Dumplings Made Easy

As I sat down to write this, I had contemplated titling this blog entry as, “Dumplings for Dummies” as a way to convey how simple they are to make. But then I began to wonder if you, dear reader, might feel slighted in some way should you attempt this recipe. It’s not really a recipe for dummies, it’s just really simple to make. My intention here is to de-mystify dumpling making with easy to find ingredients. So hence, dumplings made easy.

Dumplings are a Sunday morning thing for us. On several occasions, we have visited a little place in Chinatown, Mother’s Dumplings for fresh and delicious dumplings. But since we have moved to the other side of the city, we visit it less and less. For those lazy Sunday mornings when our only plan is to watch a couple hours of football in the afternoon, we make dumplings.

They are really easy to make and a great way to shake off the Sunday morning haze. Of course, we gladly eat them anytime of the day (and we have), but when we are not feeling like the usual breakfast fare, we think of dumplings.

Most of the ingredients are thinks we normally have in our fridge (except for maybe the dumpling wrappers) so it is really easy to whip together at a moment’s notice. I call it a master recipe because you can switch out the ingredients as you wish as long as you keep an eye on the proportions.

A word on folding dumplings. I was not born with the dexterity of a master dumpling maker. My mom pinches this and pulls that and with a twist of her wrist, she produces enviable perfect little dumplings. I, on the other hand, still make bunny ears to tie my shoelaces, so I don’t purport to provide you with the technique for perfect dumpling wrapping (I am quite certain you can google this if you're keen), but this is a great and very simple way to make dumplings.

Sunday Morning Dumplings (Master Recipe)

1 lb of extra lean ground beef / chicken (or mixture with minced raw shrimp)
2 stalks green onions, finely minced
1 thumb-sized ginger, finely grated
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp cooked vegetables, minced (examples: spinach, mushrooms, savoy cabbage, carrots)

1 package of Shanghai dumpling wrappers / wonton wrappers*

1. Mix all the ingredients together except for the last ingredients. Mix well to incorporate, but do not over mix. To check for seasoning, make a small meatball and drop into a pot of boiling water, when it floats to the surface and starts to bob around, remove it with a slotted spoon. When cool enough, taste the meatball and adjust your seasonings.
2. Fill a small dish with a little warm water.
3. Using a teaspoon, scoop the filling onto the center of the wrapper. Dip your finger into the water and wetting the edges of the half side of the wrapper. Fold into half with the wet edge affixed to the dry edge to form a triangle or semi-circle (depending on the shape of your wrapper.)



4. Place on a dry plate, cover with a damp towel.
5. Repeat as necessary, keeping the dumplings covered under the towel.
6. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Once a rolling boil is achieved, carefully drop dumplings in one by one in small batches (depending on the size of your pot – 6 -12.) Don't be tempted to add too many to the pot as it will lower the temperature of the water and will take longer to return the water to boiling temperature. Give the dumplings a quick stir to ensure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Once the dumplings start to float to the top and the water is boiling again, scoop them out with a slotted soup into a deep bowl.
7. Serve with chilli soy dipping sauce (recipe below)

Alternatively, you can steam the dumplings. Lay down a leaf of cabbage over a steamer and place dumplings on top. Steam until the wrapper turns from opaque toward translucent.

To make pot stickers, heat oil in a large, deep fry pan and carefully add dumplings and cook until the outside is crisp and slightly brown. Add about ½ c of water to the pan. Partially cover and steam, until the water is evaporated and the bottom side is crisp.

Chilli Soy Dipping Sauce

This is a recipe I base on proportion:

1 part acid (malt vinegar, lime juice)
2 parts soy sauce
1 part chilli sauce (sriracha, chilli garlic sauce, whatever you have)
splash sesame oil

Mix together and serve with dumplings.

*dumpling wrappers are either round or square. (We have used wonton wrappers but they are much thinner and lend themselves better as part of a soup. If you are looking to make this, try to look for Shanghai dumpling wrappers. You can find dumpling wrappers in the grocery store, usually in the refrigerator section in the vegetable aisle in most grocery stores – at least in Toronto. Most Asian supermarkets will have them as well.)

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Meat, Cheese and Heat: Raclette is the Ultimate Weekend Dinner

For our wedding last summer, we received a raclette grill as a gift. (We love our friends and family!) We were thrilled to receive it but it gathered dust in our basement over the summer and the fall as we continued to use our barbeque.

We decided that over the Christmas holidays, it would be a great time for us to break out our raclette grill. So my husband bought about a kilo of raclette cheese from the cheesemonger in anticipation for a New Year’s Party that didn't happen. The cheese sat in our fridge this week and we decided that immediate intervention was required in order to make a dent in it.

