Chicken and dumplings II

From Cook's Illustrated

Serve 6 to 8. Published February 15, 2005.

Don't use low-fat or fat-free milk in this recipe. Start the dumpling dough only when you're ready to top the stew with the dumplings.

Ingredients

Stew
5	pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
	Table salt and ground black pepper
4	teaspoons vegetable oil
4	tablespoons unsalted butter (1/2 stick)
4	carrots , peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2	ribs celery , sliced 1/4 inch thick
1	large onion , minced
6	tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4	cup dry sherry
4 1/2	cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4	cup whole milk
1	teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves
2	bay leaves
1	cup frozen green peas
3	tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
Dumplings
2	cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1	tablespoon baking powder
1	teaspoon table salt
1	cup whole milk
3	tablespoons reserved chicken fat (or unsalted butter)

Instructions

1. 1. For the Stew: Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add half of the chicken and cook until golden on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and remove the browned skin. Pour off the chicken fat and reserve. Return the pot to medium-high heat and repeat with the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and the remaining chicken. Pour off and reserve any chicken fat.

2. 2. Add the butter to the Dutch oven and melt over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 7 minutes. Stir in the flour. Whisk in the sherry, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in the broth, milk, thyme, and bay leaves. Nestle the chicken, with any accumulated juices, into the pot. Cover and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked and tender, about 1 hour.

3. 3. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Discard the bay leaves. Allow the sauce to settle for a few minutes, then skim the fat from the surface using a wide spoon. Shred the chicken, discarding the bones, then return it to the stew.

4. 4. For the Dumplings: Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Microwave the milk and fat in a microwave-safe bowl on high until just warm (do not over-heat), about 1 minute. Stir the warmed milk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until incorporated and smooth.

5. 5. Return the stew to a simmer, stir in the peas and parsley, and season with salt and pepper. Following the photos below, drop golf-ball-sized dumplings over the top of the stew, about 1/4 inch apart (you should have about 18 dumplings). Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the dumplings have doubled in size, 15 to 18 minutes. Serve.

Getting it Right: Adding the Dumplings

1. Gather a golf-ball-sized portion of the dumpling batter onto a soup spoon, then push the dumpling onto the stew using a second spoon.

2. Cover the stew with the dumplings, leaving about 1/4 inch between each.

3. When fully cooked, the dumplings will have doubled in size.

German bacon and onion tart (flammekueche)

From Cook's Illustrated

Serves 4 as a main course, or 6 as an appetizer. Published October 3, 2007. Web Exclusive.

For the lightest, crispest crust, use an unbleached all-purpose flour with a protein content no higher than 10.5 percent, such as Gold Medal or Pillsbury. Serve the tart with a salad for dinner, or cut it into small pieces and serve as an appetizer. This tart tastes great with Gewürztraminer (a German white wine).

This recipe was published in our cookbook The Best International Recipe.

Ingredients

Tart Dough
2	cups unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces), plus extra as needed
1/2	teaspoon instant yeast
1/2	teaspoon honey
1/2	teaspoon salt
3/4	cup warm water , plus 2 tablespoons (100 to 105 degrees)
1/4	cup vegetable oil
Topping
1	cup crème fraîche or sour cream
	Table salt and ground black pepper or ground white pepper
1/2	teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
8	ounces thick-cut bacon (about 6 slices), cut crosswise into 1/4-inch strips
4	medium onions , halved and sliced thin (about 4 cups)

Instructions

1. 1. For the tart dough: Combine the flour, yeast, honey, and salt in a food processor. With the machine running, add the water through the feed tube, followed by the vegetable oil. Continue to process until the dough forms a ball, about 30 seconds.

2. 2. Turn the dough out onto the counter and knead by hand for 30 seconds, adding extra flour if the dough is sticky. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours, or up to 2 days.

3. 3. Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position, set a baking stone on the rack, and heat the oven to 500 degrees; let the baking stone heat for 1 hour.

4. 4. For the topping: Meanwhile, mix the crème fraîche, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg together, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until needed.

5. 5. Cook the bacon in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned and most of the fat has rendered, about 10 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, leaving the fat in the skillet. Add the onions and 1/2 teaspoon salt to the fat left in the skillet, cover, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are softened and have released their juices, about 10 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook, stirring often, until the onions begin to brown, about 6 minutes; set aside off the heat.

6. 6. To assemble and bake: Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Divide it into two equal pieces, forming each piece into a ball. Place one ball on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper and cover with one large sheet of plastic wrap (or two small overlapping pieces). Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 15 by 9-inch oval. Slide the parchment paper with the dough onto an inverted baking sheet.

