Thursday, November 18, 2010

Diddle Diddle Dumplings

B named these and absolutely LOVED them. These cook to be the same or similar texture as gnocchi (potato pasta dumplings). I think the recipe would work well with any mashed root vegetable-- potatoes, a firmer squash like winter or butternut, parsnips, carrots, or turnips. All you need is a safe one of these veggies and a safe flour. All other ingredients are optional. The most important part for the the success of this recipe is the texture of the dough-- once well blended, it should feel like firm cut-out cookie dough and should be easy to form into dumplings. If you have safe foods that your would like to stuff inside, this would work well.

Diddle Diddle Dumplings
2 cups mashed rutabaga
1/2-1 cup of Masa (or other safe flour)
1 Tbsp Hemp milk

Blend all ingredients well. If dough texture is not consistent with above description, add more flour or add more water/milk by the tablespoon. Firm, pliable dough is best.




Form dough into dumplings: Take small clumps of dough and roll out 1/4inch thick. Either place filling in the center and roll the dough around the filling so that it is completely sealed within, or gently roll the dough into an oval, football like shape. If using meat filling, cook the meat before filling the dumpling.

Fill a medium saucepan 1/2-3/4 full of water. Bring water to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Drop dumplings in water (should still be slightly boiling). They should sink to the bottom initially. When they float to the top of the water and remain there for at least a few seconds, they are done. Remove from water with slotted spoon, place on a plate, and press the top of each lightly with a fork. Be sure to remove them from the water when they are done-- if you leave them in for too long, they begin to disintegrate. Each dumpling should be about the size of a gnocchi pasta. The dumplings cook fairly quickly.



Allow dumplings to cool and either freeze for another meal (flash freezing on a cookie sheet works best; once frozen, you can remove from cookie sheet and store in a freezer safe container or bag) or serve plain or with sauce (white or red sauce). The texture is very soft and B was delighted that she could easily pick them up with her fork, without them falling apart on the way to her mouth.



This recipe makes a lot for a little one-- be ready to freeze some of the dumplings or incorporate them into a family meal!

6 comments:

  1. Great idea! What did you use for a filling?

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  2. We had nothing that we could use as a filling but they did fine on their own without it-- like a gnocchi really. (I heart gnocchi). I would love to eventually have something that I could use as filling-- I thought about spinach but even though it is technically safe, we haven't reintroed it into her diet because we were on such shaky ground with it. For others, if you can do peas, I would recommend the daiya cheeses, if you can do any meats those should work well, and any shredded veggies would work too I think. Something that has at least a paste-like consistency.

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  3. The mashed rutabaga - how is that done? Raw mashed rutabaga or cooked mashed rutabaga?

    I hope my toddler is okay w/rutabaga. It would be great to have that in his limited menu!

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  4. Hi! Yes--cooked, I peeled and chunked the rutabaga, boiled the chunks until soft, and then mashed it with a masher. Just like boiling a potato for mashing! Rutabaga is a great veggie for sure! I was so disappointed when we had to pull this one from her diet! Good luck!!!!

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  5. Is it possible to use something besides hemp milk for the liquid???

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  6. Yes! You could use any alternative milk (or dairy if it is safe!)-- also be aware that you can make milk from just about anything. Let me know what is safe for your LO and I can give you some options if you aren't sure of what to use!

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