The Dumpling Challenge

So Shelley challenged me to try the dumplings.  It's taken me two nights, but I've come up with something pretty good.  Is it low fat?  No.  Is it low carb?  No.  Is it yummy?  You bet your bippy it is!

My sweet tooth has been in over-drive for the last week.  Partially because last week was so hectic and I didn't eat properly, partially because I was craving something comforting.  Nothing says comfort to me like gooey, rich, and sweet.  I remember my mother making caramel dumplings once or twice when I was young, and so I thought a nice brown sugar sauce would turn this dumpling recipe into a fantastic dessert.

To make the dumplings, I followed Shelley's recipe but added about 1 tsp of Cloves and 2 tsp of Powdered Ginger to the first cup of flour.  I also divided the dough into 8 small dumplings instead of 3 larger ones -- this way, there was no need to worry about slicing them.  Other than that, I just followed the instructions. 

I did only boil two at a time so that I could vent them easily when they came out of the boiling water.

For the sauce,

• Melt 1 stick of butter or margarine in a medium sized pot over low heat.
• Add about 2 cups of Dark Brown Sugar to the melted butter and mix it into the melted butter.
• Turn up the heat to medium and bring the mixture to a boil.  
• Let it boil for two or three minutes (it will still be sugary), then add about 1 tsp of Vanilla Extract.  Mix this in.
• Also at this time, add half a cup of raisins.
• Bring this back to a boil and add 1 cup of Milk, stirring until it boils again.  Let this boil for about two minutes so that it is still syrupy but not sugary.
• Pour the warm sauce over one of the warm dumplings and serve right away.

I used vanilla flavoured soy milk instead of regular milk in the dumpling batter and found that it worked quite well.