7. 7. Spread half of the crème fraîche mixture over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the edge. Scatter half of the onion mixture and half of the bacon over the top. Slide the parchment with the tart onto the heated baking stone. Bake until the edges of the tart are golden brown and the parchment releases from the tart bottom, 5 to 7 minutes. While the first tart bakes, roll out and assemble the second tart on a sheet of parchment paper using the remaining dough and topping. Cut the baked tarts into about 6 pieces, and serve immediately.

My favorite gluten-free pie crust

From Gluten-Free Girl

My favorite gluten-free pie crust, adapted from Rebecca Reilly's Gluten-Free Baking

This recipe is only slightly adapted from the excellent, essential book, Gluten-Free Baking by Rebecca Reilly. Her recipes work, and they work well. Even more important, they aren't just content to be gluten-free and barely palatable, as so many of the earliest books on gluten-free cooking were. These recipes rock. I have made half a dozen foods out of this, and not a single person has been able to guess that these are gluten-free. If you don't own this book, and you have baking experience (it's clearly not for sheer beginners) you should buy it, now.

1 cup white rice flour
1/2 sorghum flour
1/2 cup potato starch
3 tablespoons sweet rice flour
3 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon strong cinnamon (I use Saigon cinnamon from World Spice Merchants)
8 tablespooons (or, one stick) cold butter
1 large egg
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 ice-cold water, or enough to make the dough stick together

Mix together all the dry ingredients, including the sugar and cinnamon. Cut the butter into little pieces, about 1/2-inch thick and drop the pieces into the dry ingredients. Using a pastry cutter or fork, meld the butter into the dry ingredients until the butter has crumbled into pea-sized pieces.

Make a well in the dry ingredients. Drop the egg and apple cider vinegar in, then stir them in, gently, with a fork, stirring from the center out. Once they are incorporated into the dry ingredients, slowly drizzle the ice-cold water into the mixture, a little at a time, then stirring to see if it has become dough yet. You do not want this dough to be too wet. Add water only it all coheres together.

At this point, drop the ball of dough onto a large piece of parchment paper. (Prepare this ahead, unless you want to wipe dough off the box of parchment paper later!) Place another piece of parchment paper, the same size, on top of the dough. Gently, smoosh the dough outward, equally in all directions, until it is a thick, round cake of dough, about the size of a pie plate.

Refrigerate the ball of dough, for as long as you can stand. Ideally, you would prepare the dough in the evening and refrigerate overnight. Take the dough out of the refrigerator at least twenty minutes before you want to work with it.

Leave the dough in the parchment-paper sandwich and roll it out. By rolling it, gently, between the pieces of parchment paper, you will not need to add more flour to the mix. Roll it out as thin as you can, then strip the top piece of parchment paper off the dough. Gently, lay your favorite pie plate on top of the dough, then flip the whole thing over. The dough should sag into the pie plate. You can crimp the edges at this point. If some of the dough falls off the sides, don't worry. Simply re-attach the pieces to the crust-to-be by pressing in with your fingers.

You can pre-bake the pie crust, if you like. With this pumpkin pie, however, I just pour the pumpkin filling directly in and bake it immediately. It works well.

Donna Jo's dream pastry

From Gluten-Free Girl

Now, there are ways to make an excellent gluten-free crust without buying a mix. And I'm certain that I'll be doing that soon too. But sometimes, buying all the individual flours, plus the xantham gum, can be a little spendy. However, if you have them in your house already, or you want to make the investment, here's the recipe that Melissa from Traveler's Lunchbox left me in the comments yesterday. It looks fabulous, and it comes originally from here.

1/2 cup tapioca flour
1 cup sweet rice flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup potato starch flour
1 rounded tsp xanthan gum
1/2 tsp salt
dash sugar optional
1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup butter flavored crisco
1 egg cold
1 Tblsp. GF vinegar
4 tablespoons of ice water
sweet rice flour for rolling

Blend together the flours, xanthan gum, salt, and sugar. Cut in the margarine and Crisco in small dabs until you have shortening the size of lima beans (not cornmeal).

Beat the egg using a fork; add the vinegar and ice water. Stir into the flour mixture, forming a ball. You may knead this a bit, since rice flour crusts can stand handling. Refrigerate the dough for an hour or more to chill.

Divide dough and roll out on a sweet rice-floured board (or on floured plastic wrap, for easier handling). Place in a pie tin. If using plastic wrap, remove it to the pie tin and invert the dough into the pan. Shape before removing the plastic. Bake as directed for the filling used.

For a baked crust, prick the pastry with a fork on sides and botton. Bake the crust in a pre-heated 450 oven for 10 - 12 minutes, or until slightly browned. Cool before filling. Makes enough pastry for a 2-crust 9" pie plus 1 pie shell.

