Fridgg: What's For Dinner?

Clear Soup with Pumpkin Dumplings

Today’s a special day. It’s my little brother’s birthday (happy birthday, Patrick!), it’s the first actual chilly day we’ve had all fall (up until now, temps have been in the 80s, and even above 100F which is crazy for where I live!), and… it’s the release day of Marisa Baggett’s new cookbook, Vegetarian Sushi Secrets!

While I’m always excited about sushi cookbooks (that’s what happens when your original food blog is all about sushi), this one’s especially exciting for me for several reasons. First, we ladies of sushi stick together, and I love Marisa’s cookbooks. Secondly, you may have noticed I’ve been cooking more vegetarian and vegan food – although I still eat meat, I love trying out new recipes for my brother’s girlfriend, who is vegan. And thirdly… I had the huge honor of writing a foreword for Marisa’s new cookbook!

Of course, in addition to writing a foreword for her cookbook, I just had to try out some of her recipes as soon as she sent me a copy. I’m completely obsessed with her spicy tofu rolls. Her Faux Roe “Boats” are a fun vegetarian take on fish roe gunkan maki. And then, because I wanted to try one non-sushi recipe as well, I made this clear soup with pumpkin dumplings.

This soup is perfect for a chilly autumn day like today. Obviously, it’s totally appropriate for the pumpkin-mania that happens as soon as the clock strikes September. And I love the addition of Japanese curry to the dumpling fillings – it’s warming, makes the flavor ever so Japanese, and I pretty much always love anything curry. Delicious!

Recipe from Vegetarian Sushi Secrets by Marisa Baggett, out today!

Ingredients

Dumplings

• 1 cup (220 g) pumpkin puree
• 1 square Japanese curry base
• 3 green onions (scallions), thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/2 bunch fresh coriander leaves (cilantro), roughly chopped
• 4 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1/2 cup (30 g) panko breadcrumbs
• 18 square wonton wrappers
• 2 teaspoons potato starch, dissolved in 4 teaspoons water

Clear Soup

• 3 teaspoons toasted pumpkin seed oil
• 3 teaspoons roasted pumpkin seeds
• 12 oz (350 g) extra-firm tofu, cut into 1/2-in (1.25-cm) cubes
• 6 cups (1.5 liters) Vegetarian Dashi (2 batches), heated
• 3 green onions (scallions), thinly sliced, if desired

Cooking Directions

1. Place a large pot of water over high heat. Bring to a boil.
2. To prepare the dumplings, combine the pumpkin puree, Japanese curry base, green onions, garlic, coriander leaves, soy sauce, and panko breadcrumbs in a food processor. Pulse a few times, then process until well blended.
3. Place two wonton wrappers on your work surface. (Keep the remaining wrappers covered with a damp towel.) Spoon 1 tablespoon of the pumpkin mixture in the center of each wrapper. Dip a fingertip in the potato starch mixture and wet the edges of the wonton wrapper. Pull the edges of the wrapper around the mixture and pinch closed. Fold the dumpling so the ends meet and crimp to close. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.
4. Gently drop the dumplings in the boiling water and then turn off the heat. Stir with a spoon to make sure none of the dumplings stick to the bottom of the pot. Let the dumplings cook for 3 minutes. Remove from the pot with a slotted spoon.
5. To assemble the soup, lay out 6 medium-sized soup bowls. Place 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin seed oil and 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin seeds in each bowl. Divide the tofu evenly among the bowls. Add 3 warm dumplings to each bowl. Ladle 1 cup (250 ml) of hot dashi into each bowl. Sprinkle with green onions, if desired. Serve immediately.

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I received a copy of this cookbook for free, as well as provided a foreword for the cookbook. Links in this post may be affiliate links.

Weekly Wanderings {2016 week 38}

This week in my world…

Livin’ that wonton life.

This is now my go-to breakfast.

LA, you’re not too bad.

Tofu soup. No spice, thankyouverymuch.

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Links I’ve loved lately:

Mario-themed Airbnb??? YES LET’S DO IT.

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Weekly Wanderings {2016 week 37}

This week in my world…

WHAT IS EVEN HAPPENING.

All the ice cold pickles I can possibly stuff into one bánh mì… because it is 100 FREAKING DEGREES outside (and 90F inside) and every little bit of cold helps at this point.

This again…

You should be sensing a theme at this point… 😀

“This is really nem nÆ°á»›ng… look, they took a nem and they nÆ°á»›ng-ed it!”

This guy. I’m quite fond of him.

Before rolling.

After rolling!

Legit tom yum soup. Muuuuuch better than the one we tried last week.

Prik king. Because spicy fried pork belly, obviously.

Yep, him again.

An attempt at a vegan version of canh chua cá (Vietnamese sour fish soup) that was so good, even Son likes it!

Such good spicy tofu sushi.

This is what happens when you deep-fry a rice noodle.

My grandma’s recipe for chicken chow mein.

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Weekly Wanderings {2016 week 36}

This week in my world…

… I discovered what happens when your popcorn bag doesn’t blow a little vent hole in the end…

Morning light.

Reintroducing myself to a couple of old friends.

I followed the recipe on the package. The recipe was shit. Luckily, the interwebs had a decent fix for it!

Sweet potato hash, frico egg. My favorite breakfast.

Pointe shoes, flat shoes.

I can never say no to banh bèo.

Also, nem nuong. Yum.

Mooncake! This week, with an egg. Son’s favorite.

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Borough Market, London {May 2014}

After breakfast at The Table Cafe, we wandered to the nearby Borough Market.

We found a cool wall.

And just when we thought we were lost on this dreary, drizzly morning…

Hello there, Borough Market.

We arrived around 10am, early enough that there were no crowds, and many of the vendors were just barely setting up shop.

Quaintest field trip ever?

All my life, I had wondered what Turkish delight tastes like. (Thank you, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.) In the US, it’s not exactly a common dessert – in fact, I don’t think I’ve ever encountered it here. So of course, without one moment of hesitation, when I saw an entire Turkish delight shop at Borough Market, I had to buy some.

From there, we continued to wander throughout the market.

Practically every medieval-era fantasy book out there has an instance where the hero or heroine stops to grab a hot meat pie from a vendor, on their way to somewhere important.

(It should come as no surprise that much of my worldly knowledge comes from being a voracious fantasy reader. 😀 )

And again, this is another one of those things that you just don’t really see all that often in the US. I had certainly never tried one before.

On a cold, dreary, rainy day… a piping hot bison pie really hits the spot.

After wandering through the entire indoor section of Borough Market…

We went out the back, and discovered there’s an outdoor section to the market too!

Egg tarts – possibly Son’s biggest weakness.

(Hey, look… more pies! Of course I had to go check it out.)

“Hold on, I gotta check the map… how do we get back?”

We took the Northern line from London Bridge station to Bank station; then the District line to South Kensington, and walked back to the hotel.

Immediately upon our return to the hotel… we got into the goodies.

Our first time trying Turkish delight certainly was delightful.

(Clockwise from top: fig and walnut, carrot, pistachio, and rose-flavored Turkish delights.)

The pastéis de nata (egg tarts) from Borough Market were absolutely divine.

We regretted not getting two!

By then, our jet-lagged selves were completely tuckered out. Several hours of sweet, Turkish delight-flavored dreams ensued… and then we were off to more adventures in London!

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