Warm-Me-Up Dumpling Stew

The mornings are biting just a bit as the fall chill begins to creep in the windows and although the sun is still lingering here and there, I have made the menu switch in my brain to fall comfort foods. Yes, this is the weather for a warm bowl of chunky stew topped with sticky dumplings. It has been a favorite of mine since childhood, but I have never made a vegan version since making the change. This is by no means a lighter stew because of the absence of meat, in fact I think that it is just as heavy and stays with you just as long as my mum's original recipe. So curl up on one of these first chilly days of fall with a deep serving of this and feel happy and warm!

I have taken the fam fav recipe and veganized it with tempeh, but this is just as good with straight up veggies just skip to #2.

WARM-ME-UP DUMPLING STEW

Ingredients:

Marinade:
1 pkg tempeh
1 T olive oil
1/4 C tamari (or soy sauce * tamari has a smoother flavor)
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 T nutritional yeast (you can omit this as well)
1 tsp onion flakes
1/4 tsp sage

Stew:
2.5 C h20
1.5 crushed vegetable bouillon cubes
1/2 large onion chopped
1 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp each rosemary, thyme, marjoram, basil, sage, tarragon
1 large turnip roughly chopped
1 large potato roughly chopped
1 T parsley
1 minced garlic clove
1 bay leaf
1 tsp tamari
2 carrots roughly chopped
2 celery stalks chopped
2 T cornstarch dissolved in cold h20
salt and pepper

Dumplings:
1 C flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C milk (soy, rice)
2 T oil

1. Tempeh

1. Cut tempeh into small cubes.
2. Marinate for at least an hour in marinade.
3. Heat oil in a large soup pot and brown the tempeh cubes.

2. Stew

1. Add 2 C h2o, crushed bouillon cubes, and onions to the browned tempeh cubes. Heat for 15 minutes.
2. Add oregano, rosemary, thyme, marjoram, basil, sage, tarragon and potato and turnip chunks. Cover and let simmer 15 minutes.
3. Add parsley, garlic, bay leaf, tamari, parsley, carrots and celery. Let simmer an additional 15 minutes.
4. Add the cornstarch with an additional 1/2 C h20. If the stew is too thick just add more water. Salt and pepper to taste. Let thicken to desired texture.

3. Dumplings

1. Mix dry ingredients together and slowly add wet ingredients stirring until just combined.
2. Drop 1 T sized dumplings into the stew along the outside first then in the middle. Cover and simmer on low 15-20 min.

After the stew cools just enough spoon out the dumplings and get yourself a heaping serving of warm comfort. Don't forget to top it with a few gooey dumplings!

This recipe was great, I initially added cayenne (bad idea) and parsley to the dumplings (another poor idea) but with the tweaking this is sure to satisfy on any cool evening.

Enjoy!