Veal Stew with Dumplings

Jan 102011
 
Jan '11 005

I picked up the veal this morning. I have veggies, a bottle of wine, and a stocked pantry. A veal stew is about to be born. This stew is feels like the French country side to me. Tender veal and wine slow cooked with vegetables in a creamy sauce with tender dumplings is warming love on the plate.

I took one simply cut of veal shoulder that I bought for $4.83 and changed it into a easy elegant meal that feed three of us well. These dumplings are more like a light biscuit. I used whole wheat pastry flour to thicken the sauce and make the dumplings. This recipe is dairy and egg free as always because of my son’s allergies. My own cholesterol numbers has even gone down because of the way I am cooking for Gabriel.

* There is a way to cook healthy non- processed food without sacrificing flavor and quality.
*I am always aware of price  because I have to be, plus it is just smarter.

 I hope this recipe represents where my cooking is headed and where I want to go. This recipe is for six people, but I just cut it in half to make mine. The veal steak I bought has just over a pound, but had a nice size bone in it. After I cut up the veal in cubes, I added the bone to the pan to add flavor. Never throw those bones away. You can add them to soups, etc.

Serves 6

2 lbs. veal stew meat
Flour* for coating veal, approx. 1/4 cup
1 t. creole seasoning
1/4 cup oil
2 t. paprika
2 t. thyme
1 cup white wine
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped onions or pearl onions
4 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
4 stalks celery, thinly sliced
3 gloves garlic, either chopped up or placed in whole to fish out later
salt and pepper, to taste
2 t. fresh chopped dill

1. Season flour with creole seasoning in a shallow bowl.
2. Dredge veal cubes in flour.
3. Heat a large saute’ pan (make sure that it has a lid) up over medium heat.
4. Add oil to heat.
5. Drop veal stew pieces in oil to brown, shaking excess flour off of meat as placing in oil.
6. When veal is brown on the outside, turn down heat to low and add paprika, thyme, wine, broth, onion, carrots, celery, and garlic to pan.
7. Stir ingredients together.
8.. Cover and simmer for approx. 45 minutes. You want to see the vegetables cooked through and the sauce thickened.

9.Make up dumpling batter.
    Sift 1 1/2 cups flour* with
    1/2 t. salt
    3 t. baking powder
    Cut in 2 T. shortening** into sifted flour mixture
    Mix in 3/4 cup Milk*** with just a few stirs to form batter.

10. Stir in chopped dill in to stew after it has cooked for approx. 45 min. Season with salt and pepper to your taste as well.
11. Drop batter in spoon fulls on top of simmering stew.
      Note: At this point, you may need to add some more liguid to stew. Use either wine or broth to do so.
12. Place lid back on pan and simmer 15 to 20 minutes more.
13. Dumplings should be tender but cooked through. Serve.

 

I usually have a million things going on at the same time like all of us. Sometimes dinner is made on the fly and my kid is fed in between a friend or family getting their hair cut or colored.  Sometimes lunch or dinner is served to a friend with color in their hair. Often enough dinner is served after a debate whether homework is finished, but when the meal is placed before us the chaos is tamed for just a moment. It is when our family is at it’s best.

Pull up a chair, Elizabeth

*Flour: You can use all purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour.
**Shortening: You can use butter, lard or shortening. I use a vegan shortening called “Earth Balance”.
***I use rice milk because if my son’s allergies to dairy, but of course use the milk that you have on hand.

 

Bacon Country Meatloaf

Mar 142010
 
Jan'10 261

This sure is not your mother’s meatloaf. This recipe has cumin and coriander from Latin America. It has allspice from Jamaica. It has pistachios from Africa. Then I wrap the whole thing in bacon. Yum. When finished it reminds me of a terrine from France, though there is not much French about it. Thus, the name… Bacon Country Meatloaf.

This version of meatloaf tastes great served piping hot served with Jamaican jerk sauce, instead of the classic ketchup. When cold, I like to treat it like a country pate’ and serve it with a baguette, raw onion, pickles,and some mustard. My one rule about meatloaf is that is must taste delicious chilled as it does coming out of the oven. In the end, it is always about the sandwich.

Pull out the bacon and start making some meatloaf. I made this recipe small with only a pound of meat, but it is easily doubled, and tripled for more people. One pound of meat is plenty for the two of us with leftovers. I have also made this with pork and veal. It is equally delicious and more then delicate.

Serves 2-3
  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 pound ground pork
  • 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 2 gloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1-2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup panko crumbs
  • 5 dashes worcestershire sauce
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons heavy creme
  • 2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino romano
  • 1/4 cup shelled whole pistachios
  • 4-6 strips of bacon

  1. I usually start with my ground meat first and make a well in the middle of the meat, then I start adding each ingredient one by one. Add all the ingredients on list, stopping at pistachios and bacon. Just a note: This time I used pecorino romano cheese, but I generally use what ever hard cheese I have on hand. It tastes great with parmesan cheese as well.

  2. Mix together well. I like to mix my meatloaf in a wide shallow bowl. My mom does it right on the chopping block. I can not imagine mixing meatloaf without getting my hands right into it. I have also made this meatloaf with ground veal and pork combination with great success.

  3. After meat mixture is mixed well, add in the pastachios and blend through out.

  4. Form into a loaf shape and place in baking dish.

  5. Wrap loaf with strips of bacon. Sometimes I like them to completely cover the loaf and other times I like to leave some space in between so that I can see the meatloaf. It depends on my mood and how much bacon I have.  

  6. Place in a 350F preheated oven for about 40 minutes. Sometimes, I like to crisp up the bacon more by sticking under the broiler for a minute. Other times, it does not feel necessary.