Perogies

From LiveJournal Coeliac Recipes

As requested by twostepsfwd, here's a great recipe for perogies. They are kind of a pain to make but well worth the time and effort. Perogies are a lazy day meal for my family so I tend to make a double or triple batch and keep my freezer well stocked.

1 cup creamed cottage cheese
1 large egg
3 tbsp milk
1 tbsp oil
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup potato starch
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup tapioca flour
1 1/2 cups white rice flour
1/4 cup soya flour
3 tsp xantham gum
1 tsp salt

Place first five ingrediants in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into a medium sized bowl. Sift and mix dry ingrediants together and add to liquid mixture. Knead well with hands until dough is smooth. Cover and let stand while you make the filling. Roll thin on an oiled surface. Cut with 2 1/2 inch round cutter. Place teaspoonful of filling on each piece and seal edges tightly together. Drop pyroghys into boiling water in which 1tsp of salt and 1tsp of oil have been added. Boil until pyroghys float to the top of the water. Toss in melted butter and serve with onion, bacon bits and sour cream.

That recipe is taken straight from the pages of Gluten Free Anytime Special. However, here are some trial and error suggestions:

Make sure you OIL not flour your board and cutters. That might seem obvious to some but I am used to making pastry and didn't think the first time I made these. If you flour instead of oil the edges of your perogies will not stay sealed.

Freeze your perogies before you cook any of them. They hold up much better that way.

Cook them for a few extra minutes after they started to float. Being used to store bought perogies, I assumed they were done as soon as they floated and they were still uncooked inside. Or at least double check one before you put all your condiments on them and pop them in the microwave for a couple of minutes if need be.

I don't have a recipe that I use for filling. I usually just mash some potatoes with cheddar cheese and cottage cheese and add salt and pepper and chives.

Samosas

From Book of Yum

Ingredients

BytheBay’s Knish Dough:
1 7.5-ounce package Chebe All-Purpose Gluten-Free Bread Mix
2 large eggs
2 tbsp oil or softened margarine
5 tbsp milk, liquid milk substitute, or water
3 tbsp oil or beaten egg, set aside
My recipe of Masala for Dosa (In files or see below) 1/2 or 1/3 of recipe.
Nonstick cooking spray

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine ingredients for dough and knead until fully combined. Roll out dough inside a gallon ziploc bag with the sides cut open. (This makes it easier to roll out the dough, as it doesn’t stick to the bag as badly as it would stick to the rolling pin.) There should be enough dough to do this several times. If you have one, use a dough press and lay one layer of dough lightly over the press, place filling evenly on one half of the press. Fold over press and press lightly to seal edges. Take a sharp knife and cut the excess dough outside the crimping edges. Open press and carefully peel samosa off, being careful not to handle the pretty, crimped edges. Place on baking sheet. Spray with nonstick cooking spray and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Notes

I know samosa are supposed to be deep fried, but this is a healthier and extremely tasty variation on a traditional recipe. Besides, it’s way easier to bake than fry, right?

By the way, DH and I usually polish off a recipe in a night, so it doesn’t matter, but they do get a bit chewy the next day. Happily, if you stick them in the oven for 10-15 minutes, they will get all crispy and yummy again. Mmmm…

Cottage cheese pancakes

From Gluten-Free Gobsmacked

These make thin, almost crepe-like pancakes. I tried using them as a pseudo-pizza crust, and they worked quite nicely. I think they would also work to roll up fillings, like a crepe or burrito.

Makes 9 palm-sized (4" diameter or less) pancakes

Ingredients:
· 1/2 cup cottage cheese
· 1/4 cup GF Flour mix or 3 Tablespoons sweet rice flour + 1 Tablespoon tapioca starch
· 2 1/2 Tablespoons of butter, melted (plus additional butter for cooking)
· 2 eggs

Try adding:
· 1/2 tsp baking powder
· 1/4 tsp salt
· 1 tsp sugar (to help with browning)

Directions:
1. Put all ingredients into a food processor (or blender) and process until smooth.
2. Preheat the oven to 200F or "warm".
3. Preheat griddle (or frying pan) over medium-high heat.
4. Add 1/3 Tablespoon of butter to the pan and swirl to coat the bottom.
5. Drop 1/8 cup (2 Tablespoons) of the pancake mixture into the pan and swirl a bit with the bottom of the measuring cup to spread evenly. (I could fit 3 small pancakes in a regular 10" frying pan.)
6. Cook until the majority of the bubbles on the surface have popped and remained as "holes".
7. Flip.
8. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes (depending on the heat of your pan).
9. Put the cooked pancakes into an oven proof dish and place in the warm oven to keep hot while you finish cooking the pancakes.
10. Serve hot with butter, maple syrup, raspberry jam, or powdered sugar, etc.

Vegan Chinese dumplings

From Hey, that tastes good!

