Purple Cabbage Wraps (Cabbage Cheela)

It's been a lot of fun experimenting with new colours for these gluten-free wraps lately. I wasn't sure whether using purple cabbage would turn them purple or blue. My aim was for blue, so I went ahead and tried.

Purple (or better known red) cabbage can turn blue when cooked, but there is also a way to preserve its beautiful purple colour. Funny enough, I learnt that after making the wraps, via Wikipedia and a post revealing the science behind making an all natural red velvet cake using beets. The secret is the acidity. When the pH of the batter is more acidic, the colour doesn't change.

Well, these wraps were like chameleons:) Before cooking, the batter was a gorgeous light purple which turned a bit dark during cooking. Soon after the wraps became dark blue (bingo!, I thought). Alas, that didn't last and after cooling the final colour was a very dark purple. I'm guessing the bits of cabbage in the wraps further released their juices. I wonder how they would have looked if I had used lemon juice instead of water, maybe the colour would have been lighter? That's definitely worth a try sometime.

I used both cabbage and cabbage juice here, to be sure I get the colour. If you'd like the wraps to be lighter, use one and leave the other.

As for the taste, it was the best as soon as they were cool enough to eat and it wasn't strong at all. Since they are made with juice they don't have enough moisture to remain soft for long, that's why they're best eaten soon after cooking.

Unlike the beet wraps and the Carrot Wraps, these ones were a bit of work, involving juicing and blending, but it was all worth it. The trade-off was a bright colour to add to my rainbow wraps and the health benefits. Purple cabbage is a very low calorie food (1 cup chopped provides about 28 calories) and is also a great source of vitamin C, K, beta-carotene, fiber, folate, manganese and calcium.

I will share below how to prepare the batter and for the cooking method I invite you to follow the instructions for the Beet Wraps, they are the same, with the only difference being that I used a full 1/4 cup batter for each wrap.

Purple Cabbage Wraps (Cabbage Cheela, Instant Cabbage Dosa)
Makes 8

• 1 cup chickpea flour (besan, gram flour)
• 1/4 cup rice flour (the powder type)
• 1 tsp salt (I use Himalayan)
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika (optional, but I like the added flavour)

• 2 cloves garlic, finely grated
• 1 Tb finely grated ginger

• 1 medium purple cabbage, divided: 1/4 cabbage for blending (makes 1 cup) and 3/4 cabbage for juicing (makes 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup water

• 1/4 cup oil for cooking the wraps (I use sunflower)

Note: 1 cup = 250 ml, 1/4 cup = 60 ml. I use a 16.5 cm/6.5'' pan. I wouldn't advise making larger wraps as they would be hard to flip.

Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

Cut the cabbage in half, then in quarters. Remove the core and the very thick parts of the leaves around it.

Cut 3 quarters into smaller pieces and push them through a juicer. That should make 1 cup of juice.

Cut the other quarter into smaller pieces and put them in a blender together with 1/2 cup juice. Process until the cabbage is blended very finely.

Add the blended cabbage, the remaining 1/2 cup juice and the water to the dry ingredients and mix well.

Make the wraps straight away, following the instructions for the beet wraps.

As soon as they are cool enough to handle, make rolls using your favourite spread, vegan cream cheese or vegetables, or simply use them in place of bread with curries.

See the lemon wedge I used to add some colour contrast in the pictures above? Well, it did more than that, it also added some colour to the wraps:) This would be a fun game for kids, just give them a lemon wedge and let them brush the whole surface of a roll to turn it pink, or make rings.

Enjoy and spread the magic!:)

If you've tried these wraps I would greatly appreciate your feedback. Thank you!