Won, Two, Three

After posting yesterday's blog, I got inspired and started going thru the mounds of recipes (bits and pieces, books, and folders) that I keep handy in a disorderly fashion, to look for more Won Ton ideas. Just like a lot of you who like to cook, we all can make our "go to dishes" by instinct, but it can be difficult to "explain" how you make a particular dish to someone. Especially when that someone hasn't prepared that dish dozens of times. I'm a firm believer in making each recipe your own, but let's face it, you better give someone a good foundation to start with and not leave out any part that would cause "structural damage." That's why I went to my treasure chest and found some of the "original great ones" that I count on. From here you can dress them up any way YOU want to. It's also painfully obvious that I really need to come up with a better plan filing recipes. Oh, well.......I'll do that this winter when it's cold and yuck outside.....yeah, just like last year. comfortcook@gmail.com

Won Ton Basics

1/2 C finely chopped Napa or Savoy cabbage
Coarse (sea) salt
6 ozs ground pork (not all lean)
3 Scallions, finely chopped
1TBS finely chopped peeled ginger
1 Tsp soy sauce
1 Tsp Sesame oil

In a medium bowl, toss cabbage with 1/2 tsp salt. Let stand 10 min. Wrap cabbage in a double layer of paper towels: firmly squeeze out excess liquid. return cabbage to bowl: add pork, scallions, ginger , soy sauce and sesame oil. Mix well with a fork. Makes enough to fill about 24 wontons. Refrigerate leftover filling up to 2 days.

Making Wontons
1 Work with one wrapper at a time and keep the rest covered with a damp towel. Spoon one rounded teaspoon of filling in center.
2 With dampened fingers, wet the four edges. To make a triangle, fold wrapper in half over filling, making sure the ends meet and the filling is centered; press edges down firmly to seal.
3 Moisten one tip on long side of triangle. Then bring together both tips on long side, overlapping them slightly, press tips together to seal.
4 Fold remaining top corner back. Transfer to an oiled plate; cover with damp towel to keep moist. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.

Wonton Soup
Serves 4

24 rectangular or square wonton wrappers
1 recipe Wonton Filling
2 cans(14.5 oz each) reduced sodium chicken broth
coarse salt
3 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
2 to 3 tsp Rice vinegar
1/2 tsp toasted sesame oil
4 cups water

1 Make wontons (see recipe)
2 Make soup: in large pot combine broth and 4 cups water, and 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil. Add wontons, one at a time; return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer till wontons are just cooked thru, 4-6- minutes. Stir in scallions, vinegar and sesame oil; season with salt. Serve

POT STICKERS

1 Make wontons (above 1-2)
2 In a 12 inch nonstick skillet, with a tight fitting lid, heat 1 TBS vegetable oil over med-high heat. Add half the wontons and cook, turning once till lightly browned, about one minute per side. Carefully add 1/2 cup water (oil may sputter), cover, and steam until translucent and just cooked thru, 2-3 minutes. Repeat with remaining 1 TBS of oil and wontons. Sprinkle pot stickers with scallions and serve with soy sauce.

Don't be intimidated...these are really easy and so delicious. Really fresh and vibrant. TGIFriday's serves their pot stickers with red cabbage and hoisin sauce on the side, which is a really nice contrast for color. To freeze any wontons, place on a cookie sheet after filling and freeze, thaw in fridge and cook according to directions above. They'll keep up to a couple of months in the freezer.

TIP: Sam's Wholesale Club has frozen pot stickers available. They are quite good and very convenient for a Hot Appetizer option for any Holiday get together. Just follow the pkg. directions. Why kill yourself when you can buy greatness? Let's be reasonable here.

I've got a couple of recipes coming tomorrow per Linda's request for Chicken Tortilla Soup. One is super easy (you only open cans & it's really quick and good) the other is a little more dressed up, but still simple. Thanks for all your FEEDback. Have a WONderful day!!!

Check out "SIMPLY RECIPES" in The Profile section.