Gluten-free Wonton Soup (or Ravioli :)

Are you all staying warm these days? That seems to be a struggle for us here on the East Coast, as we keep getting hit with one snowstorm after the other. Now I've got a sick little one and a craving for soup. But not just any soup...wonton soup!

Wontons: little magic bundles of porky deliciousness (except, these here are more Texas-sized). Who knew that getting pork filling to taste restaurant-good could be soo easy? But only thanks to a certain tasty recipe that provided the inspiration for this cooking adventure.

I've been craving wonton soup for months now, no--probably more like years (you GF folks know how it is to have an unsatisfied craving for ages!). I finally gave in and decided to experiment. Here are the results of my first experiment...

What I learned:

We're not going to have as much elasticity using gf flour to make wonton wrappers as we would using all purpose flour. Surprise! ;) But why should we let that stop us from experimenting?!

The good thing about this wonton dough recipe is that it's quite forgiving. I tried making the wonton wrappers (or squares) as thin as possible, and ended up with a few holes. Patching them up was fairly easy. Just use an extra bit of dough, if necessary. Keep a glass of water on the side to dip your index fingers in, so that you can use the water to "glue" the patch on. Smooth out the surface with more water. There were a few that didn't tear because I made 'em thick, but they ended up being thicker than I would've liked.

This dough is also pretty sturdy, because the wontons didn't fall apart after getting into some hot water (or chicken broth) with a few chopped green onions :). This particular recipe makes enough for 12 whole wontons, but the wonton filling (meatball) recipe makes enough for about 24.

When experimenting, I like to start off with small batches. You can just double the dough recipe if you like, or throw in a few meatballs without wrappers. They also won't dissolve in the soup :).

I think this recipe would make tasty homemade ravioli--give it a try and let me know how it works out for you!

I've also been experimenting with croissants! Yes, so far I've made them twice. Stay tuned for a croissant post in the very near future. (As in, not months from now. I promise to keep my resolution ;).

Finally...the recipe and a quick photo tutorial. Because of the elasticity issue, I decided to fold these more like ravioli than traditional wontons. :)

Wonton Wrappers, makes 12 complete:

2 tsp potato flour (not potato starch!)

1 tsp xanthan gum

1/4 cup brown rice flour

1/2 cup white rice flour

1/4 cup sweet sorghum flour

1 large egg

1/8 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup and reserved 2 tablespoons cold water

about 1/4 cup more white rice flour reserved, for rolling out wontons

Mixing instructions-create the flour blend first, then add the salt and xanthan gum. Mix well. Add the egg and water (2tbsp last). I divided the dough into smaller portions and covered the portions I wasn't using with a towel. You can either roll out with a rolling pin or use your hands (I found it easier to use my hands--like making tortillas). Then cut out individual squares (about 4 inches) with a pizza cutter; I filled each wonton with about 1.5-2 tsps of meat.

Wonton filling (ground pork):

1/2 pound ground lean pork

1 tsp mirin

1/2 tsp dried onion

1/2 tsp garlic

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp ground ginger

Combine all ingredients, mix well.

Throw the wontons into a pot filled with 32 ounces of lightly boiling chicken broth. Add 1 tsp onion powder, and 1 tsp garlic powder. I also added 2 chopped green onions and a package of my favorite stir fry veggies (not traditional, but hearty :). I added the veggies at the very end, once the wontons were cooked (they should be firm, meatballs shouldn't be pink).

Creamy Cannellini Spinach Soup and Biscuits

Soup and biscuits: what we've been eating a ton of in order to survive our first crazy-cold Northeastern winter. Well, I like stews too :). I found a recipe in Donna Klein's book, The Gluten-Free Vegetarian Kitchen, but didn't have all of the ingredients. I changed up the recipe, even added in chicken, so it's definitely not vegetarian anymore. It is beany, full of protein, and only has a tiny bit of dairy, just enough to make it creamy (I used potato flour to make it a little thicker).

If you're gonna have soup, you're gonna need a biscuit, that's the way it should always be...


More biscuits, Sophie?! Yes, I know, I am addicted to carbs... but good ones, especially those awaiting a strawberry jam-smothering. This is why I've been trying to perfect gluten-free biscuits without using a ton o' butter. Applesauce works wonders in gluten-free products, it makes them extra moist. I didn't have this much luck with applesauce when I used it for 'regular' baking (other than muffins), but gf products tend to be a little dry so that's why it works here! YESSSS it does!

You can't tell these are gluten-free. Promise!

Applesauce Biscuits
Makes 6

1/4 cup millet flour
2/3 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup corn meal
3 tbsp brown rice flour
3 tbsp melted butter
2 tbsp apple sauce
1/2 tsp sea salt
3/4 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 cup and 1 1/2 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

Just mix it all up, dry ingredients first, and use a big ol' ice cream scoop to measure out about 6 biscuits, then place on a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

How long to bake? Oh nooo... I forgot to note this! I'd say bake at 350 for about 10-12 minutes. (Please check on them at 10 minutes, just to make sure :P...)

Hearty Root Vegetable Chicken Noodle Soup

Unlike the neighborhood squirrel that I've adopted as my own 'pet', I don't have the urge to run around outside and look for food when the wind chill makes it feel like 4 degrees. So, instead, I make soup with the few random ingredients I do have and give some of the unused veggies to Mr. Squirrel. I don't have an official name for him yet, but this is what he looks like after a few meals on my porch. :)

I hope you all are staying warm and having a peaceful and blessed 2009 so far!

On a random note, thanks so much to those nice folks who nominated me for awards, both in 2008/2009 :). I'm sorry I'm not very good at keeping up with giving them away; you all make it so tough, too many delicious blogs to choose from, seriously. Just look at how long my list of blog links is :)! I promise I will get to it before 2010 ;0)!