I spent the better half of the morning grumbling to myself about how I'm not allowed (my own rule) to bake anything until that cake in the fridge is gone. I've been thinking about cookies, and had some really great ideas, but seriously? I can't make three dozen cookies for the two of us until that cake is gone, or else it won't get eaten, and I will be so bummed.

So I was cruising around the internet (or, Google Reader) and saw Ellen over at I am Gluten Free had made some dumplings. Oooooh I love dumplings. I haven't made my own wrappers before, I've been meaning to make Kate's for a while but haven't gotten around to it (mostly because hers have gelatin and I rarely use gelatin). I've made dumplings from a mix from the Asian grocery store before, but never from scratch. Oh these were easy. I used the tofu filling Ellen made, it was delicious. You can also use pork (I usually do) with about the same mix of ingredients, plus a splash of fish sauce.

Vegan Dumpling Wrappers

1/2 c tapioca starch

1/2 c fine rice flour

3/4 t xanthan gum

1 T oil

5-6 T cold water

Whisk together the starch, flour, and xanthan gum. Add the oil and then 5 T of the water. Mix by hand until everything comes together, adding more if needed. Sprinkle your work surface with sweet rice flour, roll into a ball, and cover with a damp paper towel. Follow Ellen's directions to make wrappers, or pinch off balls a bit smaller than a quarter and flatten in your palm, then add a teaspoon or so of filling and pinch closed. Steam in a bamboo steamer, or put dumplings in a pan and add enough water to go 1/4 of the way up the dumplings, cover, and cook over medium heat until water is evaporated, then add some oil to the pan (use a nonstick pan, I learned the hard way), shake around the dumplings to coat, and cook each side until browned. Serve with dipping sauce of your choice (see below for my choice).

Maked about a dozen dumplings, you can double (or triple or quadruple) the recipe, which I would recommend since you're going through all the effort of making dumplings, you might as well make a ton. Stick any extras in the freezer lined up on wax paper on a cookie sheet, freeze until hard, then stick in serving-size bags. Steam frozen dumplings a few minutes longer than fresh ones.

Dipping Sauce for Dumplings

This is more a method than an actual recipe

1 part soy sauce

1 part rice vinegar

1 part chinese cooking wine

big plop of chili garlic sauce

a chopped up scallion or two

a light drizzle of sesame oil

1 minced garlic clove

a chunk of minced ginger

Whisk everything together, let sit an hour or so if you have time. Divide into small bowls for dipping dumplings in.

Chicken and dumplings I

From Ye Olde Gluten Free Blogge

Many of you will remember the GF Dumpling episode back in March (http://crystalstair.wordpress.com/2008/03/10/review-arrowhead-mills-gluten-free-all-purpose-baking-mix/). Well, I’ve been inspired by Gluten Free Cooking School to take one of their biscuit recipes and make it in to dumplings. These dumplings are SO MUCH BETTER than the ones from Arrowhead Mills. (Sorry AHM).

Yeild: 5 qts

Ingredients:
Approx 1 lb bite sized chicken bits of your choosing
9 cups water
3 tblsp chicken flavored bullion
1 tblsp. black pepper
1 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/2 c. + 2 tblsp white rice flour
1/2 c. coconut flour
1/2 c. + 6 tblsp sorghum flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. xanthan gum
1 stick of butter (melted)
1 1/4 c. buttermilk
1 1/4 c. water
1 egg, beaten
1 tblsp. black pepper
1 tblsp. poppy seeds
2 tsp. dried sage

Directions>>
1. In a 5 qt (or larger!!) stock pot, dump in raw chicken chunks, water, 1 tblsp. pepper, 1 tsp. cayenne, 3 tblsp. chicken bullion and bring to a boil. (NOTE: This can be done with almost any combination of spices, we like pepper, cayenne, sometimes garlic and ginger… but about anything will work, whatever floats your boat, just don’t forget the bullion)

2. Mix up the dumplings in the meantime in the following order: all dry ingredients in to your workbowl (this is easier with a mixer), stir to combine and work in some air. Then add melted butter, stir. Next, milk, water, egg (previously beaten, please). Stir until dough comes together. Then add pepper and sage and poppy seeds (or whatever seasonings float your boat).

3. Once the pot of chicken bits and water has come to a boil, drop by rounded teaspoons (one from your kichen drawer is fine) into the boiling liquid, making sure to keep newly dropped dumplings seperated from older ones to prevent stickage and fusion. This gets a bit tricky as the pot gets full. When the pot fills, walk away for 15 minutes and come back and drop dumplings again until you run out of room (I had to do this three times). Simmer for 45 minutes or until the dumplings are done all the way through. The stock should be opaque now instead of clear.

4. Garnish and serve. YUM!