Making dumplings and noodles... With recipe

Today I had the opportunity to make dumplings.  I had never made dumplings,  my mom always made noodles. She thought dumplings were too doughy.

So Jennifer and I made a single batch of dumplings.  The longer I worked with the dough,  I realized it was my mom's noodles,  just in different proportions. We made the dumplings a little smaller than normal dumplings and I was right... they are my mom's noodles.

The problem was,  while they were easy,  they were also delicious. We started thinking of the next time they would need to be made. If I would have thought ahead,  I would have quadrupled the recipe.

So after eating and resting,  I made a triple batch. While the first batch was mixed by a fork,  I used the mixer with the large batch.  By the time I had them all cut out,  I had remembered all the things I should have done,  things my mom had taught me and I had forgotten.

Noodle dough is dry...
If it is too damp,  it doesn't roll out right.
Your work surface needs to be heavily floured.
Roll out small fist size batches- not large ones.
Roll the dough out thin,  dust it with flour and let it rest several minutes.
Roll it out some more to around 1/8 inch.
The thinner the noodle,  the quicker the dough taste cooks out. The thicker the noodles,  the longer the cook time required. Too thick a noodle it will remain doughy. Actual dumplings can be made a tiny bit thicker but will require a longer cook time.

If you plan to use them immediately, flour the dough surface, roll the dough up starting with the narrowest width. Cut the dough with a sharp knife into 1/2 strips. Unroll them as they are put into the boiling broth. The extra flour thickens the soup.

If you plan to freeze them,  lay the dough on wax paper first.  Use the pizza cutter to cut noodles.  Then using the way paper,  roll the wax paper and cut noodles up into a log roll. Several of these rolls can be sealed with a food saver and frozen into single batch amounts. If you don't have a food saver,  try to get as much of the air out as possible.

A single batch recipe
2 cups flour
2 Tbs. butter
½ tsp. baking powder
salt to taste (don't use too much,  the broth has salt if using processed)
about a cup of milk, maybe a bit less
(I used powdered milk and just mixed the 3T milk powder in with the dry ingredients and then used a cup of cold water)

Mix the dry ingredients,  cut in the butter like you would in biscuits.  Then slowly mix in the milk or water to get a dough. Err on the side of too dry vs too wet.

If this is for chicken soup
The noodles are boiled in 6-8 cups chicken broth before adding in 2-3 cups cooked shredded chicken. Add herbs,  vegetable and spices to taste. As long as you have a good quality broth for taste,  you can get by with much less meat.

Mom would make this using left over turkey,  rabbit or whatever meat was available.  She would pressure cook the carcass to make the broth. If she had extra,  the broth was canned or frozen for layer. When she would make noodles,  she would make large amounts and freeze some for later. That way,  hallways have the ingredients in hand for a quick delicious,  nutritious soup.

Hot water bottles

You may think my crazy, but I love water bottles.  Really!

Historically, the original practice was to use hot rocks from beside the fire to put in a bed. Later, it became metal boxes filled with hot coals from the fire that were put in the bed and later removed. Only the rich could afford the boxes with long handles so the poor still used plain rocks.

The modern derivative are made of flexible pvc or vinyl. Consigned to the pharmacy isles, no one thinks about just how convenient these wonders are.

I use them at work on my back when is hurting. One quick fill in the sink or a partial fill at the coffee maker (with water already inside) and I am set for hours.

In the winter, one goes to the car with me. It will either sit in my lap to help my hands unfreeze or sit in the floorboard to keep my toes warm. Ran over the inside of the windshield, it can even help clear the ice.

When I have a sick pet, I put one in the bed with hot or cold water as needed. In the winter they appreciate the extra warmth and in the summer it becomes a cooler place to sit.

I use them in bed in the winter on cold nights. When the electricity goes off, I fill them from the hot water heater and put them into bed with me.

When I am working at a desk in the winter and the floor is cold, I put one on the floor in a towel to put my feet on. Working is so much more comfortable with toasty feet.

In a tent on cool nights, I use water that has been close by the fire. They help keep the tent and bedding warmer.

When a friend had surgery and needed flexible ice packs, they came in handy. I filled them ½ with water and ½ with rubbing alcohol. They freez and stay flexible and will not bust if dropped.

The best thing?  They are sustainable.
In the summer, the used water goes on my garden. In the winter, it is returned to a pot on the heater. The pot provides humidity and a constant source of convenient hot water.