Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage, Kalyn's Low Carb Version

Cabbage is a healthy choice no matter what kind of eating plan you're following. It's low in carbs and calories, and is one of the world's healthiest foods. I have always been a fan of Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage, and I had a great version of it when I was visiting Texas in April, but when I looked for recipes online, none of them sounded quite like what I had in mind until I found Elise's verson at Simply Recipes. If you're not concerned about carbs, you may want to just ignore my version and make Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage from Simply Recipes, since Elise's recipes are consistently good and well-written. But I wanted a version with less sugar, and used a blend of sugar and Splenda for the dish I came up with. Of course, being The Woman Who Never Followed a Recipe in Her Life, I did make a couple of other minor changes. This turned out to be really tasty, and even with the one tablespoon of sugar I used, still very low in carbs overall. (One tablespoon of sugar has 12 carbs.) And since red cabbage is particularly high in antioxidants, this is a perfect dish for Sweetnicks ARF/5-A-Day, the weekly event where she encourages us to eat more fruits, vegetables, and antioxidant rich foods.

Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage
Kalyn's Low Carb Version
(adapted from Simply Recipes, about 4 servings)

1 medium head red cabbage, sliced thinly
3 T butter
1 T sugar
2 T Splenda
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
2 T red wine vinegar
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large heavy pan. Add cabbage and saute about 5 minutes, until cabbage is starting to wilt. Sprinkle sugar and Splenda over cabbage and stir so it is evenly distributed. Add vinegar, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer until the cabbage is tender, about 20-30 minutes, depending on how hot your burner is. I prefer mine slightly undercooked so there is a tiny crunch left in the cabbage. Season with salt and fresh ground pepper. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Because of the sugar, this would be best for phase two or three of the South Beach diet. I know butter is not really allowed, but I did use real butter. You can substitute margarine if you feel strongly about it. This would taste great with Chicken with Kalamata Olives or Pork Chops with Balsamic Glaze.

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