Garlic Shoot Dumplings

Have you ever kept a head of garlic so long that the cloves begin to sprout green shoots? The next time this happens, don't throw them out! Put the bases into a dish of water and put them on your window sill (you can also encourage a new head of garlic to sprout this way). These tender shoots are delicious stir fried in a hot wok, or snipped into an omelet or salad Their flavor is green like a scallion with a garlic aroma. Garlic scapes, the curly stalks and seed heads of the garlic plant show up in farmers markets in the spring, but you can grow your own shoots year round. I grew a bunch a couple weeks ago and used them to make dumplings to add to my collection of homemade frozen dinners. But in my opinion, the best way to bring out the flavor of the garlic shoot is to fry them. Next time!

Filling:

A hand full of young garlic shoots, 25 or so, 8" long (on average, mine were actually all different lengths)
A pint of fresh shitake mushrooms
2.5 oz sai fun mung bean noodles, which was half of my box
1/2 lb silken tofu, which was half of my box
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 egg

I used store bought shanghai style dumpling wrappers, which are thicker than Hong Kong style. and made an egg wash out of just one egg beaten with a fork.

Dipping sauce ratios:

3 table spoons of soy sauce
1 teaspoon of rice wine vinegar
chopped scallions optional.

If you bought the dumpling wrappers frozen, let them thaw thoroughly before trying to separate them.

To make the filling: clean the mushrooms with a damp cloth and chop into cubes. Toss mushrooms with 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and saute in oil until the mushrooms are browned.
Put sai fun noodles in a heat proof bowl and cover with boiling water. Let sit for 5 minutes. Drain noodles and chop into 1/2" pieces. If the pieces are too long, they will stick out of the edges of your wrappers making it very hard to get a good seal when you are pinching the dumplings closed.
Mince the garlic chives. Chop the tofu into small pieces. Toss all of the above together in a large bowl with the sesame oil and crack in the egg. Mix until incorporated.

To make the dumplings: hold the dumpling wrapper in one palm and put about a tablespoon of filling in the center. Dip your finger in the beaten egg and moisten the perimeter of the dumpling. Pinch the edges closed pleating as you go. As the wrappers absorb the moisture of the filling, they will become very soft and sticky. Place dumplings that you will cook immediately directly into the steaming basket. Place the rest on a baking dish, far enough apart so that they do not touch, to be frozen.

To steam dumplings: place them in a steaming basket, in a pot over an 2 inches of water. Steam for 15 minutes until the wrappers are slightly translucent.
To freeze the dumplings: put the cookie sheet uncovered in the freezer overnight. In the morning, when the dumplings are frozen through, they can be put into a zip lock bag, or piled into another container and will not stick together.

Chocolate Tofu Cake

I had a sizable chunk of silken tofu left over from the tofu tomato kick I was on this week (Cantonese-comfort-food-style with ginger and scallions). So when I saw this recipe for Kyotofu's chocolate souffle cupcakes in New York Magazine, I knew that this was the time to try baking with soy! http://nymag.com/restaurants/recipes/inseason/54065/ As usual, I couldn't help fiddling with a lot of the ingredients and almost all the proportions (I have very strong opinions about how a cake should be). I couldn't be bothered to make cupcakes, so I made a loaf. And I had a lot more tofu to get rid of than the recipe called for! But despite tripling the amount of tofu, the result was a very delicious, moist, flavorful deep black-brown cake that didn't taste bland or of tofu at all. I suspect that the tofu is the secret to the moist, but fluffy crumb. And while the cake tastes decadent, it makes for a filling breakfast or snack because of the protein.

The original recipe called for a spoon of miso, not something I keep on hand. But I wanted to compliment the chocolate with something strong, anticipating flavor dilution from the tofu. I used a tablespoon of matcha (a Japanese green tea powder), the flavor of which you can just detect in the finished cake. Next time I will try instant coffee, or peanut butter. It needs to be a rich, warm flavor, if that makes sense? I also used olive oil instead of butter, which I always do for cake, mainly because I am always baking for myself and don't want to eat pounds of saturated fat. But health considerations aside, using oil instead of butter makes for a more moist and tender cake. Because this was a chocolate (and matcha) cake, I didn't want the olive flavor to be too strong, so I used Filippo Berio Extra Light Tasting Olive Oil.

2 cups chopped dark chocolate (I used Trader Joe's bittersweet)

1/2 cup light tasting olive oil

1 tablespoon matcha powder

2 eggs

1/2 cup sugar (this depends on how sweet your chocolate is)

1/2 cup flour

3 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup silken tofu

1/2 cup milk

a splash of bourbon (this has almost become a ritual for me, I couldn't taste it in the finished cake)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Heat the chocolate chunks and the olive oil in a saucepan over very low heat, stirring constantly until the chocolate is melted. Stir the matcha powder in, don't worry if it is a little lumpy. Beat the eggs with an electric mixer until foamy and, while beating, pour the chocolate and oil mixture in slowly. Continue to beat until the batter appears to pull away from the sides of the bowl, indicating that the oil is fully incorporated. Add the rest of the ingredients and gently mix until all are incorporated. The batter should be fluffy, almost stiff resembling chocolate frosting. Spread the batter into an oiled 4.5" x 8/5" loaf pan with a rubber spatula. Bake in the center of the oven for 45 minutes, or until the top looks puffed and cracked, but a skewer inserted into the middle comes out with a few crumbs still attached. Cakes continue to bake a little after they come out of the oven, so I always try to take them out just before they are well done. As the cake cools, the center will fall in a little, like a souffle.