Vegetarian Dumplings

I mentioned recently that I have been craving dumplings lately and had come to the realisation that I was going to have to make them myself if I was to be able to satisfy my craving. So, last night we did just that and I thought that I would share the recipe with you.


Ingredients:
250gms firm tofu
a dash of vegetable oil
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped or minced
a dash of soy sauce (or Braggs)
2 teaspoons of finely minced or grated fresh ginger [or less if you are not a big ginger fan - it does give the dumplings quite a bite!]
1 small red chilli finely chopped
one small bunch of spring onions finely chopped
small bunch of fresh coriander finely chopped (we didn't have this and it didn't matter too much, but it is yummy)
1/2 cup carrot (grated or cut in short, thin julienne strips)
half a bunch of baby buk choy finely chopped (including lots of the stalk)
one stick of celery finely chopped
small bunch of enoki mushrooms (or button if you prefer) finely chopped
a decent dash of sesame oil
2 tablespoons of soy sauce (or Braggs)
40-60 small dumpling (wonton) wrappers [available at most asian grocers for around $2)
a bowl of cold water


Tools:
a wok (or fry pan)
a pastry brush
a teaspoon
a large mixing bowl
a small bowl
a bamboo steamer (or metal if that is all you have) and fitted saucepan

Wash the tofu and then chop into very small squares (about 1/2 centimeter sqaured) or just crumble it. [We chopped it and would crumble it next time - it is easier to use.]

Heat the wok over a low/medium heat and then add the oil and the garlic and stir. After a minute or so, add the tofu and turn up the heat to medium high. Keep stirring and add the soy sauce as the tofu starts to brown slightly. Stir in for a couple of minutes and remove from heat and allow it to cool for a little while.

Combine the ginger, chilli, spring onions, coriander, carrot, buk choy, celery, enoki mushrooms, sesame oil, and soy sauce in a bowl.

Add the tofu once it has cooled a little and stir it all together.

Place one wonton wrapper on a plastic chopping board and cover the rest with a damp cloth. (This is faster if you have a few people doing the wrapping.) Use the pastry brush to dampen the edges of the wrapper with water. Place a small amount of the mixture into the middle of the wrapper (about one level teaspoon, any more and it will be difficult to get the edges to stick together). Fold the wrapper in half and use your fingers to press the edges together. (You can try trickier shapes too, but I would start with this one.)

Place the dumplings into the bamboo steamer, making sure that they do not touch each other. You may only be able to steam 10-12 at a time unless you have several steamers. Brunch the steamer(s) with a little oil to prevent the dumplings from sticking.

Place the steamer over a pot of boiling water and leave to steam (covered) for around 15 minutes. (We tried steaming them over the wok, but the steam wasn't concentrated enough and we had to transfer them to a fitted saucepan.)

Serve the dumplings in mini courses or keep them warm in the oven while you wait for them all to finish. A mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil, lemon juice and minced chilli makes a nice dipping sauce.

ENJOY! They are yummy

Moroccan chickpeas

This is one of my favourites recipes and, like the minestrone, I learned it from my Mum.


Ingredients:
1 tbl of olive oil
½ an onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, diced
1 small fresh red chilli, diced
2 teaspoons of harissa spice
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp hot chilli
6-8 button mushrooms, diced
1 quarter of a preserved lemon, chopped finely
1 tin of chickpeas (or equivalent of dried beans soaked overnight), rinsed thoroughly in boiling water*
2 medium tomatoes, diced
8 baby tomatoes, quartered
Several handfuls of snowpeas, chopped into thirds
Lemon and/or lime juice to taste
Couscous or basmati rice to serve

*I also take off some of the skins so that they are softer, but this is probably unnecessary.

Heat the olive oil over a medium low heat. Add the onion and stir until translucent (5-10 minutes). Add garlic and chilli to the onion and stir together. Add spices, ensuring that they remain moist.

Add the mushrooms, stirring thoroughly so that the mushrooms get coated in spices and a little oil. Raise the heat slightly and add some of the tomatoes and the preserved lemon to avoid the mixture becoming dry. Stir for around 5 minutes.

Add chickpeas and stir for around 5 minutes. Add the rest of the diced tomatoes and a little water to create a sauce. Finally add the baby tomatoes, snowpeas and lemon/lime juice.

This should be served on couscous, but I am avoiding wheat at the moment so we used basmati rice instead.

Minestrone

This is one of my favourite recipes - particularly when it gets cold outside.



Ingredients
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 onion
4 large cloves of garlic
3 small red chillies
8-12 button mushrooms
1/2 teaspoon of chilli powder
2 zucchinis
1/2 a head of broccoli
4 small/medium carrots
1/2 a bunch of celery
1/2 sweet potato
1 tin of mixed beans (or soaked dried beans)
1 tin of kidney beans (or soaked dried beans)
1 tin of tomatoes (blended)
1 litre of vegetable stock
1 litre of water

*You can also add potato or pasta to this recipe, but it makes it a little heavier.
*A blend of fresh basil and olive oil also makes a really yummy side dish to stir in at the end.





Heat a heavy-based stockpot on low-medium heat. Dice the onion and add to pot with the olive oil. Stir over the heat for 3-5 minutes so that it starts to go translucent. Dice the garlic and chillies and add to the pot and stir. Dice the mushrooms and add to the pot with the chilli powder and stir. Peel, wash and dice the sweet potato and steam separately. Wash and dice the remaining vegetables and add to the pot with a small amount of water. Stir and turn up the heat to medium.




Wash the tinned beans and add to the pot. Blend the tinned tomatoes and add to the pot. Stir together. Add in the steamed sweet potato and stir. Slowly add the vegetable stock and the remaining water. Cover and leave to simmer on medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes.




Remove 3 cups of the soup (mostly the solids) and blend. Add the blended vegetables back into the soup and cover. Leave to simmer on low heat until ready to eat.

Scrambled Tofu

Ingredients:
1/2 tblp olive oil
Firm tofu, crumbled
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
1 tblp Braggs
1 tblp lemon juice
1 tblp nutritional yeast
1/2 bunch of baby buk choy, coarsely chopped


Heat the olive oil over a medium/high heat and add the tofu. Stir for a few minutes, lower the heat to medium and add the garlic. Stir for about a minute and add the Braggs, lemon juice and nutritional yeast. Stir together for a few minutes and add the buk choy. Allow to wilt slightly and remove from heat.

Serve with garlic mushrooms & tomatoes on sough dough toast.