vegetarian kreplach
Three Ways
Vegetarian Kreplach, Three Ways
Eating Kreplach on Erev Yom Kippur has deep mystical significance. They’re most traditionally filled with meat—Red is the color of blood; it represents pure Divine Judgement. White, the color of milk and love, represents Divine Mercy. Kreplach, with their tender white dough on the outside and their red meat on the inside, represent our hope that on this Day of Atonement, God’s mercy and lovingkindness will wrap around God’s judgement and severity and have power over it.
They’re also traditional for Sukkot, when culinary thoughts turn to foods that are stuffed, and for Purim, when we consider hidden identities and hidden meanings. But, the best time to make kreplach is when you want kreplach. And that happens often ..
But what about kreplach for those of us who don’t eat meat?
I’ve got three choices for you.
Each will make approximately 50 kreplach.
Your first choice is to follow the same recipe for my meat-filled kreplach, substituting ground “Impossible” or “Beyond” plant-based meat, for vegetarian kreplach that taste just like the real thing. Making a meatball mix for the filling produces kreplach that are more flavorful and tender than the ones you get from the usual plain beef sautéd with onion, plant-based or otherwise.
This sweet and sour red cabbage with apples and chestnuts makes a wonderful filling for kreplach. It also makes for a wonderful side dish. The only difference between the two is, if you’re making it for kreplach, chop the cabbage shreds. As kreplach, they’re very good sautéed in butter, vegan butter, or oil, with caramelized onions. They’re also wonderful in soup. Try them in my Lavender Velvet Cabbage Soup. It’s a perfect match, and a brilliant presentation of colors—the soft lavender of the soup adorned with the white kerchiefs of the kreplach, which reveal a deep red when cut into with a spoon. The chestnuts are optional, but I love the flavor and texture that they add to the dish. It’s easy when you use packaged, pre-cooked chestnuts.
If you love mushrooms, you’ll love this mushroom filling for kreplach. Ok, so it’s not red. But … the power of symbolism lies in the power that we give to it with our minds. Let’s try … hmmm … mushrooms are a fungus, like the fungus that grows on our souls from sin. But wrapped in HaShem’s loving kindness, and with a little work from us, it can be transformed into something good. There! Works for me!
First, The Dough
My great-aunt Rae made the best kreplach ever. The dough was so delicate and tender, yet held together perfectly. It took a bit of work—she didn’t have a food processor—but it was worth it. This is her recipe, made simple with the use of a food processor.
With all this said, sometimes you just don’t have time. The trick is, you can make respectable and delicious kreplach with a pack of wonton wrappers from the supermarket. If you go that route, follow the instructions for filling and cooking below, skipping the “make the dough” part. Don’t worry that the wrappers aren’t a perfect square and that your triangles are a little off. I promise you, it’s fine.
Ingredients for the dough:
2 cups flour
2 eggs
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cold water
Method:
Add all the ingredients, except for the water, into the work bowl of your food processor. Pulse until they’re well combined.
Then, with the machine running, slowly pour in the water. The dough should quickly form itself into a ball. If it seems too dry, drizzle in a little more water, a teaspoon at a time.
Turn the dough out onto your workspace and knead it a few times. It should feel smooth and elastic, perhaps a bit sticky but not too sticky to handle.
Form the dough into a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the fridge for at least half an hour. You can also make the dough a day in advance.
When you’re ready to form your kreplach, unwrap the dough, cut it in half, and re-wrap half of it. Flour your workspace. If you have a pasta roller, use it to roll out the dough into a thin sheet. Otherwise, roll it out as thinly as you can without tearing the dough. Cut it into 3” squares.
And now, the fillings!
For the “Meat” Filling
Ingredients:
1 lb “Impossible” or “Beyond” plant-based ground beef substitute
1 egg
1/3 cup fresh bread crumbs, or more
Water for processing
1 teaspoon salt
1-2 cloves garlic
1 small onion, finely diced
Freshly ground pepper
A glug of olive oil
Method:
Warm a skillet over medium heat. Add a small glug of olive oil and give it a minute or so to heat up. Add the diced onion and sauté it slowly until it’s nicely caramelized. Add the minced garlic, give it a stir, and remove it from the heat. Set it aside to cool.