So we celebrated the end of our first week at work with a relaxing and fun dinner. We poured ourselves some bubbly (also another remnant from our wedding) and fired up the indoor grill. We assembled platters of roast turkey, the hottest Genoa salami, pickled onions, gherkins, escargots, shrimp, cubes of salmon, quail eggs, sliced mushrooms, boiled baby potatoes and loads of shaved raclette cheese. Then we sat down to talk about the events of the past week as well as the next stage of our home renovations. (Oh dear...)

There is something truly sublime about oozy molten cheese. But it’s a balance: too much cheese and it is unctuous and unpleasant and too little, well then, what’s the point? But just the right amount and it is a luxurious and comforting.

Unlike fondue where you plunge cubes of bread and meats into hot oil or cheese, with raclette, you grill your seafood, meat and vegetable on the grill on top. Then you shovel them onto the tiny raclette pan, sprinkle cheese and slide it under the broiler below until the cheese is bubbly and golden.



The beauty of raclette is its simplicity: melted cheese over grilled vegetable, meat and seafood – few things are this easy to prepare and are this delicious. The preparation is also quite simple. In fact, it took us less than fifteen minutes to assemble our food for grilling. Then we spent about ninety minutes grilling, and nibbling. And of course, sipping champagne. (Wouldn't it be nice to live like this every day?)


Raclette Party

8 oz raclette cheese per person (I think you could probably use other cheeses you like – I think mozzarella, cheddar, emmental, gruyere may all work nicely.)

For grilling – some suggested items:
• cubes of salmon or beef
• peeled raw shrimp
• green onions, cut into two inch pieces
• sliced button mushrooms
• boiled mini potatoes, sliced in half
• cooked escargot (my husband’s request)
• quail eggs (we cook them in the mini raclette pan versus the grill)
(We grilled tomatoes, I don't recommend them because the liquid gets so hot that it's a tongue burner.)

For the side:
• deli meats: prosciutto, roasted turkey, hot salami
• cornichons
• pickled onions

Sparkling white wine or champagne is a great accompaniment because it is very bright and refreshing.

What To Do With.... Moroccan Preserved Lemons

Happy new year! I don’t know about you, but I think I misspent some of my Christmas vacation. To start, I ate way too much, I watched a Tori & Dean: In Love Season 2 marathon (oddly addictive) and then, feeling pangs of guilt, I rushed to a crowded gym this week sweating out the sins of the last two weeks. Good bye, chocolate truffle cake! Adios, Tori & Dean! So long, foie gras! Hello, spinning class!

The new year is an appropriate time to make a brand new start, to wipe the slate clean and to do things a little differently this year, so I hope you don’t mind if I share my resolutions with you this year.

Exercise regularly. Say four times a week would be great. Five is even better.
Be organized so I can pack a lunch at least four times a week. When I pack my own lunch, I make better choices about my diet than when I am a slave to my growling belly.
Reduce stress by putting things in perspective. I don’t need to be at the beck and call of every urgent email or phone call. It’s about prioritizing what’s important and having the fortitude to say, “no.” (Sounds oddly easy, but I find this hard.)
Making time for friends and family. (This is a no-brainer.)

Here’s hoping that we all keep the resolutions that help us become more fulfilled and happier people. Cheers.

Now onto business…

I have a rather large jar of preserved lemons taking up space in fridge right now. I have used exactly two tiny lemons and I suspect there are approximately another twelve or thirteen to go. Without focused intervention, this jar will languish in my fridge for years.

Apparently, preserved lemons, in the Moroccan style, are very easy to make. I googled it and found loads of really easy recipes. But they require 30 days of undisturbed brining time. If you can put lemons in a jar, you can make preserved lemons. Who knew! (I didn’t have the foresight to make these little darlings; I bought them at St. Lawrence Market.)

Preserved lemons are wonderful. They are mouth-puckering tart with a deliciously salty bite and our jar, in particular, a faint hint of heat from the red hot chili pepper wedged between lemons. Pickling turned the entire fruit into an edible delight, skins and all.

I had been meaning to buy preserved lemons ever since I first saw them at the Jean Talon Market in Montreal. (If you have never been, do go to the market! It’s a sight especially at the peak of the season.) Preserved lemons are a Moroccan staple and they may be discovered in the middle-eastern spice/grocery stores sometimes in massive apothecary jars bathing in a very salty brine. I have always given them a pass because I never felt inspired enough to buy them (as in, “I must buy this now!” inspired.)

