Dumplings

[CreekWatcher]

subcribing

[buttoni]

Originally Posted by yougottaeat

I wonder if you could use this for something sweet, like a cobbler. My favorite part of a peach cobbler (in my hc days) was the gooey dough inside the cobbler that had absorbed the peach juices and cinnamon.

Well I can speak definitively to this question now. Do not........let me repeat, absolutely DO NOT try to use this dough for open oven baked cobbler topping. I just did today, laying the rolled out dough over some sugar-free pie filling and baked it 20 minutes at 375º. It did get dry to the touch, but curled up around the edges and was tough/rubbery and not dough-like at all. Bleh! So now we know for sure, this dough needs to be cooked in liquids to be a fluffy success.

Diana, I chickened out and rolled mine between two sheets of plastic. I did find that waiting and letting the dough sit a little longer dried it out on the surface and made it much more manageable handling than what I made last week. But I was still convinced it would stick to my board, so I used the plastic. But it is definitely rollable and I'll try some Italian style flat noodles with it next batch.

[dianafoot]

I liked the flat noodles so much that I ended up cutting the little puffballs that I had cooked and saved, into little flat discs before adding them back into my soup the next day. they were great, even in my vegetable soup. I did let some vegetable soup sit with the tiny discs in it all day, and by the end of the day, when I reheated the soup, they had dissolved. However, even this was a pleasant surprise--they thickened the soup very much like a roux would have. It was delicious!

Going to make clam chowder tonight--wonder if I could use the dumplings to thicken it, somehow? hmmm...

[buttoni]

LOL I'm sure you'll find a way.

[yougottaeat]

Thanks Buttoni, and everyone, for experimenting and letting us know!!! There are still tons of applications for this dough it seems!!!

[rosethorns]

LOL Now we know.Thanks for doing that Peggy.

[ladeeda]

Originally Posted by JMCM1

Dearest Cindy is this the OMM you're talking about?
Every part of me is urging me to try every single chocolate item available!

- - - - -
superlow carb/calorie chocolate OMM
ALERT. Please do not read if you have an objection to Frankenfoods. I, for various reasons, have to keep things super LC/LF and so I often depend on things other people wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole.

This made a wowzer delish chocolate low carb low fat muffin:

DRY
1/4 cup oat fiber
2 Tbs Hersheys special dark cocoa (20 cals)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 or a little less cup erythritol
1 tsp glucomannan powder

blend dry ingredients

WET
1/3 cup liquid eggwhite (30)
2 Tbs davinci SF vanilla syrup
2 Tbs hersheys sf chocolate syrup (15 cals)

mix together wet and dry and microwave for about a minute. There may be a little moist stuff on top--don't microwave until entirely dry.

Im thinking about 65 calories and 2-3 carbs for the thing. I sliced it up and topped with a little more hersheys sf syrup and it was so YUM. I think adding the glucomannan powder to the dry ingredients gave it a much moister crumb than you usually get with oat fiber--and of course cocoa acts like flour most of the time.

I will so not be offended if no one a) wants to try this, or b) can't because they don't have all the wacky ingredients but go for it if you are a mad scientist like me

Don't see many "Frankenfood" items here...guess I've been lowcarbin too long

[JMCM1]

Originally Posted by ladeeda

Don't see many "Frankenfood" items here...guess I've been lowcarbin too long

I know!
I had every single thing, have made it and eaten half of it!

[ouizoid]

Ha! I wrote that re pie years ago when things like oat fiber and glu powder were unknown to most!

[dianafoot]

It worked! I made the hands-down best New England style clam chowder ever, and thickened it with a couple of the cooked dumplings. DH couldn’t stop raving about it and he ate two HUGE bowls. We both like this much better than the traditional floury, gummy, starchy clam chowder. It was elegant and smooth and flavorful.

Here’s what I did (amounts are approximate, since I am a taste-and-adjust cook)
Saute:
• 2 slices of bacon, cut up fine
Add:
• 1 medium onion, chopped and sauté until soft with the bacon
Add and stir around until a bit soft:
• 3 stalks celery
Add:
• 1 cup cauliflower, chopped
• 3 cups broth: I used clam juice, chicken stock, and some shrimp stock. You can use any one or combination of broth that you have on hand for this.
Cook about 10 minutes until the cauliflower is done

Thicken by putting about a cup of the vegetable/broth mixture in the blender with several dumplings and blend until very smooth and then pour back into the soup and stir well.

