little wider which makes stuffing them a bit easier. There are also many types of Collard Greens seeds that you can order online. Choose the variety with the widest leaf.