Alaskan Cranberry Dumplings

This recipe was included as part of a recipe for “Roast Wild Duck with Red Cabbage Stuffing and Cranberry Dumplings” in the collective cookbook “Cooking Alaskan.” It is from “Out of Alaska’s Kitchens.” A delicious and unusual addition to meals! (If you’re in a hurry, you can also use wonton wrappers instead of making your own dough. See note below.)

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 2  cups  lowbush cranberries
• 1 3⁄4 cups  sifted flour
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 2 1⁄2 teaspoons double-acting baking powder
• 1⁄4 cup  chilled butter
• 2⁄3 cup milk
•  sugar
•  cinnamon

Directions

1. Place the cranberries in a saucepan, cover with water, and simmer until the berries have burst and the water is colored. Drain, reserving the liquid. Set both aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the sifted flour, salt, and baking powder. With a pastry blender or a couple of knives, cut in the chilled butter until the mixture is a bit smaller than pea-sized.
3. Make a well in the middle of the mixture, then pour in the milk and quickly stir it until it just sticks together to form a dough.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and knead gently for no more than 10 times. Wrap the dough loosely in waxed paper and chill it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to make it easier to handle.
5. About 60 minutes before you intend to serve the dumplings, roll out the dough on a lightly floured board until it is about 1/4-inch thick, and cut into 4-inch squares.
6. Fill the center of each square with a bit of the cooked cranberries (you can put each square into one of those tiny mini-muffin tins, to make it easier) and sprinkle each generously with sugar and cinnamon to taste. Wet the edges with a small amount of water (not too much!), fold the dumplings over and pinch them closed. Prick the tops.
7. Re-heat the reserved cranberry juice from the berry cooking in a saucepan to simmering. Cook the dumplings in the juice (in batches, if necessary) for about 15 minutes until done. If you don’t have enough liquid from cooking the berries, you can augment with commercially prepared unsweetened cranberry juice with water added until it tastes like the cooking liquid.
8. Goes really well with duck, pork, and turkey dishes.
9. Note: if you’re in a hurry, you can also use wonton wrappers instead of making your own dough. If you use them, the cooking time for the dumplings will be less.