1. Preheat the oven to 175C fan-forced (195C conventional). Prepare the tomato sauce by warming the olive oil in a saucepan over a low-medium heat. Gently cook the garlic for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant and beginning to soften. Pour in the passata and add 150ml of water and season with salt. Allow to gently simmer, stirring occasionally for 10-15 minutes until slightly thickened.

2. Working in batches, blanch the cabbage leaves in lightly salted water for 2-3 minutes or until tender and pliable. Drain and allow to cool. Use a small, sharp knife to pare back the central rib of each leaf so it sits flush on the bench and is easier to roll. Finely chop the trimmings and place in a large bowl. Set aside.

3. Warm the butter and olive oil in a frying pan over a low-medium heat. Cook the onion with a pinch of salt for 10-12 minutes or until soft, but not coloured. Transfer to the bowl with the cabbage trimmings and set aside to cool.

4. Place the torn pieces of bread in a small bowl and cover with the milk. Allow to soften (about 10 minutes), then rub the pieces between your fingers until they have a breadcrumb-like texture. Set aside.

5. Blanch the silverbeet leaves for 2-3 minutes or until softened. Drain and when cool enough to handle, squeeze out the excess water, roughly chop and add to the bowl with the cabbage trimmings and cooked onions. To this, add the mince, sausage meat, herbs, nutmeg, cheese, milk-soaked bread, including any residual milk left in the bowl, and the egg. Season with salt and pepper and mix using your hands until everything is combined. Set aside.

6. Spoon a thin layer of the sauce onto the base of a 40cm ovenproof dish. Set aside.

7. Lay one cabbage leaf on your workbench, inner side up, and place 2-3 heaped tablespoons of the meat mixture at the base of the leaf. The amount of filling will depend on how large your cabbage leaf is. You want to ensure it is generously filled but can roll up with ease. Working from the base of the leaf, roll it over the meat filling tightly, then tuck the sides in and continue to roll to form a neat parcel, as if folding a burrito. Place the parcel, seam side down, into the prepared dish. Repeat with the remaining meat mixture and cabbage leaves, arranging them in the dish as you go.

8. Spoon over the remaining tomato sauce and cover the dish with baking paper, then wrap tightly with aluminium foil. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove the paper and foil and cook uncovered for a further 15 minutes to colour. Serve with mashed potatoes or polenta.

Note: Stuffed cabbage rolls in Italy go by many names, from verzolini in Emilia-Romagna to capunet in Piedmont. They are as delicious as they are beautiful. Sometimes filled with potato, mushroom and scamorza or with leftover roast meats or mortadella, they vary from region to region. The outer leaves, in all their beautiful hues of green, are blanched until tender, then stuffed and rolled and braised in either white wine or a tomato sauce.