Add:
• 1-2 cans of clams or a combination of clams and crabmeat (I put crabmeat in there for an extra treat)

Heat until just before boiling:
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
Combine:
• cream and soup base and heat until simmering
Finish with a drizzle of
• sherry—optional, but it adds an over the top touch

Season with salt, pepper, Worcestershire, hot sauce, cayenne, and parsley to taste

[buttoni]

Sounds delicious, Diana. I'm getting to where I really like gluc for a thickener (better than xanthan or guar gum) so I'm not surprised two blended up dumplings did this nicely for you. They're pretty much just gluc and egg. Somebody else here at LCF (can't remember who) blends gluc into some butter/fat and stirs that into their soups/stews to make sure it doesn't clump up. I'm sure that would work, too.

[Jennifer Eloff]

Great, Peggy!

Diana, your clam chowder does look and sound amazing!!

[dianafoot]

I am thinking that the dumplings tasted so good as a thickener because they had been cooked in the rich chicken broth. Which brings me to wonder how they would be as a thickener if I cooked them in apple spice tea to thicken chayotes for the chayote/apple crisp, for example. I miss the kind of thickening that flour used to bring to things and I don't like using straight gluc or any of the gums. Ooops, just got me another cooking project to try!

[JMCM1]

Originally Posted by dianafoot

I am thinking that the dumplings tasted so good as a thickener because they had been cooked in the rich chicken broth. Which brings me to wonder how they would be as a thickener if I cooked them in apple spice tea to thicken chayotes for the chayote/apple crisp, for example. I miss the kind of thickening that flour used to bring to things and I don't like using straight gluc or any of the gums. Ooops, just got me another cooking project to try!

And please please post your recipe if you're happy with it!

[dianafoot]

Originally Posted by buttoni

Sounds delicious, Diana. I'm getting to where I really like gluc for a thickener (better than xanthan or guar gum) so I'm not surprised two blended up dumplings did this nicely for you. They're pretty much just gluc and egg. Somebody else here at LCF (can't remember who) blends gluc into some butter/fat and stirs that into their soups/stews to make sure it doesn't clump up. I'm sure that would work, too.

I am thinking that the egg, baking powder, and oat fiber bring something to the thickening party that the gluc alone doesn't.

[tofucheez]

Dianafoot--I was going to try something similar.....simmering the dumplings in s/f apple cider, then fishing them out and using them as a cobbler topping...that way they'll absorb flavor AND not dry out in the oven.

[SCOTTSDALEJULIE]

Wow, please share your experiments.

[Yaz]

Originally Posted by dianafoot

I am thinking that the egg, baking powder, and oat fiber bring something to the thickening party that the gluc alone doesn't.

In the first batch of dumplings I made in chicken broth a couple of them broke apart (I had the water boiling too vigorously) but they thickened up the stock really nicely.

In the past I tried adding straight gluc & water to stir fry to thicken up the sauce and it turned out very goopey/jellyish.

So I think it is something about the combo that thickens soups/stews nicely.

FYI, I don't have extra large or jumbo eggs, just large. So I added 5 grams of egg whites to the recipe and it turned out great. I also let it sit for a few minutes and it was not nearly as sticky as the first time I made them and I was able to roll them into little balls very easily. By rolling them they held together much better as well.

[JMCM1]

Originally Posted by Yaz

In the first batch of dumplings I made in chicken broth a couple of them broke apart (I had the water boiling too vigorously) but they thickened up the stock really nicely.

In the past I tried adding straight gluc & water to stir fry to thicken up the sauce and it turned out very goopey/jellyish.

So I think it is something about the combo that thickens soups/stews nicely.

FYI, I don't have extra large or jumbo eggs, just large. So I added 5 grams of egg whites to the recipe and it turned out great. I also let it sit for a few minutes and it was not nearly as sticky as the first time I made them and I was able to roll them into little balls very easily. By rolling them they held together much better as well.

Very helpful information. Thank you!

[buttoni]

Originally Posted by Yaz

I also let it sit for a few minutes and it was not nearly as sticky as the first time I made them and I was able to roll them into little balls very easily. By rolling them they held together much better as well.

I did the same thing yesterday and letting the batter sit really stiffened up and dried the surface of the dough, allowing me to roll it out (although I did so between two pieces of plastic, just to be safe.

[CindyCRNA]

"Houston, we have a problem!" Ok, so 1 1/2 T equals 1T plus 1 1/2t so that is the gluc and oat fiber measurements each. Mixed my dry together, beat my egg and water, whisked the 2 together until I had a stiff dough (about 10 seconds) used a small scoop and plopped them into gently simmering water, put the lid on and simmered for 10 min. They had doubled in size but were quite rubbery. Is this correct?

[dianafoot]

Originally Posted by CindyCRNA

"Houston, we have a problem!" Ok, so 1 1/2 T equals 1T plus 1 1/2t so that is the gluc and oat fiber measurements each. Mixed my dry together, beat my egg and water, whisked the 2 together until I had a stiff dough (about 10 seconds) used a small scoop and plopped them into gently simmering water, put the lid on and simmered for 10 min. They had doubled in size but were quite rubbery. Is this correct?

