Want your plate pretty and festive? As someone who photographs food, I can tell you there is a lot of brown food out there. This yummy side dish will perk up any plate.

It makes a lot but keeps for a long time in the refrigerator, and is easy to warm up and include on various plates in the future to round out and spruce up a meal.

This dish is inexpensive, low calorie, and low carb as well. It tastes great and is a welcome change as a side dish.

As shown in the photo above, I use a loose leaf tea infuser for this, but if you don’t have that, a tied piece of cheese cloth will work as well.

I also use a food processor as a quick way to shred the cabbage, although it can also be done by hand.

This recipe is one of Laura Wright’s recipes from the First Mess cookbook, so is not original to me. However she makes it as a soup by cooking it covered, while I prefer it as a side dish to jazz up a plate, hence I cook it down uncovered, stirring it frequently so it doesn’t burn, and adding extra broth if needed, for it to come out unscathed.

This is a handy, delicious, and beautiful side dish to have around! It is great for the fall or winter, and is especially perfect for the holidays.

Clove Infused Red Cabbage with Apples Recipe

1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced small
1 carrot, diced small
1 sweet apple, peeled and chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 small red cabbage, finely shredded and trimmed short (about 4 to 5 cups)
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
4 cups vegetable stock (plus extra if needed)
5 whole cloves
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onions, carrots and apples, and sauté until the onions are translucent, about 4 minutes.

Add the rosemary, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, paprika, and nutmeg, and stir, until fragrant, about a minute.

Add the cabbage and stir to combine.

Add the apple cider vinegar and maple syrup, and stir.

Scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot.

Pour in the vegetable stock and stir.

In a loose leaf tea strainer (or a tied bit of cheese cloth) place the whole cloves and bay leaf. Submerge it in your pot to infuse the mixture.

Season the veggies with salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook (uncovered for a side dish) for 45 minutes until cabbage is very tender. Stir frequently during this time, keeping your eye on it, and adding a bit more broth if needed to keep it from sticking.

Remove the tea strainer or cheese cloth.

Serve the spiced red cabbage up hot.

Enjoy!