Simple Tips To Make Dumplings

Making Dumplings can be easier than you think. When I serve this at Deep Springs, many students ask, "So, what exactly is a dumpling?" Dumplings, bits of dough simmered in broth or water, are the great-grandmother of pasta. They are an all-but-extinguished art in American cooking; the appeal of the simple, savory softness of a dumpling has been forgotten in our al dente age. Matzoh Ball Soup, fluffy matzoh dumplings served in rich chicken broth, is to my mind the greatest dumpling dish in the world. Chicken and dumplings--tender, thick dumplings in a hearty, simple chicken stew; is matzoh ball soup's country cousin. These herb-flecked dumplings are tender yet have textural character at the same time. They are cooked separately in water for a lighter, more digestible, cleaner-tasting result than if they were cooked directly in the broth.

HOW TO MAKE CHINESE DUMPLINGS - SIMPLE RECIPE
INGREDIENTS:
¾ pound ground pork
¼ pound medium shrimp (about 35 per pound), peeled and deveined
¼ cup canned preserved Szechuan cabbage, turnip, or mixed vegetables
4 scallions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar
40 or more circular Shanghai-style dumpling wrappers
Cornstarch, for dusting the baking sheet
Nonstick spray or canola oil, for greasing the steamer baskets
Simple Asian Dipping Sauce, sesame Dipping Sauce, Chinese prepared mustard, or purchased sweet and sour dipping sauce as a garnish.

DIRECTIONS :
1. Place the pork, shrimp, preserved vegetable, and scallions in a food processor fitted with a chopping blade; pulse until well mixed. Add the ginger, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar. Pulse until finely chopped, about like a coarse meat loaf mixture. (The filling can be made up to 1 day in advance; cover it tightly and store it in the refrigerator.)
2. Place one of the wrappers on your work surface. Place about 1 teaspoon filling in the center of the wrapper. Wet your finger and run it along half the circumference of the circle. Fold the circle closed into a half-moon, then pinch the edges together to seal.
3. Pick up the dumpling and dab a little water on the crescent edge. Begin crimping this curved edge closed, starting at one end and folding a little piece of the seam over itself, like crimping fabric or paper, and then again, and again until you've created a small, tight clutch or purse. Set aside on a cornstarch-dusted baking sheet and continue making more dumplings.
4. Bring about 2 inches of water to a simmer in a large pot. Meanwhile, spray several bamboo baskets with nonstick spray or lightly oil them. Place the dumplings in one layer in each, then stack them over the simmering water. Cover and steam until somewhat translucent and quite tender, about 10 minutes. Alternatively, steam the dumplings in batches in a metal vegetable steamer set over simmering water; spray the steamer with nonstick spray or line it with cabbage leaves to keep the wrappers from sticking. Serve with one or more dipping sauces on the side.

Turning the Dumplings into Potstickers:

Complete the dumpling recipe through step 3. Heat a 10- or 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon sesame oil and 10 to 15 dumplings to the skillet, giving them some breathing room because they will expand. Fry undisturbed until the bottoms are brown and crispy, about 3 minutes. Add about ½ cup water to the pan, cover, and raise the heat to mediumhigh. Boil until the water has been all absorbed or evaporated and the filling is cooked through, about 8 minutes. Uncover, shake the pan to release the dumplings, and continue cooking until the bottoms crisp a second time, about 1 more minute. Transfer to a serving plate and continue frying more dumplings.

Follow the easy directions very carefully and you will be surprised how good this Chinese Dumplings really are.

Scroll Down And Know Some Simple Recipes Of Tea Sandwiches

Tea sandwiches, also known as finger sandwiches, are popular appetizer menus for birthday parties, baby showers, bridal showers, etc. These sandwiches are similar to normal sandwiches, but they are small in size and can be eaten in two bites. Tea sandwiches are crust-less and are sliced thinly. Though cucumber sandwiches are popular tea party menu items, you can use a lot of variety to prepare tea sandwiches. So, how to make tea sandwiches? Well, the procedure is very simple. Remove the crust edges of bread slices. Spread butter or any other softening on the bread slices. Place the topping ingredients over half of the bread slices, then place the remaining bread slices over them. And then simply cut the sandwiches in small triangles or squares. Scroll down and know some simple recipes of tea sandwiches.