In a medium bowl, combine the “beef” with the egg, the salt, and a few grinds of the peppermill.
Scrape in the onion and garlic from the skillet with any oil and liquid that might be remaining, then add the bread crumbs and begin to knead the mixture, adding a little ice water at a time until the “meat” feels soft and tender, but still holds together. If it doesn’t seem cohesive, you can add a little more of the breadcrumbs. The measurement of breadcrumbs and water is not an exact science; I go by feel. Don’t worry if you’ve got a little too much, or too little, of either. It’s very forgiving.
For the Sweet and Sour Cabbage with Onions and Chestnuts Filling
Ingredients:
1 medium red cabbage, tough outer leaves and core removed, finely shredded, (and then chopped if it’s for kreplach)
1 large yellow or white onion, chopped
3 tablespoons butter or vegan butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar or more, according to taste
2 tablespoons lemon juice.
2 medium tart apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
A dash of nutmeg
A dash of allspice
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar.
Optional: some chopped chestnuts, mixed in at the end
Method:
Melt the butter in a Dutch oven. Add onions and sauté until the just begin to turn golden.
Stir in the garlic, and then stir in the cabbage and the apple. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add ¼ cup of water, along with the brown sugar, lemon juice, and a little salt and pepper, and cover it tightly. A glass cover is convenient because you can see what’s going on inside, but a metal one will be fine.
Steam the cabbage over a low light, watching it carefully so that it doesn’t burn, for about half an hour. If you need to add a bit more water, do so. Then remove the lid and continue to cook the cabbage for at least another half hour, stirring every five minutes or so. As long as you don’t burn it, it can’t be overcooked. It just gets softer and thicker and more flavorful.
Add the balsamic vinegar for the last ten minutes or so of cooking. Taste the cabbage and adjust the lemon juice, sugar, spices, salt, and pepper to your liking. The chestnuts are a nice addition, but not necessary. How much? That’s up to you!
This also makes a fabulous side dish. If you’re making it as a side dish, shred the cabbage but don’t chop it.
For The Mushroom and Caramelized Onion Filling
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons butter or vegan butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
½ lb mushrooms (white, cremini, portabella, shiitake…your choice)
¼ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons flour
¼ cup sour cream or vegan sour cream
Method:
In a skillet, sauté the onions in the butter until they’re soft and begin to take on color. Add the mushrooms and continue to sauté until the onions and mushrooms are nicely caramelized. Getting them well browned will give you a deeper flavor.
Add the thyme, salt, and pepper and stir.
Sprinkle the flour over-all and cook, stirring, until the flour is no longer raw (about 2 minutes).
Stir in the sour cream and simmer, stirring, until the mixture is thickened.
How to Assemble and Cook the Kreplach
Whether you’re using the homemade dough recipe above or store-bought wonton wrappers, lay out a few squares at a time, keeping the rest covered so that they don’t dry out.
Put 1 teaspoon of your filling, a little off-center towards one of the corners, on each one. (Resist the urge to over-stuff the kreplach. You’ll be very sad if they explode while cooking.) Using a small brush (or a finger), brush a little water around the perimeter of the squares, just enough to moisten the dough.
Then pick up the corner opposite the filling and fold it over to make a triangle.
It’s a good idea to dust them with a little flour to keep them from sticking together.
When you’re ready to cook your kreplach, bring a large pot of water to boil and carefully drop in your kreplach. Boil them for just until they float—about 3 minutes—and then remove them from the water with a slotted spoon.
Serve them as is, in your favorite soup (my lavender cabbage soup is a perfect match!), or pan fry them in butter or vegan butter with sliced onions and serve them as a side dish. Or, deep fry them and serve them as an appetizer or a snack.