Vegetable Dumplings

Similar to my Chicken Dumplings, my veggie dumplings pretty much contain the same ingredients. For my veggie dumplings I used square wonton wrappers. Dumpling dough is a pretty easy recipe- just white flour and water. The technique to kneed the dough perfects itself overtime, but if you’re a seasoned “atta gooner” then it shouldn't  be problem. I don’t have the patience to roll out dumplings which is why I buy wonton wrappers. One day I’ll make a homemade dough, but until then I’ll opt to buying premade wonton wrappers.
They come in 3 different kinds.
Green are “vegetable wontons” which have spinach to give them the green color.
Pale white- are shanghai wonton wrappers. Most similar to the traditional dumplings. I find these to be slightly thicker and chewy than the Hong Kong variety.

Slightly yellow ones are Hong Kong wontons. (they say these are yellow because they contain egg- but the one’s I bought had the same ingredients as the Shanghai. I find these to be thinner and not as chewy.

---

Green Tea Ice Cream

I spent Presidents day weekend with my cousins Samira (aka B) and Saadia. I’ve been meaning to go to B’s place across the Hudson for quite some time now to make use of her ice cream maker. B and I made green tea ice cream, and lots of love to her for freezing motions to allow me to take pictures. I love green tea ice cream and I thought this would be the perfect time to experiment with a recipe. I made the mistake of following a recipe which said to use a 2 to 1 ratio of milk to cream, however as tested before by B and I separately, a 1 to 2 ratio of milk to cream is better and makes for a creamier consistency when frozen. I used Matcha, which allows for that rich minty color green tea ice cream is known for. Matcha is a finely milled high quality green tea that is grown in shades which causes the leaves to be a darker green and filled with amino acids. The amino acids result with the distinct green tea flavor that important in traditional Japanese tea ceremonies. Matcha can be quite pricey so substituting it with green tea powder is okay. With the substitution you will find yourself using more to get deep green tea flavor and color but nonetheless satisfying. I find green tea ice cream to be a great way to end a meal or refresh the palate. Read below to get the recipe!

Chicken Dumplings

Dumplings are a favorite in our household. Omer and I can have them multiple times a week and never get bored. The beauty about dumplings is the possibilities are endless with fillings. The different textures resulting from the various cooking methods yield a unique experience every time. You can steam, boil, pan fry, or deep fry dumplings. I have two recipes up, this one is for chicken- you can check out my veggie one here.

As always, with my recipes I add the disclaimer to use my ingredients as a base. You can add or remove any ingredient, the best part of cooking is experimenting the possibilities! See below for my recipe.

Moroccan Lamb Shank Tagine

A tagine is a heavy clay pot used to slow cook stews in a simmer. In Moroccan cuisines, lamb is cooked until the meat falls off the bone. Yum! The slow cooking method allows for cheaper cuts (usually the tough cuts of shoulder and shanks) of meat to be used. There is no hard or fast rule on what type of spices should be used. But something that is essential is preserved lemons! If Morocco is credited for one thing and one thing only, it should be for contributing preserved lemons to the culinary world. The lemons are pickled in a brine of lemon juice, salt, and water and bring out the natural sweet and tartness of the lemon which can create a delicious depth of flavor in any dish. Preserved lemons are the secret ingredient to any tagine and pairs well with chicken, lamb, beef, and seafood. Preserved lemons may not be the highlight of this dish, but it makes a big difference in taste.

Fried Nutella Wonton

February 5th is World Nutella Day. I wasn't even aware such a thing exists, but I'm sure glad we have a day devoted to the creamy chocolate hazelnut spread we call Nutella. Here's a great way to enjoy Nutella on World Nutella Day if your not too busy watching the Super Bowl. 

The other day I made dumplings, and with the leftover wonton wrappers I decided to fry them with nutella inside. I saw Giada from Food Network do this a while back, and its possibly the easiest thing to do.

I took a square wonton wrapper, added Nutella inside, (you could also add Bananas). Brush the ends with water and fold on a diagonal to make triangles. 

Deep fry until light golden brown and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

                         

Kari and Pakoras

Kari is a golden yellow yogurt based curry with soft fritters made from gram flour. Besan, as gram flour is called in Pakistan is flour made from fried split yellow chick peas easily available at Indian/Pakistani markets. I would consider kari as Pakistani soul food. You can eat it alone, with rice, naan, or roti. My grandmother would occasionally make kari for us on weekends with her homemade yogurt. For some reason it seemed like a process that took all day, but when I made it myself it didnt seem to take that long. You can adjust the heat in my recipe below by reducing the amount of red chili powder used. Hope you enjoy this soup-like dish on a cold winter night.

Thai Tea Creme Brulee

On Christmas, after watching Don 2 at 9am, playing at an empty Dave and Busters, roaming around Bryant Park and eating Kati roll, my cousin Samira, her husband Jibu, and my friend Akber decided to go to The Spot Dessert Bar. The have interesting flavored desserts such as Chocolate green tea lava cake, smoked coconut cheesecake, and green tearamisu. Asian fusion meets classic American desserts is their inspiration.  One of my favs at the spot dessert bar was the thai tea creme brulee served with a jasmine rice wafer and a shot of hot Thai tea with simple syrup and milk to personalize to your own taste. It was so yummy that I had to recreate it.