Vegetables and Dumplings

My husband and I were craving some comfort food the other night, and my husband’s go-to comfort food of choice is chicken and dumplings. I should mention here that my mother-in-law makes what have to be THE BEST chicken and dumplings in the universe. So, attempting to make a vegan version of the dish that wouldn’t shamefully pale in comparison to his favorite food of all time and just scream incompleteness to his meat-loving palate was a challenge indeed. But, I think that this recipe was a success. I certainly loved it and plan to make it very soon. I think that it is terrific as it is, but you could certainly add meat to it if you are so inclined. Now that it’s cooling down a bit and we’re heading in to fall I plan to be doing lots of vegan/vegetarian translations of comfort food classics — Ideas and suggestions are (as always) encouraged!

Ingredients:

Yields 4-6 servings

For the vegetables and gravy:

– 3 Tbsp. butter or butter substitute, such as Earth Balance

– 1 medium yellow onion, diced

– 1 small leek, cleaned and thinly sliced

– 2 medium carrots, diced

– 3 ribs celery, diced

– 1 cup sliced cremini mushrooms

– 6 cups vegetable stock

– 2 Tbsp. flour

– Salt and pepper to taste

For the parsley dumplings:

– 2 c. flour

– 1 tsp. salt

– 3 tsp. baking powder

– 1/4 c. butter, Earth Balance, or vegetable shortening

– 1/2 c. finely chopped fresh parsley

– 1 c. milk or vegetable stock

Directions:

1. Melt 1 Tbsp. butter (substitute) over medium heat. Add prepped onions and leeks, sautee 2-3 minutes

2. Add carrots and celery and sautee an additional 5 minutes, until vegetable begin to soften

3. Add mushrooms. Cook 3-5 minutes.

4. Add vegetable stock, bring to a boil, reduce to simmer and cook for at least one hour uncovered

5. Use a ladle to remove 1 c. of the hot stock from the pot, being careful not to include any pieces of vegetable. (A few bits here and there won’t matter, but you do not want huge pieces of veg in the stock you’re using for this step)

6. In a skillet or saucepan melt the remaining 2 Tbsp. of butter (substitute) over medium heat

7. Add 2 tbsp. flour to the pan and sautee, stirring constantly for 2 minutes

8. Slowly add your cup of hot stock to the pan, stirring constantly until a thick gravy is formed

9. Add your gravy to the pot of vegetables and mix well. Allow to simmer.

And now for the dumplings!

10. In a large bowl sift together flour, salt, and baking powder

11. Add parsley

12. Cut in butter (substitute) or shortening and work in with hands until mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs

13. Gently stir in milk or vegetable stock, just mixing until integrated. Do not over-mix!

14. Dip a measuring spoon or melon-baller into the hot stock/gravy and then immediately scoop out a spoonful of the dumpling dough (dipping it into the stock first prevents the dough from sticking to the spoon). Drop into the simmering vegetables and gravy. Repeat with the remainder of the dough.

15. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes

16. Cover pot and simmer for an additional 10 minutes

17. Serve immediately, ladling plenty of the hot vegetables and gravy on and around the dumplings. Enjoy!

Mushroom Pot Pie with Port Gravy

On Saturday I took my daughter, Harriet, the farmer’s market here in Charleston. I love farmer’s markets, and wish that we had more of them, but navigating your way through the throngs of oblivious people while avoiding being tripped by a dog leash or run over by a double-wide stroller is often enough to sap my motivation to go. Also frustrating are the often outrageous prices for produce that may or may not actually be organic and local….I don’t mean to bash farmer’s markets: I really do love them, and think it’s important to support local farms and food purveyors, but the one in Charleston could certainly stand some improvements….

Regardless of my complaints and the brain-melting heat, Harriet and I actually had a lovely time wandering the market, and found some really amazing things. We bought a basket of locally grown Asian Pears, which were crisp and juicy and mind-blowingly delicious. We also got fresh peaches and gold cherry tomatoes. But our best find was the Mepkin Abbey oyster mushrooms. (Mepkin Abbey is a community of Trappist Catholic monks here in South Carolina, and they grow THE most amazing oyster mushrooms.)

Usually when I get Mepkin mushrooms I just sautee them with some butter or olive oil and salt, but this time I wanted to do something really special with them to showcase their amazing flavor. I love baking so making mushroom pie seemed like the obvious way to go. Pot pies are so easy to make, and so delicious and comforting — they always remind me of being a kid. The port gravy elevates this a bit, so it’s more sophisticated than your typical pot pie. If you don’t have port, you could substitute a dry red or even a white wine, but nothing quite compliments the flavor of mushrooms the way port does, in my opinion. If you are a meat eater, chicken would be an excellent addition to this, but I think that the meatiness of the mushrooms makes this plenty substantial on its own. Similarly, you can use any kind of mushrooms you have available, and could also swap out the peas and spinach for any vegetable you prefer, or simply omit them and make this a straight mushroom pie….

Ingredients:

– 1 Perfect Pie Crust,* or two store-bought crusts

– 1/2 c. butter, or butter substitute such as Earth Balance for a vegan pie

– 1 lb. fresh mushrooms (I used 1/2 oyster and 1/2 cremini)

– 3/4 c. frozen peas

– 2 c. loosely packed fresh spinach

– 1 vidalia or other yellow onion, diced

– 1/4 c. flour

– 1  c. vegetable stock**

– 1/2 c. ruby port

– 1/2 Tbsp. dried thyme, or 1 Tbsp. fresh

– Salt and Pepper to taste

*Reduce sugar in recipe to 1 Tbsp.

** You can buy vegetable stock in any grocery store but I like to make my own — every time I cook with vegetables I save the trimmings in a large plastic bag in the freezer. Before long I have a bag full of asparagus ends, leek bulbs, broccoli stalks, etc. To make stock, simply put all of your veggie bits into a large pot, cover completely in water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour or until liquid is reduced by half

Directions:

1. Trim, wash, and dry mushrooms

2. In a large saucepan melt 1/4 c. butter (substitute) over medium-low heat

3. Add mushrooms and gently sautee until they are browned and softened

4. Add peas and spinach and cook until spinach is just barely wilted

5. Salt and pepper to taste

6. Transfer vegetables to a heat-proof bowl and set aside

7. Return saucepan to stove, turn heat up to medium and add remaining 1/4 c. butter (substitute)

8. Add diced onion and sautee in butter until translucent

9. Add flour and stir continuously for 2 minutes

10. Slowly add stock while stirring, creating a thick gravy

11. Add port and stir well

12. Add thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat

13. Add vegetables to gravy and mix well

14. Preheat oven to 425F

15. Fit 1/2 of your pie crust (or 1 whole crust if using store-bought) into the bottom of a 9” pie pan or similarly sized casserole dish, making sure that some of the crust overhangs the edges of the dish

16. Fill bottom crust with vegetable-gravy mixture

17. Carefully place second half of pie crust over the top, pinching the edges of the dough to seal together

18. Use a knife to cut the top so that heat can escape (and your pie doesn’t explode in the oven!)

19. Bake at 425F for 20-25 minutes, or until crust is golden brown

20. Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes before serving

This is a hearty entree, but could certainly be made to be served as a side dish. I think it is perfect on its own, served with a little salad (and a glass of wine!). I made a little salad with the gold cherry tomatoes I got at the farmer’s market, with avocado, red onion, and some tangy feta….

Delicious!