The variables here seem to be how big your dumplings were, how long you simmered them, and how stiff/tight your dough was. My dough is really soft, but I do let it sit to absorb as much water as possible and to let it become more workable and less sticky. But it is still soft, even though I can now even roll it out to make noodles.

I simmer the dumplings in the broth for longer than ten minutes, even though I make tiny ones, 3/4" in diameter. I want them soft, not rubbery. I find the noodles don't take as long (about 8 minutes), but they are only 1/4" thick when I roll them out and cut them.

BTW, I would simmer them in a broth, either sweet or savory, depending on what you want to use them for. Seems like water would make them bland, unless you have some goal for their use that would call for them to be completely neutral. Good luck, and keep us updated, please!

[CindyCRNA]

Originally Posted by dianafoot

The variables here seem to be how big your dumplings were, how long you simmered them, and how stiff/tight your dough was. My dough is really soft, but I do let it sit to absorb as much water as possible and to let it become more workable and less sticky. But it is still soft, even though I can now even roll it out to make noodles.

I simmer the dumplings in the broth for longer than ten minutes, even though I make tiny ones, 3/4" in diameter. I want them soft, not rubbery. I find the noodles don't take as long (about 8 minutes), but they are only 1/4" thick when I roll them out and cut them.

BTW, I would simmer them in a broth, either sweet or savory, depending on what you want to use them for. Seems like water would make them bland, unless you have some goal for their use that would call for them to be completely neutral. Good luck, and keep us updated, please!

Ooopps! I guess I should have said they were simmered in a chicken broth with shredded chicken. I'm wondering if my dough was too stiff. If 1/2 a cup of water may be better than 1/4 cup plus 2T. I used a 1" scoop. I wonder if making them smaller would be better.

[JMCM1]

I made them tonight as well and they came out as advertised and DH and I were VERY pleased!

Well - mine were small, simmering in chicken broth.
I think I had about 20 little balls. They doubled in size and were soft and tender after 10 minutes. Actually they were so close to the consistency of regular wheat flour dumplings and I doubt anybody would be the wiser if you didn't tell them.

- - - -
Edited to add: After reading other posts, I let them simmer very softly and slowly.

Fabulous recipe - thanks Peggy!

[buttoni]

GREAT, JMCM! Glad yours came out OK.

Cindy, I so sorry your first try with these didn't produce the results you hoped for. I don't know for certain, but if your dough got that stiff, that quick, I suspect you might have mismeasured the gluc or oat fiber. I suppose different brands of gluc could vary from the Konjac brand I get at Netrition and that might be a factor. What type gluc are you using?

As I sprinkle the dry ingredients into the wet and stir with a fork, my dough is so soft at first I have to keep folding with a rubber spatula and wait a minute or two to let the gluc do it's bonding with the water and form a tighter ball of dough. The texture of mine after cooking is not rubbery at all. If anything, quite the opposite, being inclined to break apart during/after cooking, they are so tender. So I'm puzzled at the "rubbery" result you got.

I do (now that I've made them several times) think smaller ones hold together better than bigger ones, for some reason. When the 10 minutes cooking time is up and I lift the lid, I'm very careful to dip them out of the pot gently, lifting each one carefully with a slotted spoon, so they won't break apart.

If you decide to add water, Cindy, I'd only add 1 T. and see if that produces a more manageable dough for you.

[CindyCRNA]

Buttoni, my gluc is in an unmarked container so I am not sure of the brand but just used the last of it and have a bottle of Now waiting so I will try that. Possibly the Now brand works better.

[buttoni]

Cindy, I think MsWoods (or somebody) earlier in the thread mentioned the NOW is finer powder and she thought it took less for recipes. Your next go on the dumplings, you might start out with just 1T. gluc, based on her comment. I'd hate for the same thing to happen again to you. Maybe the brand you used the first time was also NOW and that's why the 1½ T. gluc might have been too much and it got so thick and produced a rubbery result.

[JMCM1]

I used Konjac brand and the little dumplings were not rubbery - just to add to information.

After sitting in broth overnight and re-heated the next day, they held together and were soft - just the right texture- in our chicken soup.

[tofucheez]

Maybe there's lots of variance between NOW batches because I found that it takes much more NOW. I only got one bottle, though and then went back to Konjac Foods brand.

[dianafoot]

I too use the Konjac brand. Very, very good. I find these dumplings very forgiving, too. I overcooked a batch of the ones I rolled out and cut into wide noodles and they were really soft, but still good. I put the leftover dumplings in a zip-lock bag in the fridge and they glommed together. I pulled them apart in little soft wads, flattened them in my palms and put little pieces back in my hot soup the next day. Perfect!