Category Archives: dumplings

Southern Chicken & Dumplings


2 1/2 lbs chicken thighs
or boneless breasts
1 can biscuits (cut each
in 1/2 )
2 stalks celery, thinly
sliced
1 medium onion, thinly
sliced
2/3 cup grated carrots
3 tbsp. black pepper
1 tsp. white pepper
1 tsp. seasoned salt (or
to taste)
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. onion and garlic
powder
1 tsp. chicken base or 1
bouillon cube
1 bay leaf

Preheat a large Dutch
oven or soup pot, coat
lightly with oil or spray
to keep the chicken
from sticking as you
lightly brown it on both
sides along with the
onion and celery. Cover
with water, add
seasonings, bay leaf
and chicken base.

Cover and let boil on a
medium heat for 8-12
minutes.

Next, add cut-up
biscuits to the pot 2 at a
time so they won’t
clump together. Add
the peas and carrots.

Cook for another 10-12
minutes, stirring pot to
keep dumplings from
settling and sticking to
the bottom.

Serve with a warm pan
of cornbread or a
basket of hot rolls.
Perfect for a fall or
winter supper!

Pyrohy (ped-a-hey)


Dough:

1/4 lb of butter
2 eggs
3 c. warm water to melt butter
2 tsp. salt
8 c. flour

For filling: 

 leftover mashed potatoes and 1 c shredded sharp cheddar

Roll out dough to about 1/8-inch thickness on floured board and cut out rounds with biscuit cutter.  Take a heaping teaspoonful of the cooled potatoe mixture and put in center of dough you have cut out.  Fold the dough with the filling in half (it will look like a half moon).  Pinch dough together tightly to seal.  Make sure they are sealed tightly or they will come apart and filling will fall out during cooking.  Add water or egg wash if necessary for a tight seal.

When you have finished filling the dough cut outs, take a large kettle (5 or 6 quarts) and fill 1/2 full of water, add a bit of salt to the water.  Bring this to a boil; then drop about 20 Pyrohy into boiling water.  Stir carefully with wooden spoon to loosen any Pyrohy that may have stuck to the bottom of the kettle.  The water will stop boiling when you drop all the Pyrohy into the water, that is when you have to loosen them from the bottom. 

When the Pyrohy start boiling, they will float to the top.  Turn heat down and boil gently for about 8 minutes or cover and steam for 10-12 minutes.  Remove Pyrohy from boiling water and strain in colander.  Rinse slightly with cold water to prevent sticking. 

Melt 1/4 to 1/2 pound butter and pour over Pyrohy, then serve.  (I usually sautee’ onions in this butter for on top!)

**If you prefer, you can pan fry them instead of boiling…

***This is the recipe I’ve used most often.  I’m about to work up the ambition to make them again with 3 young helpers!

Sour Cream Pierogie Recipe


From near to far: sweet cheese, potato, mushro...

Image via Wikipedia

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups flour, plus extra for kneading and rolling dough
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 cup sour cream, plus extra to serve with the pierogi
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened and cut into small pieces
  • butter and onions for sauteing
  • ingredients for filling of your choice (potato & cheese filling recipe below)

Preparation:

Pierogi Dough
To prepare the pierogi dough, mix together the flour and salt. Beat the egg, then add all at once to the flour mixture. Add the 1/2 cup sour cream and the softened butter pieces and work until the dough loses most of its stickiness (about 5-7 minutes). You can use a food processor with a dough hook for this, but be careful not to overbeat. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes or overnight; the dough can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Each batch of dough makes about 12-15 pierogies, depending on size.
Prepare the Pierogies:  Roll the pierogi dough on a floured board or countertop until 1/8″ thick. Cut circles of dough (2″ for small pierogies and 3-3 1/2″ for large pierogies) with a cookie cutter or drinking glass. Place a small ball of filling (about a tablespoon) on each dough round and fold the dough over, forming a semi-circle. Press the edges together with the tines of a fork.

Boil the perogies a few at a time in a large pot of water. They are done when they float to the top (about 8-10 minutes). Rinse in cool water and let dry.

Saute chopped onions in butter in a large pan until onions are soft. Then add pierogies and pan fry until lightly crispy. Serve with a side of sour cream for a true Pittsburgh pierogi meal.

Homemade Pierogi Tips:

  1. If you are having a hard time getting the edges to stick together, you may have too much flour in the dough. Add a little water to help get a good seal. 
  2. If you don’t want to cook all of the pierogies right away, you can refrigerate them (uncooked) for several days or freeze them for up to several months. 
  3. You can fill pierogies with pretty much anything you want, though potato and cheese is the most common (recipe below). Sweet pierogies are often filled with a prune mixture.

Potato, Cheese & Onion Filling: Peel and boil 5 large potatoes until soft. Red potatoes are especially good for this. While the potatoes are boiling, finely chop 1 large onion and saute in butter until soft and translucent. Mash the potatoes with the sauted onions and 4-8oz of grated cheddar cheese (depending on how cheesy you want your pierogies), adding salt and pepper to taste. You can also add some fresh parsley, bacon bits, chives, or other enhancements if you desire. Let the potato mixture cool and then form into 1″ balls.

Cherry Dumplings


Cherry Sauce:

2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/2 cup sugar
dash of salt
1/2 cup cherry juice
1 1/2 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups pie cherries

Dumplings:
1 cup sifted flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
1/3 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons margarine

Sauce: Combine all ingredients in order given in heavy skillet or saucepan. Simmer gently about 5 minutes.