But then inspiration struck while I browsed the food section at Williams-Sonoma last week. I was minding my own business when I a gleaming glass jar caught my attention: Artichoke and Lemon Sauce for pasta. Well... The jar was a bit spendy for my budget, but I decided that this could easily be made at home. I chopped up the preserved lemon and the pasta dish turned out quite well. Now, I have a nearly full jar of preserved lemons. So here is what to do with… Preserved lemons.

Artichoke & Preserved Lemon Linguine
1 can artichoke hearts (not marinated)
1 lb linguine
1 small preserved lemon – finely diced
1 small red onion – finely diced
juice from 1 lemon
1 c white wine (I used a Riesling but you could also use vegetable broth)
1 tsp celery salt
1 tbsp Old Bay Seasoning
salt & pepper to taste
3 tablespoons butter

Cook pasta according to package instructions.
Melt butter in a large saucepan, add onions and cook until onions until they soften.
Add can of artichokes hearts, breaking up some of the hearts with a wooden spoon, but leaving it rather chunky. Add white wine, lemon juice, Old Bay, celery salt and preserved lemon. Cook until sauce thickens.
Drain pasta well and pour into a large bowl. (Reserving a cup of pasta water to loosen the pasta.) Pour artichoke mixture of the pasta and toss. Aim for evenly coated noodles and loosen with reserved pasta water as necessary. (Be judicious here, you probably won’t need it all!) Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.

1 Minute Avocado & Tomato Salad
Add 4 quartered compari tomatoes with ½ small avocado that has been diced, and about a teaspoon of chopped preserved lemon. Toss and sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.


Couscous
Toss hot couscous with chopped preserved lemon, and toasted pine nuts and chopped parsley.

Caper and Preserved Lemon Relish
One part chopped preserved lemon, one part capers, a squeeze of lemon juice and a splash of olive oil. Serve over broiled fish or chicken.

As an add-in to:
Chickpea Stew
Chicken and Olive Tagine
Beef meatballs (kofte)

As a substitute for lemon and lemon zest:
Pistou
Honey and lemon martini (oh yum)
On top of yogurt and blueberries (with a drizzle of maple syrup)

What To Do With….. Turkey Leftovers

We just spent this past weekend with my husband’s parents in Montreal to celebrate an early Christmas. (We are spending Christmas day in Toronto with my brother and parents.) Our trips to Montreal are characterized by massive amounts of delicious, full flavour foods and quiet relaxation on the West Island. This trip was no exception. While it was blistery cold outside, we indulged in fabulous meal after glorious meal of French-Canadian delights as well as some of my mother-in-law’s other tried and true Christmas time dishes. In between our noshing and nibbling marathon, we did a little sight seeing in la belle province. For this wintery visit, we drove down to Quebec’s Eastern Townships to enjoy an afternoon of sight-seeing, exploring and antiquing.

The Eastern Townships are located south-east of Montreal nestled in the foothills of the Appalachians near the border of the north-eastern U.S. states of Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Its settlement by English Loyalists over two centuries ago has left an indelible mark on the Townships where English is widely spoken and expressed through the region’s architecture. Still the Townships are very much a part of Quebec. Driving through south-eastern Quebec is like driving through a picture on a postcard as fir trees, their boughs heavy with pristine white snow, line undulating country roads guiding drivers through the Townships’ villages, ski hills and cottages. We drive past communities whose populations ebb and flow with the seasons, swelling in the summer with the arrival of cottagers and tourists and contracting when the days grow shorter. In the winter, the population swells again when the snow lures skiers to the Townships’ powdery hills. On the day of our visit to the town of Knowlton, near Lac Brome, the community seemed serene and quiet, with only a handful of locals and the occasional tourist peeking into shops and visiting the antique dealers.

Daylight was limited and we decided to have a quick lunch in order to catch another tourist stop before the sun quit for the day. We popped into a Quebec hamburger franchise, Valentine. As I walked through the door, it was like stepping in a time machine to an eighties fast food restaurant. The tiny restaurant was brightly lit in its canary yellow and cherry red furniture. Christmas garland and ornaments hung along the walls and a large Christmas tree tucked into the corner by the window.

I ordered the Valentine burger which was about the size as a McDonald’s hamburger but significantly meatier and loaded with fresh toppings. It was such a memorable little place, not because the food per se, but it seemed like the restaurant, its patrons and employees had been frozen in time. It was a time where fast food restaurant served hot coffee in mugs and employees gladly came around with free refills. It was a time where big burly grey-haired grandfathers took their young grandsons for a cheeky afternoon meal which would surely spoil supper that evening. We don’t see that anymore in our world of conglomerate fast food restaurants where everything is rehydrated, frozen and pre-made.


