Depending on your definition of diet, I’m either always on a diet or never on one. If I had to define my diet, it would be eating primarily whole foods prepared as wholesomely but flavorfully as possible. The cookbooks we’ve chosen this month all fit that regiment. They aren’t focused on weight loss, but they can help you get on track to cooking healthfully. And if you already do that, these books offer new ideas when same-old dishes feel stagnant and boring.
That’s why I chose to prepare edamame dumplings from Sara Forte’s new cookbook, The Sprouted Kitchen: A Tastier Take on Whole Foods. Wonton wrappers are my lazy man’s pasta since it’s already rolled out and ready to go. My favorite use for wonton wrappers is a quick-and-crude cheese ravioli served with a garlicky tomato sauce. Forte’s recipe keeps wonton wrappers in the Asian camp with ingredients like edamame, lemon grass, green onions, sesame oil, mirin and soy sauce.
This straightforward recipe comes together in three easy steps: Make the filling for the wontons; assemble and cook the wontons; and prepare an earthy broth for the wontons to swim in. A food processor makes quick work of puréeing the edamame filling. The flavor of the filling is nothing outstanding; edamame sometimes needs help in order to be brought to life. Were I to prepare the dish again, I’d add ground ginger and wasabi powder to the filling, which might then be tasty enough to serve as an atypical dip or spread with chips or warmed flatbread.
Assembling the wontons is similarly easy, particularly if you keep handy a bowl of water for dipping your fingers into in order to seal the wrappers together and keep these starchy shapes from sticking to your fingers.
The recipe for the broth calls for either mushroom or vegetable broth. I keep homemade vegetable broth on hand, so that’s what I grabbed. However, even after adding the lemon grass, mirin and soy sauce, the liquid lacked umami. A few generous shakes of Ozark Forest Mushroom porcini powder made it better, but it still wasn’t quite there, so I added ginger, wasabi powder and more soy sauce. Adjustments made, all of us – kids included – lapped this dish up.
Edamame Dumplings
Serves 4
For the wontons:
4 green onions, white and green parts coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
¼ cup fresh basil, coarsely chopped
2 cups shelled edamame, cooked and drained
2 Tbsp. regular or vegan sour cream
Dash of hot sauce
40 round wonton wrappers
For the broth:
4 cups mushroom or low-sodium vegetable broth
1 lemon grass stalk
2 Tbsp. mirin
2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce (I doubled this amount.)*
Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish
Microgreens or pea shoots, for garnish
*I added a few generous pinches of ginger powder and wasabi powder. • Combine the green onions, sesame oil, basil, edamame, sour cream and hot sauce in a food processor. Process to a purée.
• On a lightly floured work surface, place a heaping tablespoonful of the edamame filling in the center of a wonton wrapper. Use your finger to wipe a bit of water around the edge of the wrapper. Place another wonton wrapper on top of the filling and press down along the edges to adhere. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.
•To make the broth, warm the mushroom or vegetable broth in a pot over medium-low heat.
• Pound the lemon grass with the back of a heavy knife to release its oils and discard the tough outer layer. Mince the inner, pale portion of the bottom of the stalk and add it to the broth along with the mirin and soy sauce. (I also added a few generous pinches of ginger powder and wasabi powder.)
• Gently simmer for 10 minutes to combine the flavors. Cover and turn the heat to low to keep warm.
• Add enough of the broth to a saucepan to cover the bottom, about 1 cup, and add a single layer of wontons (You will probably need to do this in two batches.). Cover and steam over medium-low heat until the wontons are warmed, about 2 minutes.
• To serve, divide the wontons among 4 shallow bowls and pour about ½ cup of the remaining broth on top. Garnish with a sprinkle of the toasted sesame seeds and sprouts and serve hot. What’s your favorite way to use wonton wrappers? Tell us about it in the comments section below for a chance to win a copy of The Sprouted Kitchen by Sara Forte. We’ll announce the winner in next week’s By the Book column. And now, we’d like to congratulate Steve, whose comment on last week’s By the Book has won him a copy of Volt Ink. Steve, keep an eye out for an email from the Sauce crew.
This article appears in January 2013.