Tea Sandwiches Recipes

Pineapple Tea Sandwiches
Ingredients

• Sugar - 1 cup
• Chopped nuts - 1 cup
• Cream cheese - 8 ounces
• Crushed pineapple (drained) - 2 cups
• Milk or mayonnaise

Procedure

To prepare this tea sandwich recipe, take a small saucepan and add sugar and crushed pineapple to it. Bring this mixture to boil and cook it to attain a thick texture. Keep stirring the mixture constantly. Then, let the mixture cool completely and then add chopped nuts to it. In a mixing bowl add cheese and soften it with enough amount of milk or mayonnaise. This mixture should have a good spreading consistency. Then, combine this mixture with the pineapple mixture and simply spread on the bread slices. Trim the edges of the bread slices and cut them into small squares.

Cucumber Tea Sandwiches
Ingredients

• Butter (softened) - 1½ teaspoon
• Capers - 1 tablespoon
• Cucumber slices (thin) - 12
• Fresh dill (chopped) - 1 tablespoon
• Green onion (minced) - 1 tablespoon
• Horseradish - 1½ teaspoon
• Mayonnaise - ¼ cup
• Pepper - 1 pinch
• Smoked salmon - 4 slices
• Whole wheat bread - 8 slices

Procedure

In a small mixing bowl add onion, dill, capers, horseradish, mayonnaise and pepper. Trim the edges of the bread slices and then evenly spread this mixture over the bread slices. Place the salmon and cucumber slices over half of the bread slices and then top them with remaining bread slices. Cut the bread slices into triangles or squares.

Tomato Tea Sandwiches
Ingredients

• Cream cheese (room temperature) - 4 ounces
• Cranberry chutney - 4 tablespoons
• Raisin bread - 8 slices
• Fresh watercress - 1 bunch
• Smoked turkey breast (thinly sliced) - ½ pound
• Florida tomatoes (thinly sliced) - 2 medium ripe

Procedure

Combine cream cheese and cranberry chutney in food processor. Blend them to attain a thick texture. Then, spread this mixture over each bread slice. Place a layer of watercress over half of the bread slices and then place alternate layers of turkey and tomato over these bread slices. Top these layers with remaining bread slices and then cut each sandwich into half to serve.

Egg Tea Sandwiches
Ingredients

• Hard-cooked eggs - 8
• Mayonnaise - ½ cup
• Finely chopped fresh dill - 1 tablespoon
• Unsalted butter (room temperature) - 6 tablespoons
• White bread - 20 slices
• Salt and pepper to taste

Procedure

Peel the hard-cooked eggs and place them into a medium-sized mixing bowl. Then, slice these eggs and mash them coarsely with help of a fork. Combine mayonnaise, pepper, salt and dill to mashed eggs and then stir them to mix properly. You can refrigerate this mixture for two days or use directly. Spread unsalted butter over 10 slices of bread and then spread 2 tablespoons of egg mixture. Place the remaining bread slices over the topping with the buttered side down. Cut sandwiches in triangular shape by cutting half way diagonally and then again into half.

Tea sandwiches can be prepared with any of your favorite ingredients. But, make sure you use a high quality bread and soft butter to prepare these tea sandwiches. I hope you will try making these easy sandwiches for your next party.

Easy Dinner Ideas For Picky Eaters Which Are Simple To Make

Cooking for picky eaters can be a daunting task. In today's stressful life, where there are a million things to worry about, you shouldn't have to worry about dinner ideas for picky eaters! Pleasing everyone on the table is not an impossible task. Also, children aren't the only picky eaters as, even some adults can be very picky. It can be very frustrating for the cook of the family (almost always the mother!) to decide whether to make something they like (which is often unhealthy) or make a simple, healthy meal. But now you don't have to make this difficult choice. The following are some dinner ideas for picky eaters which will not only ensure that you get your daily dose of nutrients, but will also get your taste buds jingling with anticipation!

