Marry Me Melting Cabbage

Picture this: cabbage wedges seared until golden, then slow-braised in a creamy Tuscan sauce of sun-dried tomatoes, cream cheese, parmesan, and garlic until they’re meltingly tender. One of the most impressive one-pan dinners in the vegetarian marry me family!

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Cabbage has a reputation problem. Most people think of it as a supporting ingredient. This recipe argues otherwise. When you sear wedges of green cabbage until deeply golden on both sides, then braise it in a Tuscan cream sauce for the better part of an hour, something magical happens.

The result is a vegetable dish that earns the “marry me” name every bit as much as my marry me chickpeas or my marry me mushrooms.

Why Cabbage Deserves to Be the Star

After developing a full marry me library of recipes on this site and testing this one across multiple batches, here’s what makes the cabbage version stand out:

• The sear before braising builds a golden, slightly charred exterior that holds through the full bake
• The two-stage bake (covered then uncovered) produces a meltingly tender interior with a slightly browned top
• Works as a main or a showstopping side for a larger spread

The Testing

Sear in batches
Crowding the pan causes the cabbage to steam rather than sear. The slight char on each cut side is what gives the finished dish its depth of flavor. Work in batches over medium-high heat, four to five minutes per side, until properly golden before removing from the pan.

Covered then uncovered
The covered bake at 400°F for 30 minutes softens the cabbage all the way through. The uncovered bake for another 20 to 30 minutes reduces the sauce from loose and brothy to thick, coating, and bubbling, and gives the exposed wedge tops a chance to brown slightly.

Key Ingredients

• Green cabbage: One medium head cut into 8 wedges with the core intact. Looking to use another type of cabbage? Savoy is delicate and may fall apart. Red cabbage will have a stronger flavor that can work, but it discolors the cream sauce.
• Sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil: Use the oil they’re packed in in the sauce base, along with the tomatoes themselves. Don’t drain and discard that oil. It’s one of the most flavor-dense ingredients in the dish!
• Cream cheese: It gives the sauce a body and richness that heavy cream alone doesn’t produce, and it keeps the sauce from breaking under sustained heat.
• Parmesan: Freshly grated from a block melts more evenly than pre-shredded, which contains anti-caking agents that can make the sauce grainy.
• Garlic: Four cloves, cooked in the sun-dried tomato oil until fragrant before adding anything else.
• Smoked paprika: Adds a subtle smokiness. It’s the secret little ingredient that I love adding to my Marry Me recipes to take them to the next level!

Pair it with…

Crusty bread for scooping the sauce is the most important accompaniment. As a main, serve it alongside a vegetarian Caesar salad for a full dinner. If you want to explore more of the marry me sauce in different formats, my marry me orzo is the dump-and-bake version that uses the same flavor profile with almost no active cooking!

For a heartier pan to serve alongside, my creamy Tuscan lentils come together in about 15 minutes.

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Marry Me Melting Cabbage

5 from 5 ratings

By: Sarah Bond

Prep: 15 minutes minutes

Cook: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Total: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

These marry-me melting cabbage wedges are seared golden and braised in a creamy Tuscan sauce with sun-dried tomatoes, cream cheese, and parmesan. One pan!

Ingredients 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 medium head green cabbage
• ▢ 2 Tbsp olive oil, 30 mL
• ▢ 2 Tbsp oil from the sun-dried tomatoes
• ▢ ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil, chopped
• ▢ 4 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ ½ tsp each salt, oregano, smoked paprika, keep the salt out; you'll need it again later
• ▢ ¼ tsp each ground black pepper, crushed red pepper
• ▢ 1 cup vegetable broth
• ▢ 4 oz cream cheese
• ▢ 1 cup heavy cream
• ▢ ½ cup grated parmesan
• ▢ ½ tsp salt

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Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C)
• Cut Cabbage: Cut 1 medium head green cabbage into 8 wedges, keeping the core intact so the leaves hold together.

  Cut the cabbage in half vertically from the core to the top, and then cut each of each half into four pieces, keeping the core intact.
  
• Sear Cabbage: Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium/high. Add the cabbage wedges and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes per side until golden and a bit charred. You may have to work in batches. When finished, remove the cabbage from the pan.
  
• Sauce: Heat 2 Tbsp oil from the sun-dried tomatoes in the skillet, then add ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes (chopped), 4 cloves garlic (minced), and spices. Cook until garlic is fragrant, about two to three minutes.

  Stir in 1 cup vegetable broth and 4 oz cream cheese until cream cheese is mostly broken down. Small lumps are fine and will smooth out as it continues to cook

  Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup heavy cream and ½ cup grated parmesan until evenly combined.
  
• Bake: Nestle the wedges into the pan of sauce. Sprinkle the wedges evenly with ½ tsp salt. Cover (with a lid or foil) and bake for 30 minutes.
  
• Braise: Uncover and spoon the sauce liberally over each wedge. Return to the oven uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes. Cabbage should be slightly browned, and sauce should be thick and bubbling.
  

Notes

Can I make this vegan? Yes, with a few swaps. Replace the cream cheese with a vegan cream cheese alternative. Replace the parmesan with nutritional yeast (about three tablespoons) or a good-quality vegan parmesan. You can replace the heavy cream with full-fat coconut cream, which adds a faint sweetness that works well with the sun-dried tomatoes.

Can I make this ahead? Yes. Sear the cabbage and make the sauce up to two days ahead. Store separately in the fridge. When ready to bake, nestle the wedges into the reheated sauce, add the salt, and bake as directed. The flavors deepen significantly overnight, so this is genuinely worth making ahead.

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days. The sauce thickens significantly as it sits. Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat with a splash of broth or water to loosen, or in a 350°F oven covered with foil for 15 minutes.

Not recommended for freezing since both the braised cabbage texture and the cream-based sauce degrade after thawing.

did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!