(Dolen Perkins-Valdez, hardback). From the title you might think this is a book about the s-x word. It’s not. By a long shot. But the story, set in about 1852, is about a black slave woman, and her somewhat misguided “love” for her master. About the children she bore him, under the eagle eye of the master’s wife. But it’s all tied together with a yearly journey made to a place called Tawawa House, a rural inn of sorts in southern Ohio (a free State), that for some years allowed white slave owners to stay at the resort in rustic cottages with their black slaves, as couples. This place existed, according to the author’s afterword, and finally closed because some of the regulars (white couples who stayed in the main house) didn’t fancy this concubine business going on out in the woods. It’s about Lizzie’s relationships with the other slave women, about their desire to run to safety through the local underground, about them secretly meeting some free blacks, finding out more about abolition, and about the hardships all these black mistresses endured, and how little their lives were valued. A real stunning book. (I was sent this book as a perk from Harper Collins – because I had mentioned The Help. No strings attached – I could choose to mention this book, or not, here on my blog. I’m glad to because it’s a very good read.)
(Jamie Ford, on my Kindle). A poignant story about a Chinese-American, growing up in Seattle at the beginning of World War II. Henry falls in love with a young Japanese girl before her family is interned in a relocation camp. It a very secretive relationship because his parents would highly disapprove. The story goes back to the 40’s and forward to the 1980’s when Henry is in his 50’s and his wife (not the Japanese woman) has just died of cancer. The story pulls you in from the first page, especially when some artifacts are found in the basement of an old hotel which contain personal belongings from several Japanese families who were suddenly taken away back in 1942. You can see where it’s going, can’t you? I heard criticism of this book that it was just a little bit contrived. Halfway through I’m enjoying it very much.
(Kathryn Stockett on my Kindle, an excellent read); 
by Jetta Carleton (Kindle edition, eh); 
by Susan Richards (Kindle edition, good book); 
by Sally Gunning (Kindle edition, very good read)
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(Mario Batali & Gweneth Paltrow); 
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Since we ate exceedingly well on this trip, we decided that we should make every effort to eat some lighter meals once we got home. I went to my soup file and tried to find something new and different, lower in calorie, but also full of flavor. I have recipes in that file (and all the other ones as well) that go wa-a-a-y back. This one did. I have no idea where the photocopy came from, but I changed the recipe some anyway, so I guess I’m clear with the recipe police.
I like fairly substantive soups. They need to have lots of texture and layers to make me happy. I don’t make clear soups at all. Never have; probably never will. That’s a “why bother” in my book. So when I read this recipe I figured I could make it more my own by adding vegetables and revising the seasonings. I could tell by looking at it that it would be low in calorie (the bacon is the only no-no in it).
The toughest part of the recipe is cutting up the chicken. I read this recipe all the way through, then went back and read it through again. It was so unusual. So I went on the internet and researched the word “hamburgese.” It appears it’s the word for the people who live in Hamburg. That’s it. I found no mention of any soup. So I really don’t know the origin of this. The chicken pieces (minced finely) are the dumplings. This isn’t any traditional kind of dumpling, trust me. There is a little bit of chopped up fresh bread crumbs, but you hardly know they’re there. I know why I saved the recipe – it has nuts (I used walnuts instead of pistachios called for), green peppercorns, minced ginger, cumin and cinnamon in the seasoning. I mean, gee whiz, where does that combination come from? Not likely from Hamburg, Germany. I’m sure that’s what intrigued me.
So anyway, you have to cut up the chicken. Words of advice here – if you have frozen chicken breasts, partially defrost them and mince them up while they’re still mildly frozen. That will be a whole lot easier than doing it once they’re totally defrosted like I did. The recipe said you can’t use a food processor (wrong texture), but if you have a meat grinder that will do. Otherwise it’s mince it by hand. I’ll just tell you that it took longer than I wanted to spend mincing the slippery strips of chicken.
The soup is a broth (I used some more of the Penzey’s soup base), but I wanted the soup to have more to it than these chicken dumpling things and broth, so I added onion, carrot, celery and mushrooms. It reminds me of albondigas, the Mexican meatball soup that’s similarly made, but has totally different seasonings in it. Anyway, the veggies just simmer in the broth, then you add the little blobs of dumpling (hand formed gently) and they simmer in the broth at just BELOW a boil (otherwise they’ll all break apart).
I must say this soup is different. Good different. My DH didn’t get it when I dished it up – I’ve never served him a soup with chicken dumplings before. But once he tasted it he liked it. I followed the proportions for seasoning, but I think it should be more highly seasoned, so have increased the amounts in the recipe below. Please note that a 2-cup (approx.) serving is only 247 calories. You place the dumplings in a wide bowl, ladle the vegetable soup over the top and garnish with Italian parsley and some of the bacon bits.
Chicken Hamburgese or Chicken Dumpling Soup
Servings: 8
CHICKEN DUMPLINGS:
3/4 pound chicken breast, no skin, no bone, R-T-C
4 ounces bacon — divided use
1/2 cup onion — minced
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic — minced
3 tablespoons walnuts — minced
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon fresh ginger — minced
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
SOUP:
12 cups chicken broth
3 whole carrots — cut in coins
1/2 cup onion — chopped
1 stalk celery — chopped
1 cup fresh mushrooms — sliced
GARNISH:
3 tablespoons Italian parsley — minced
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1. Cut the bacon into 1/2 inch chop. Cook until crisp, drain on paper towels and reserve the bacon grease.
2. CHICKEN: The chicken meat needs to be cut into a very fine dice or be put through a meat grinder (a food processor isn’t the right texture). Ideally, cut the chicken when it’s still partially frozen (it will be easier to cut). Place in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
3. Place a bit of the bacon grease in the skillet and add the onion. Saute until the onion is translucent, then add the garlic and stir for just one minute. Remove from heat and spoon into the bowl with the chicken. Add the bowl the walnuts, pepper, ginger, cumin, cinnamon and a bit of salt. Stir until the mixture is combined. Add about a tablespoon of bacon grease to the chicken and stir (this holds it together).
4. SOUP: Use canned broth (or make your own) or use some kind of poultry stock base. Bring to a boil and taste for seasoning. Reduce heat to a simmer.
5. DUMPLINGS: Add half of the bacon pieces to the chicken and then add the bread crumbs. Stir to combine, then using your hands form the dumplings into an elongated oval. You should be able to make between 20-25 of them. Place on a plate or pan while you complete the soup.
6. SOUP: Add the carrots and onion to the simmering broth. Allow to cook for about 5 minutes, then add the celery and mushrooms. Allow that to simmer for just a few minutes. Reduce the flame so the soup is at a very low simmer (bubbling will cause the dumplings to break apart). Then add about 1/3 of the dumplings. Allow them to cook for about 3 minutes, or until they’re cooked through (remove one and test it). Repeat with another third of the dumplings, remove, and repeat again. Taste the soup for seasoning and add salt and pepper if needed.
7. SERVING: Place about 4 chicken dumplings in a wide bowl and ladle the soup over the top. Garnish with Italian parsley, lemon zest and the reserved bacon bits.
Per Serving: 247 Calories; 12g Fat (45.2% calories from fat); 23g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 38mg Cholesterol; 1910mg Sodium.
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Erik
said on October 17th, 2008:
Looks very tasty! And I like the hint about partially freezing or thawing the chicken to help with the mincing. It really does help.