Recipe(tried): Ukrainian Beef Broth with Dropped Dumplings

UKRAINIAN BEEF BROTH WITH DROPPED DUMPLINGS (Rosil z halushkamy)

The preparation time for this recipe is shortened and simplified by using a pressure cooker. The dumplings are light, delicate and poach quickly. This is served on name days. In Ukraine, name day celebrations overshadowed birthday celebrations. One's name day simply was the day of the saint whose name one bore, or sometimes the day on which one was named.

BROTH:

2 pounds beef chuck
1 pound veal bones or chicken necks and backs
2 onions
2 carrots
2 turnips
2 ribs celery
1 bay leaf
6 peppercorns

DUMPLINGS:

1 large egg
2 Tablespoons butter
1/3 cup plus 1 teaspoon farina
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons chopped dill
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 small chicken liver (optional)
1 teaspoon Maggi seasoning or soy sauce

FOR THE BROTH: Brown beef and veal or chicken bones in a heavy kettle or pressure cooker. Peel and halve onions and brown with the meat (to add a rich brown colour). Cut vegetables in half and add. Cover with cold water and add bay leaf and peppercorns. Cover, bring to boil, and simmer for several hours, or cook in pressure cooker until meat is soft. Pour off liquid into jars, cover, and cool. (Reserve meat for other use.) skim off fat when chilled.)

FOR THE DUMPLINGS: Separate egg and cream egg yolks with butter in a 2 cup bowl. Add all other ingredients except egg white and mix well. Beat egg white until bubbly and add. If mixture is too runny, add a teaspoon or more farina. Let stand a few minutes.

Bring 2 cups of broth to a light boil. With the long edge of a soup spoon dipped in cold water, pick up a little batter and drop into broth. Do not crowd; dumplings will rise to the surface and swell. As dumplings are cooked, remove with a slotted spoon to a large soup tureen.

To serve, pour hot broth into tureen and garnish with dill springs.

Festive Ukrainian Cooking..Marta Pisetska Farley