Dumplings: Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Cut or rub in butter or margarine. Add vanilla extract to milk. Add milk to flour mixture and stir to make a thick batter. Drop by teaspoon into cherry sauce. Cover, steam for 20 minutes. Serve dumplings warm with cherry sauce.

Kase Knephla, aka Cheese Buttons


Dough:
3 cups flour
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
Water

Filling:
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
Black pepper, to taste
1 small onion, finely diced
1 1/2 lbs. dry curd cottage cheese
4 tablespoons minced parsley

For Frying:
Cubed stale bread
Butter or cream

Bring several quarts of water to a boil and salt to taste. Mix flour, 1 tsp. salt, 2 eggs and water to make a firm dough. Divide into 3 parts. Roll very thin; cut into squares, about 3 inches. Mix remaining ingredients together and spoon onto squares. Wet edges of dough and fold over to form triangles. Seal edges with a fork.

Add buttons to water and boil gently for 7-8 minutes or until dough is tender. Melt a few tablespoons butter in large skillet or wok on medium heat. Increase heat to medium high heat and fry buttons for several minutes or until browned in spots, adding bread cubes toward the end of cooking.

Amish Potato Dumplings


4 potatoes
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
2 tbsp. fresh parsley, minced (optional)
1 egg
2 tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. flour

 

These Amish dumplings are also known as Grumbera Knepp. They are good and filling as a side dish or as center stage in a simple chicken broth with a parsley garnish or dressed up with a few fresh greens.Boil potatoes in their jackets and allow to cool. Peel and put through a potato ricer (do not use a food processor, but a hand beater may be used).

Combine the bread crumbs with the egg and milk, then add the riced potatoes, parsley and salt. If too stiff, add another egg.

Mold the mixture into small balls the size of walnuts, roll them in flour very lightly and lower on a perforated spoon gently into salted boiling water.

Tip: Color the flour by sprinkling the surface lightly with paprika, if desired. The dumplings can also be flavored with a pinch of thyme.

Cover the pot and boil for 10 minutes.

Sprinkle lightly with chopped parsley and paprika for more color. Serve while still hot with melted butter.

These dumplings are also good in chicken soup.

Armenian Turkey Dumplings


Ingredients:

* 1 Lbs. ground turkey
* 2/3 cup tabbouleh salad mix
* 1 Tbs. parsley, chopped
* 2 Tbs. fresh mint, chopped or 1 tsp. dried
* 1 tsp. paprika
* 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
* 4 cup beef stock
* 1-1/2 cups water
* 3 Tbs. tomato paste
* 1/2 cup plain yogurt
* 1 Tbs. parsley, chopped

Cooking Directions:

Knead turkey with tabbouleh mix, spices and seasonings. Form into 12 balls and chill. Combine beef stock, water and tomato paste and bring to a boil. Drop dumplings in boiling stock about six at a time; cook for 5 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon; repeat with remaining dumplings. Serve dumplings in stock garnished with dollop of yogurt and sprinkle of parsley.

Crock Pot Dumpling Soup


1 pound beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 pack lipton’s onion soup mix
6 cups hot water
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
1 tomato, peeled and chopped
1 cup biscuit mix
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
6 tablespoons milk

In crock-pot, sprinkle beef with dry onion soup mix. Pour hot water over meat. Stir in carrots, celery and tomato. Cover and cook on low 4-6 hours or until meat is tender. Turn control to high. In a small bowl, combine biscuit mix with parsley. Stir in milk with fork until mixture is moistened. Drop dumpling mixture into crock-pot with a teaspoon. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes.

Apple Dumplings


A recipe for pastry, based on 2 c. flour
3 tbsp. butter
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 tsp. allspice
3/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/3 c. sifted brown sugar
8 medium apples, peeled and cored
3 tbsp. jelly
1 1/2 c. boiling water
1 1/2 c. sugar
3 tbsp. fruit juice (orange, lemon, pineapple, apricot, or what you have)
Food color (optional)

Make a paste of butter, spices, and brown sugar. Roll out pastry 1/8 inch thick. Cut into eight 6 inch squares. Place apple in center of each; put jelly or orange marmalade in cavity and spread the spicy paste over each apple. Moisten edges of pastry. Bring points together over the apple. Seal edges firmly. Roll left-over pastry and cut into strips to lay across tops of dumplings.
Place in large greased baking dish, about 11 x 15 inches. Bake in moderate oven, 375 degrees for 30 minutes. While the dumplings are baking, make a syrup of water, sugar, and fruit juice. Simmer to dissolve sugar. Pour over the apples. Bake 10 or 20 minutes more, basting frequently, to give a pretty glaze. A little color may be added to the syrup. Serve warm with cream. This makes 8 servings and we are quite sure no one person could eat two of these jewels. That is, at one meal.

SAUCE FOR APPLE DUMPLINGS:

2 c. brown sugar
2 c. water
1 tbsp. flour
1 tbsp. corn syrup
1/4 c. butter
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Pour over apples and bake 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.

Chicken Soup with Egg Drop Dumplings


DUMPLINGS:

2 eggs, well beaten
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. flour
1 tbsp. water

Gather together leftover bits of chicken. Cook one chopped onion, celery, parsley, bay leaf, all to suit your taste. Cook chicken until tender. Take out parts and strain. Be sure the soup is boiling. Combine the above ingredients until there are no lumps. Thin with the 1 tablespoon of water. Drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture into the boiling soup and continue to boil until done.