HOMEMADE WONTON SOUP

a steaming bowl of homemade wonton soup is food for the soul

It's getting harder and harder to feed Bib. She's almost a year old and wants to eat everything we're eating--but of course she's not allowed to have certain foods yet because they're either choking hazards or have potentially allergenic ingredients. This makes eating out kind of difficult. BUT we still manage to go out every week for Dim Sum or Dinner. Stomach and I figure we have to train them early because that's pretty much our sole form of entertainment nowadays.

fresh wonton wrappers (a.k.a. wonton skins) can be readily purchased at any Asian market or major grocery stores in the refrigerated section

I haven't officially introduced egg whites to Bib because I think she breaks out with nasty eczema when she eats meals that suspiciously have that ingredient (like velveted chicken in restaurant stir-fries). Some baked goods are also off-limits. Poor thing!

wonton filling: i like to crank up the nutritional value of my wontons with bok choy

I've been trying to feed her things that have veggies, protein and carbs all in the same meal. It's not easy. Dark leafy veggies are a hard sell unless they're disguised somehow. So here I am hiding them in the wonton filling. You know...kind of like multi-tasking. Or is that multi-eating? One of my favourite solutions for a quick healthy meal that the kids love: Homemade Wontons in Chicken Broth. Bebe loves hers with udon noodles too. I like mine with bok choy in the broth (no noodles--they're redundant in my opinion).

homemade wontons: no eggs, no seafood, no weird chemicals and perfect for a toddler's meal

Here's my step-by-step method for making wontons. I like to freeze them on the sheet pans for about an hour and then dump them all into a ziploc bag. When we feel like having Wonton Soup, we take however many we want (still frozen) and plop them into chicken broth to cook. Add a package of instant noodles and veggies and you have a full meal!

a tray of wontons ready for the freezer (or soup pot!)

WON TON SOUP

(makes 38 wontons)

1/2 lb ground pork

2 baby bok choy, finely chopped (about 1/3 cup total)

1 1/2 t cornstarch

1 1/2 t sesame oil

1/2 t. salt

dash of white pepper

2 T finely chopped green onion

1 t. shaoxing wine

pinch of sugar

One (380g) Package fresh Wonton Skins

Bowl of water for use in closing the wrappers

Low Sodium Chicken Broth (I use Campbell's in the 1 litre tetra-pak)

• Combine all ingredients except wonton skins,water and broth in a bowl. Mix well with a spoon.
• Using a small teaspoon, measure out a scant teaspoon of filling in the centre of each skin.
• Dip a finger into the bowl of water and trace your finger along 2 adjacent edges of the skin.
• Fold the wonton skin to form a triangle, with the filling in the centre; gently pressing out any air and ensuring a nice seal
• With the dumpling pointing away from you, fold the long edge until you can just see the top corner of the dumpling
• Dip a finger into the bowl of water and trace some water onto the two opposing sides that will be pinched together.
• Gently pinch the "arms" of the wonton to close and seal.
• Place on parchment-lined cookie sheet; cover lightly with plastic wrap until you have finished forming all the dumplings
• You can cook the dumplings by boiling them in chicken broth. They're done when they float to the top.
• Any leftover raw wontons can be frozen
• Variations: add veggies, instant noodles, chinese bbq pork, fish balls etc.
• Deep fried variation: dip in sweet and sour sauce or sweet thai chili sauce