My nostalgia set me up for our next stop along our whirlwind tour of the Townships was the Notre-Dame de Stanbridge covered bridge. The first covered bridge built in 1848, it has since been replaced but it stands as a reminder of a time gone by. Now the bridge sits out on a lonely road with a cattle farm on one side and abandoned dining room and motel on the other. The light was fleeting and the temperature had dropped significantly at this point. We stopped for a couple of quick photos before hopping back to the warmth of our car.

The highlight of our weekend was our Christmas dinner where we celebrated the holiday with a twelve pound grain-fed turkey. As I have mentioned previously, roasted turkey is probably one of my favourite meals, mainly because I love the rituals surrounding the meal – the gathering and celebration of family. Of course, a turkey feast for four, means plenty of leftovers and there are only so many turkey sandwiches you can eat before growing tired of the bird.

Happy holidays to MKF readers. May your holidays be filled with joy, happiness with friends and family and an abundance of great food.

What To Do With... Leftover Turkey

When I was growing up, my mom would make fried rice and noodle soup with our leftovers, those are still some of my favourite ways to use roasted turkey.

1. Turkey noodle soup – this is great for the bits of turkey that lurk around the bones (wings, and legs), long after the white breast meat is gone. (Use the bones to enrich the soup, but you may need additional help, so I often use chicken stock as well.)

2. Turkey Rillettes – shred meat finely (about a cup or so) and slowly simmer with a half cup of white wine, a garlic clove minced, 2 tablespoons of butter, salt and pepper to taste (you may also want to add some of the spices you used when roasting the turkey. I like to use celery seeds, a dash of smoked paprika, and thyme.) When most of the liquid has been absorbed, pack into ramekins, cool and refrigerate before serving.

3. Mango turkey salad over glass noodles – Serve this layered salad of 2 c of shredded turkey for chicken, 2 c of diced mangoes, handful of beanspouts, chopped cilantro over fine slippery glass noodles. Make a vinaigrette from the juice of 1 lime, 1/4c light soy sauce, 1 tsp of sambal olek, 2 tbsp of nam pla (fish sauce) and 2 tbsp of sesame oil. Pour over top and garnish with toasted peanuts or cashews.

4. Breakfast Frittata – 6 eggs, half a red bell pepper diced, ½ large onion diced, 1 cup of diced or shredded turkey, ½ mozzarella or cheddar cheese – heat pan over medium heat and sauté bell pepper and onion in butter until softened. Crack eggs, add salt and pepper and spices and beat in a large bowl. Once the vegetables are cooked, pour eggs over top. Quickly give the eggs and vegetables a stir to move around the egg mixture slightly. (Take care here because you’re not making scrambled eggs which is equally as nice but not the intent.) Sprinkle the turkey over top, then the cheese. Allow the eggs to continue to set. Meanwhile, set your oven’s broiler to medium/high. After about five minutes or so when the eggs have mostly cooked through, place the pan under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly and golden.

5. Turkey congee – a very Chinese way to use a turkey bones. Cover bones in a pot of water and simmer for about an hour or two. Remove scum as required, and do not boil. Discard the bones (making sure you’ve strained out the tiny bits that sometimes break away from the main body.) Add about 4 cups of chicken stock to the pot, 1 c of rinsed white rice, and simmer for another hour or so. Rice should dissolve into a creamy consistency. Add salt and white pepper to taste. Garnish with finely chopped green onions, grated ginger with soy sauce and lashings of toasted sesame oil. (The liquid to rice ratio should be about 8c-10c of stock to 1 c of white rice.)

6. Turkey Quesadilla – on one half of a soft tortilla, add shredded cheddar, shredded turkey, diced tomatoes, and a handful of chopped cilantro. Fold in half and grill under a pannini maker until the outside is crispy and toasted and the filling has warmed through.

7. Turkey Waldorf Salad – if you have fairly large amounts of turkey left over, this is probably one of the first recipes you should think of. Traditionally, Waldorf is made with chicken but around our house, one side of the turkey breast is enjoyed at dinner and a full half is left behind. This is a great way to use turkey. Mix 1 cup of cubed turkey with 1 c of diced apple, 1/2c celery crescents, and 1/4c Thompson raisins with about 1/2c of mayonnaise (or 1/4 c of mayonnaise and light sour cream each.) Serve over Boston lettuce.

