DESSERT: ARE THEY DUMPLINGS OR BLOBS?

As I was rolling out matzo balls earlier this week, it occurred to me that, if they were cooked in caramel syrup instead of chicken soup, they might be rellenos dulces, a dessert typical for this time of year in La Mancha (central Spain). 

The rellenos are balls or blobs, sort of like dumplings, made with stale bread—definitely not allowed during the Passover holiday. But they can also be made of ground crumbs, much like matzo meal. Many small La Mancha towns have a repertory of foods—especially sweets—that derive from their Jewish heritage. So, it’s not so far-fetched to make the comparison. In any case, Passover ends at nightfall today, so these dumplings in caramel syrup can be enjoyed by all.

Dumplings made of bread crumbs are first fried, then poached in caramel syrup with cinnamon.

What makes rellenos different from most dumplings is that they are fried in olive oil before being poached. Because they are sweet, not savory, the poaching medium is caramel syrup inflected with cinnamon and orange zest.

In La Mancha, the rellenos are served as dessert. But, their similarity to French toast might make you happy to serve them at breakfast, as well.

This is the sort of homespun dessert that children love. And, it's a great way to use up stale bread.

To serve, sprinkle the dumplings in syrup with pine nuts. Add any fresh fruit.

Dumplings soak up the caramel syrup and become spongy-soft.

Sweet Dumplings in Caramel Syrup
Rellenos Dulces

Use a heavy pot to make the caramel syrup, preferably one with a light-colored surface so you can tell when the sugar becomes caramel-brown in color.

Add hot water to the melted and caramelized sugar very carefully, as it will splutter and foam.

Serve the dumplings chilled, spooning some of the syrup over them. A sprinkling of pine nuts or slivered almonds is typical. Ice cream, whipped cream or—my preference—unsweetened Greek yogurt—makes a lovely accompaniment.

Dumplings start with bread crumbs.

Makes about 20 dumplings.

For the bread dumplings:
10 ounces day-old bread (5-6 thick slices)
¼ teaspoon saffron, crushed (optional)
3 tablespoons hot water
¼ teaspoon salt
6 eggs
Olive oil for frying

For the caramel syrup:
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons water
4 cups hot water
1 teaspoon orange blossom water (optional)
Zest of 1 orange
Zest of 1 lemon
1 cinnamon stick

To serve the dumplings:
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
Sliced oranges or other fruit to garnish
Whipped cream, ice cream or Greek yogurt to serve

Remove and discard crusts from the bread. Break into pieces and put in a food processor. Process to make coarse crumbs (3 ½ -4 cups). Put them in a mixing bowl.

Saffron for a golden touch.

If using saffron, dissolve it in the 3 tablespoons hot water. Dribble over the bread crumbs with the salt and mix. Add eggs, one by one. Stir to combine very well. Chill the mixture at least 30 minutes. 

Place oil in a deep skillet to a depth of 1 inch and heat on medium-high. Scoop up dough with a tablespoon. Use a second spoon to smooth the dough into an oval shape and slide it into the hot oil.  Continue shaping and frying dumplings, turning them once. When dumplings are golden-brown, remove them.  (Dumplings can be fried up to a day before finishing them in the syrup.)

Fry spoonfuls of the dough in oil.

Dumplings can be made in advance, simmered in the syrup later. They don't need to be crisp.

Sugar melts and gradually turns caramel-brown.

To make the syrup, combine the sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a heavy pan large enough to hold all the dumplings. Cook the sugar on a medium heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon until the sugar is completely melted and turns an even golden-brown color. 

Remove the pan from the heat. Gradually add the 4 cups of hot water. The molten sugar will sputter and foam at first. Return the pan to the heat and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved in the water. Add the orange blossom water, if using, the strips of orange and lemon zest and the cinnamon. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and let the syrup bubble gently, uncovered, until reduced, about 20 minutes. Skim out and discard the zest and cinnamon.

After frying, the dumplings are poached in caramel syrup.

Add the fried dumplings to the syrup. Bring again to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer them 15 minutes. Let the dumplings cool in the syrup, then chill them before serving.

Serve dumplings and syrup sprinkled with toasted pine nuts. Garnish as desired with sliced oranges or other fruit. Serve with whipped cream, ice cream or yogurt if you like.

Puffy dumplings in sweet syrup go nicely with a spoonful of unsweetened yogurt.

Recipes for savory dumplings (rellenos):

Dumplings with Chickpeas and Spinach.

Dumplings with Cocido.

More desserts made with bread:

Sweet Fried Bread (Picatostes).

Sweet Toasts (Torrijas).

Cheese Custard Squares (Quesada).

A SLOW-COOKED STEW FOR DARKENING DAYS

As the days grow shorter on the countdown to the winter solstice, I want bright candles, flickering flames in the fireplace, twinkling lights on a holiday tree and a pot of stew bubbling on the stove.