Dinner Ideas For Picky Eaters

Here are some easy dinner ideas for picky eaters which are simple to make and are everyone's favorite (but of course, with a healthy little twist!)

Broccoli Cheese Soup: Experimenting with classic soup recipes is a great way to include vegetables that otherwise are never eaten by kids. Most kids run away from broccoli, but one of the easy dinner ideas for picky children is making broccoli soup with a strong taste of cheese. Whether you tell your child about the broccoli or not is a personal choice, but by giving it a creative name it will be a sure shot hit with your children. And the best part is, that it is very nutritious.

Chili: By including beans, onions, peppers, tomatoes etc. chili can be a very healthy and nutritious meal. Cornbread can be served with it to make it more filling. This is one of the all time favorite picky eater recipes which is extremely easy to make.

Chicken Stir Fry: If your child loves chicken, the easiest dinner idea for picky children is making chicken stir fry with a twist, by adding snow peas, mushrooms, red peppers etc. This is a great way to make it a more healthy recipe for dinner and no one can complain!

Tacos: Not only children, but even adults love tacos! To make it a little more interesting, set up a taco bar with different ingredients to choose from. Instead of just chicken or beef, keep different vegetables and fish. This will make the dinner fun and interesting for everyone.

Hot Dog Quesadillas: American food includes all kinds of fast foods with hot dogs topping the list. Try to make it a little more nutritious by making quesadillas with a filling of beans and hot dogs. Definitely something unique that kids and adults alike will enjoy.

Meatballs: Meatballs are an all time favorite. Besides the regular filling, adding mushrooms, cauliflower etc. is a great way of including vegetables in your meatball dishes. You can keep experimenting with the sauce of the meatballs for a different taste each time.

Tips to Please Picky Eaters

Besides being creative with recipes, there are certain simple tips which may help you pique the interest of your picky eater, thus, instigating him into trying out your new recipe! Here are a few of those pointers on how to get picky eaters to eat your innovative dishes:

Grocery Shopping: The first problem that you come across for dinner ideas for picky eaters, is the grocery shopping. It can be quite challenging to buy groceries that will not go waste. The easiest solution for dinner ideas for picky children is to include the children in grocery shopping. By taking them to the supermarket and asking them to choose vegetables which they would like, gives them a sense of power of making decisions. They will be intrigued by the new shapes and colors and will invariably pick out new vegetables, fruits etc. Including the child while preparing the vegetable or fruit that he or she picked out is a sure shot way of getting the child to eat it.

Being Creative: Another way to get children to eat something that they don't want to eat is by being a little sneaky. Okay, so being stealthy is not exactly the perfect solution but it won't hurt them, right? Making a puree of the vegetables they don't like or slicing and dicing all those veggies in their favorite dishes like pastas, pizzas or even pancakes is an age old solution (or shall I say, a trick used by almost all mothers!). It is not necessary for dinner ideas for picky eaters to be the same boring repetitive dishes. Just by browsing through some magazines, you can get tons of food recipes. It is known that picky eaters will not try new recipes easily, but the key for picky eater dinner recipes is substitution. Including their favorite ingredients in any new recipe is incentive enough for them to try it, after all, they do get bored of the same food items day in and day out.

Making Food Fun: Making food fun is important. Besides tasting good food also has to be visually pleasing. Making the dishes attractive with the use of different colors and cuts is a added incentive for picky eaters to try new dishes. For dinner ideas for picky toddlers, the easiest way is to make the food fun by including shapes and adding colors in the food and serving it in their favorite shaped plates.

These are just a few dinner ideas for picky eaters. The key here is to use your creativity and come up with unique recipes that include the ingredients that are their favorite. However, try to avoid fast food recipes as vegetables often lose their nutritional value when they are deep-fried. So try to strike a balance between fried and healthy food which will ensure that dinner will no longer be something which picky eaters will avoid but, instead will actually look forward to!