8. Turkey pot pie

9. Fried rice with turkey

10. Turkey stews of all kinds: chilis, stews, cacciatores, and turkey a la king.

Grateful Dinner Guests Bring Dessert: Raspberry & Asian Pear Crumble

One of the nicest gestures of friendship is the invitation to dinner. Friends who invite to their home for a meal are the friends I happen to like the most. I love having a home-cooked meal prepared for me. As much as I love cooking, eating at someone else’s home offers an introduction to foods I have never had before or a new preparation on a tried and true classic.

However, having a mild obsession with food has its drawbacks. My husband thinks I am a difficult dinner guest to please. But I don’t think so. I do like great food and I have a high standard that I set for myself, but I am always pleased to be invited for a meal and I appreciate any and all efforts our hosts put forward in creating our meal.

Maybe this comes across as showy or “a one upmanship” type thing, but I usually like to bring a little something. Not to display my prowess in the kitchen but as a thank you for the invitation. My lovely neighbour, Jules, invited me over for a girl’s night three weeks ago and after learning that some of the girls were going to show up with bubbly, I thought that I might bring some rose syrup for our drinks. Well, it turned out that all the girls ended up bring beer, and I was the only one with bubbles and rose syrup in hand. Jules laughed and quickly poured me a flute joking that I was being a show off. I realized that maybe she would have appreciated it more if I had brought this dessert instead. It’s my no fail, dead-simple dinner invitation crumble.

The fruits are inter-changeable to reflect your own tastes and what is in season. I like this with apples (or course), strawberries and rhubarb, apricots and almonds, and peaches and raspberries.

3 half-pints raspberries
1 large Asian pear
¼ c light brown sugar
1 tbsp corn starch

4 tbsp butter
½ c flour
1c quick cook oatmeal
¼ c sugar (dememerra)

1. Peel and chop asian pear into small bite size pieces, about the same size as your raspberries.
2. Tumble washed raspberries and asian pear and into a 8 x 8 baking dish. Sprinkle with sugar and cornstarch. (I have added a little bit of sugar here because I find raspberries are slightly tart and the sugar mellows it out abit. This is not a super sweet dish)
3. Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.
4. Mix flour, oatmeal and sugar. Blend in butter until it resembles coarse meal. Don’t fully incorporate the butter, you still want to see the the little flecks and bits of butter embedded within the mixture.
5. Spoon topping over the prepared fruit. Cover most of the fruit with the crumble mixture, but I always leave alittle around the edges to allow the fruit to bubble up.
6. Place the baking dish on top of a baking sheet (in case of spills) and place in the oven for 35 minutes. Check to see if the crumble has a golden crown and if the fruit has bubbled up a bit. If so, remove from the oven and cool slightly. If not, leave in for another five minutes, check.
7. Cool slightly and serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

Roasted Pumpkin and Acorn Squash Bisque

When I invite friends over for dinner, I want them to leave feeling full, delighted and cared for. So when I invited my good friend, Manish, over for dinner, I had to find something that was not only delicious and savoury but also vegetarian. I always find this a bit of a challenge because as a meat eater, vegetarian meals don’t come naturally to me.

In the summer, I think this task would be fairly easy – you could put together a delicious salad with baby greens and sprouts followed by a light spaghettini in a light tomato broth including fresh heirlooms and sundried tomatoes with a dollop of chevre. But it’s cold outside and we are looking for something a little more, something warm and sustaining. In the end, I settled on a pumpkin and acorn squash soup and a vegetarian Japanese curry.

The pumpkin and squash soup is very easy to make. It takes a bit of time but it sits in the oven for most of the cook time. If you can’t find a sugar pumpkin, you can substitute whatever squash you find available.



Roasted Pumpkin and Acorn Squash Bisque

1 sugar pumpkin
1 acorn squash
1c milk
1l vegetable broth
4 tbsp brown sugar
salt & pepper

Optional: coriander chutney

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Split the acorn squash and pumpkin in half (vertical wise). Scoop out seeds.
3. Place the acorn squash & pumpkin halves on a baking sheet. Sprinkle the cavity with a tablespoon of brown sugar. Bake in oven for about an hour until the vegetables are soft.
4. Remove from the oven. If you can handle it, quickly scoop out the flesh from the squash and pumpkin. Put the roasted vegetables into a large pot. Discard the skins.
5. Add milk, broth to the pot and bring to boil. Turn down. And carefully, blend with a handheld immersion blender. (I think this is far safer than sending it into a food processor or a blender. Just proceed carefully.) Blend until its smooth and silky. Add a little bit of water if the soup is too thick. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Finish with a spoonful of coriander chutney (if you don’t have this, you can always substitute pesto.) Let your guests swirl the chutney into the soup. Enjoy!