Spain has lots of stews and braised dishes that will fill the bill. Many are made with economical cuts of meat that need slow cooking to render them tender. In the process, they also take on flavor, of wine, herbs, vegetables and sausages with which they cook.

Chunks of lamb, braised till tender, in a sauce with dried red peppers.

I’m making a lamb stew that’s simmered in wine with four kinds of red peppers!

This dish from La Mancha derives from the rustic shepherds’ caldereta, or iron stew pot, in which meals were cooked over embers. At its most basic, the stew was eaten straight from the pot, with bread for sopping the gravy. Other versions use either the lamb liver, grilled and mashed, or ground almonds, pine nuts, or walnuts to thicken the sauce. I’ve used almonds, ground finely in the blender with the peppers to make a smooth gravy for the lamb.

If baby lamb is used, it’s usually hacked into chunks, bones and all. For larger cuts of lamb, use boneless pieces from leg or shoulder. Goat meat can be substituted for the lamb.

Keep the meat covered with liquid as it cooks and, if preparing it in advance, keep the cooked meat completely covered with liquid so that it doesn’t darken and dry out.

Dried ñora peppers and tomatoes go into the stew.

Ñoras are plum-sized, dried bitter-sweet chiles. After cooking, the soft flesh is scraped from the insides of the peppers. Mild California chile pods are a possible substitute, though they are not quite as fleshy as the ñora. Otherwise use a spoonful of sweet pimentón. Use a little hot chile in addition to the mild. A piece of red bell pepper adds to the ruddy-red color of the gravy. I like to add some smoky Pimentón de la Vera to make up for the shepherds’ wood fire smoke. (Count ‘em—that’s four kinds of peppers.) The recipe also calls for sun-dried tomatoes, an ingredient used in La Mancha. If they are not available, use a spoonful of tomato concentrate.

Serve the lamb and red pepper gravy with Mashed Potatoes with Green Garlic (that recipe is here), rice pilaf or cous cous.

Lamb stew with red pepper gravy--nice served with rice pilaf and a glass of red wine.

Lamb Stew with Red Peppers

Caldereta de Cordero

Serves 6.


2 ½ to 3 pounds boneless lamb cut from the leg or shoulder
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, quartered and sliced
3 ñora peppers or 2 California chile pods, stems and seeds discarded
1 small hot dried chile, such as cayenne
4 sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
½ red bell pepper
¼ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley plus more to garnish
Sprig of thyme
2 bay leaves
2 heads garlic, char-roasted (see below for how-to), cloves peeled
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups water or lamb stock
¼ cup blanched and skinned almonds
1 teaspoon Pimentón de la Vera (sweet, bittersweet or hot)

Trim lamb of excess fat. Cut it into chunks of approximately 2 inches square. Sprinkle the pieces of lamb liberally with salt and pepper and allow to stand at room temperature for 1 hour.

Heat the oil in a large stew pot or lidded cazuela and sauté the sliced onions until lightly browned, 6 to 8 minutes. Put in the pieces of meat and turn them in the oil for a few minutes. They do not need to brown, only to lose their pink color.

Add ñoras or California chile pods with the whole dried chile, tomatoes, bell pepper, parsley, thyme, bay leaves, peeled garlic cloves and 1 teaspoon salt.

Add the wine and 3 cups of water or stock. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer until meat is very tender, 1 to 1 ½ hours.

Lift the pieces of meat out of the cooking liquid with any vegetables clinging to them and set aside, covered tightly. Skim off fat from the top of liquid remaining in pot.

Place a strainer over a heatproof bowl and pour the liquid through it. Discard the cayenne chile and bay leaves. Lift out the pieces of ñora. Use a spoon to scrape the pulp from the inside of the ñoras or chile pods. Discard the skins and put the pulp in a blender or food processor. Scrape the pulp from the piece of bell pepper and discard the skin. Add the pulp to the blender with some of the onions, tomatoes and garlics remaining in the strainer.

Add the almonds to the blender with the Pimentón de la Vera and 1 cup of the strained liquid. Blend or process until the almonds are ground to a smooth paste.

Return the liquid to the stew pot and add the almond mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring. Return the lamb to the pot and cook gently 20 minutes longer.

 Allow the stew to settle 10 minutes. Serve garnished with chopped parsley. 

To Char-Roast a Head of Garlic

Spear the head of garlic on a fork or grasp it with tongs (protect hands with an oven mitt) and hold over a gas flame, or put under the broiler. Turn the garlic until it is charred on all sides. Peel the garlic cloves, rinse them in water, and add them to the stew to continue cooking.

Ground almonds thicken the stew's gravy.

Here are links to some other hearty winter stews.

Andalusian Vegetable and Sausage Stew (Berza Andaluza)

Potato and Wild Mushroom Stew (Guiso de Patatas y Níscalos)

Braised Lamb with Quinces (Guiso de Cordero con Membrillo)

"Altogether" Beef Stew  (Tojunto)