Chicken and Dumplings

Whenever I think of chicken and dumpling soup, I think of a round and rosy-cheeked grandmother wearing a big white apron and a permanent smile. It must be the simmering chicken broth that makes me think of warm kitchens. Broth rolling with bubbles of carrots, celery, onion and garlic with thick shreds of chicken all under spoonfuls of dough bobbing on top.

Not to be obnoxious, but this was the most home-made of any soup I’ve created. But it doesn’t have to be. You don’t have to use chicken and potatoes from a lemon-garlic roast bird you made earlier in the week, or use chicken stock made from roasted chicken bones. But we both know it’s better when you’ve invested the time, and love, into the dish.

I jazzed up my broth with cinnamon, nutmeg and citrus. I know it sounds weird, but those additions give it a unique warmth. My mom actually gave me the dumpling recipe, which uses buttermilk (something I had left over in the fridge), so they were extra soft and tangy.

I highly recommend this soup on a cold day – better than regular old chicken noodle.

Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients:

• 1/3 c. chopped celery hearts
• 1/3 c. chopped peeled carrots
• 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 qt. (2 boxes) chicken stock you’ve made with lemon, parsley, thyme and bay (or use the boxed variety and add the aromatics to the stock as it simmers)
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 6 grates fresh nutmeg
• 1/2 lemon
• 1-2 c. shredded chicken (or 1 lb. raw chicken)
• EVOO
• S&P
• Handful cilantro, chopped

Heat 1 T of EVOO in soup pot over medium until hot. Add celery, carrots, onion and garlic. Stir 4-5 min. Add chicken stock and bring to a simmer (this is where you’d add the aromatics if you didn’t make your own stock). Add the shredded chicken, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon and reduce to simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, make dumplings:

Mix 1 c. flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt in a medium bowl. Cut in 2 T chilled butter (I actually forgot this step but it was still good – go figure!) until it looks like coarse meal. Add 1/2 c. buttermilk and mix until wet ball comes together ( I just used a wooden spoon), adding a dash more buttermilk, if needed.

Drop dough into soup by rounded tablespoons. Simmer uncovered 10 min., then cover and simmer 10 more minutes. Meanwhile, stir 3 T flour into 1/4 c. milk until smooth. When dumplings are done, whisk in milk/flour mixture until broth thickens, about 1 min.

Spoon into bowls and top with chopped cilantro.

Yum! Does’t it look kind of like matzo ball soup?

Enjoy, friends! xoxo

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The gyoza incident

Not exactly "traditional," but whatever

I will never make these again!!!!

Or so I said, over and over, as I stood at my counter, patiently filling small wonton wrappers with an Asian-flavored pork mixture, then clumsily sealing the edges together, finally placing them on a cookie sheet to rest.

Some things should be left to the professionals. And my professional opinion is that gyoza, or potstickers, are a helluva lot of work for this gal.

But I must say…the result was really good. I mean at LEAST as good, if not better, than what you can get at the store. And this way, I know there is little fat in it and all fresh ingredients. I made about a million of these little guys, cooked up a dozen and froze the rest for future lunches and whatnot.

In my opinion, you don’t really need a recipe to make this. Here’s what I did:

Mix together the filling:

1 package ground pork

2 T soy sauce

Handful chopped scallions

3 minced garlic cloves

2 T grated fresh ginger

3 handfuls minced napa cabbage

Pepper, to taste

1 egg, lightly beaten

Take your store-bought gyoza wrappers (I couldn’t find these, so I used wonton wrappers, which didn’t give me that perfect crescent shape), drop a small spoonful of filling in the middle of one wrapper. You’ll learn pretty fast how much is too much filling. You don’t want it to touch the edges in any way.

Dab water on one edge, fold the wrapper over and crimp it together, being sure to get out any air bubbles. Next, and this is important, put it on your cookie sheet to flatten out the bottom.

If you want to freeze, put the whole cookie sheet in the freezer, later transferring the dumplings to plastic bags.

If you want to eat right away: Spray a nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add your gyoza, flat side down and heat it to medium. Once they’ve browned on one side, 4-5 min., add in a scant 1/4 c. water – just enough to cover the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan and let them steam until fully cooked, about 8 minutes.

The wrappers will get a little translucent but should hold together.

For a dipping sauce, the sky is the limit! I mixed 1/4 c. soy sauce with a dash of sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, chili flakes, more garlic, pepper and scallions. If you need to, dilute with water.

Sprinkle your cooked gyoza with toasted sesame seeds, dip in the sauce and enjoy! Great for parties or driving yourself crazy.