Latin Crock-Pot: Don’t be afraid to try these anything but ordinary tamales

When it comes to food, I am by no means a purist. I love mixing it up. Fusion is a good thing as far as I'm concerned. That's why I was totally intrigued when I came across this slow cooker recipe for cabbage tamales. I think wrapping yummy fillings in cabbage leaves sounds like a very good thing.

I know there will be hard-core traditionalist out there who will exclaim that if it's wrapped in a cabbage leaf, it's not a tamal. That's okay. I understand your attachment to an old-fashioned tamal. I'm not asking you to give up what you grew up with, I'm just suggesting you try this in addition. Think of this as a combination of Mexican and German food that works well. It's not meant to replace the iconic tamal, it's just meant to provide you with another awesome option for dinner.

Read more in ¿Qué más?:  Latin slow cooker: Ridiculously delicious Cuban chicken

Cabbage Tamales

Prep: 35 minutes
Makes: 8 tamales
Slow cook: 4 hours on high

Ingredients

8 cabbage leaves
1 pound ground beef
1 1/2 cups uncooked white rice
2 cans (6.5 ounce) tomato sauce
3 teaspoons New Mexico red chile powder
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped onions salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 cans (10 ounce) diced tomatoes with green chile peppers

Get the full recipe directions at AllRecipes.

Image via AllRecipes.com