Excellent Matzo Kneidlach Recipes

GLUTEN FREE MATZO BALLS - POTATO KNAIDELACH

Steps:

• Place a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil. Scrub the unpeeled potatoes till clean. Boil the unpeeled potatoes until tender-it will take about 45 minutes.
• Drain. Allow potatoes to cool to room temperature. Peel the skin from the potatoes and discard. Chop the peeled potatoes into large chunks.Place in the refrigerator and chill until they are cold all the way through (at least 2 hours). You can refrigerate them overnight, if you need to.Place a fresh pot of salted water on the stove to boil. From this point on, work quickly, or refrigerate the ingredients between steps. The potato mixture works best when it's cold.
• Remove potatoes from refrigerator and pat them dry if any moisture has accumulated. Place potatoes in a bowl and mash them with a potato masher or run them through a ricer. Mash again with a fork to get out as many lumps as possible.Mix in the egg, potato starch, 1 1/2 cups of almond meal, 1 ¼ tsp salt and a pinch of white pepper to form a dough. If the dough seems sticky, or if you prefer a denser and heavier dumpling, you can add more almond meal.
• By now your water should be boiling. Turn the stove heat down until the water is nearly boiling-the water should be "shivering" slightly, just on the verge of a boil.Form potato dough into balls using ¼ cup of dough for each.
• Gently place the knaidelach into the hot water.
• The dumplings will sink to the bottom of the pot and slowly rise as they cook.Cook knaidelach in batches of 4-5 at a time; do not cook more than that or they will stick together and fall apart in the pot. The dumplings will lose a little bit of their potato coating as they cook, but should retain their shape.
• Let the knaidelach cook for 10-15 minutes, then remove them with a slotted spoon and transfer to a dish.Keep the dumplings covered with a clean, damp towel until ready to serve.
• Serve 1 or 2 knaidelach per bowl of soup. They go great in chicken soup as an alternative to matzo balls (if you need a recipe, check out my Chicken Soup for Knaidelach). They can also be added to vegetarian soup or cholent.

FLOATER MATZO BALLS

Steps:

• In a medium mixing bowl, use a fork to stir together the matzo meal, baking powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and white pepper.
• In another small mixing bowl, use another fork to mix together the eggs and schmaltz (or oil), stirring briskly to make sure they are well blended.
• Pour egg mixture into the dry ingredients, and add the minced dill or parsley. Mix all ingredients together with a fork until just combined. Do not over-mix.Put the bowl of matzo ball mixture into the refrigerator and let it rest for 30 minutes.
• Bring your 5 quarts of chicken stock (or saffron water stock outlined in Notes section) to a boil over medium heat.While your broth or water is warming, form the chilled matzo ball mixture into 1-inch balls (roughly walnut-sized). Don't overwork the mixture when you roll the balls.
• When your broth or water boils, reduce heat to a simmer and drop the matzo balls gently into the liquid.
• Cover the pot with a lid and let the balls cook for 30-50 minutes until fluffy and soft. Keep the pot covered-- no peeking until at least 30 minutes have gone by! If you've followed instructions carefully, the balls should be floating on the surface of the water like billowy clouds of deliciousness. If they still seem dense or tight, they haven't cooked long enough. The should look soft and airy.
• Test for doneness by slicing a test matzo ball in half. It should look the same all the way through the center - tender, with no dark spot in the middle. If the middle is darker than the edges, it will need to simmer a little longer - it's not quite cooked yet. Don't be afraid to cook longer if it seems dense in the center, as it really won't be light and fluffy unless it is fully saturated with broth and cooked all the way to the center.
• If you're not using baking powder, you may wan to use avocado or safflower oil instead of schmaltz. I've noticed these oils tend to render a fluffier result, though they are not as flavorful as schmaltz. Separate the egg whites from the yolks, putting the whites in one of the medium mixing bowls and the yolks in the small mixing bowl. Use a fork to stir together the egg yolks and oil, stirring briskly to make sure they are well blended. Gently stir in 1/4 cup of seltzer.
• In the second medium mixing bowl, use a fork to mix together the matzo meal, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and white pepper.
• Pour egg yolk mixture into the dry ingredients, and add the minced dill or parsley. Mix with a fork until just combined. Do not over-mix.
• Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer to stiff peaks.
• Fold the whipped egg whites into the batter. Do not over-mix; you want the egg whites well integrated, but over-mixing will deflate them.Put the bowl of matzo ball mixture into the refrigerator and let it rest for 30 minutes.
• Bring your 5 quarts of chicken stock (or saffron water stock outlined in Notes section) to a boil over medium heat.While your broth or water is warming, form the chilled matzo ball mixture into 1-inch balls (roughly walnut-sized). Don't overwork the mixture when you roll the balls.
• When your broth or water boils, reduce heat to a simmer and drop the matzo balls gently into the liquid.
• Cover the pot with a lid and let the balls cook for 30-50 minutes until fluffy and soft. Keep the pot covered-- no peeking until at least 30 minutes have gone by! If you've followed instructions carefully, the balls should be floating on the surface of the water like billowy clouds of deliciousness. If they seem dense, they need to cook longer.
• Test for doneness by slicing a test matzo ball in half. It should look the same all the way through the center - tender, with no dark spot in the middle. If the middle is darker than the edges, it will need to simmer a little longer - it's not quite cooked yet. If you formed your balls any larger than the recommended size, you may need 10-15 minutes (or longer) than the suggested cooking time. Go by texture and doneness. It won't be light and fluffy unless it is fully saturated with broth and cooked all the way to the center.
• Serve two or three matzo balls per bowl with hot chicken soup ladled over them. If you don't plan on serving the whole pot of soup at one sitting, make sure you remove the matzo balls from the broth and let them come to room temperature before storing them in a separate sealed container kin the refrigerator. If left to sit in the broth, they'll become mushy.
• Once your matzo balls are fully cooked, line a baking sheet with wax paper or plastic wrap. Use a slotted spoon to remove the matzo balls from their cooking liquid and place them gently on the lined sheet. Let cool to room temperature.
• Place the matzo balls in the freezer and let them freeze until they are firm to the touch, around 2 hours or so. Once they are firm, you can place the matzo balls into a freezer bag (I use reusable silicone freezer bags).
• Label them with a label maker, if you want, so it will be easier to remember what you have on hand in future. They can be thawed and reheated directly in hot soup (or a pot of soup stock) just before serving.
• Additional Notes: You can cook matzo balls directly in your soup broth (which will give them excellent flavor), but it will soak up a lot of the yummy stock, leaving you with very little broth for serving.

VEGAN MATZO BALLS (AKA KNEIDLACH)

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together Refrigerate for 1/2 hour Roll into balls and place in boiling soup Simmer in soup until they grow (about 20 minutes) Take out of soup with a slotted spoon and let harden for 30 minutes to 1 hour(or longer) in the fridge Put the balls back in the soup about 1/2 hour before it's ready to be served to heat up Serve

EXCELLENT MATZO KNEIDLACH

Steps:

• Combine eggs and water in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until frothy. Fold in matzo meal, vegetable oil, parsley, salt, and pepper until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil.
• Moisten hands and roll mixture into golf ball-sized balls. Drop carefully into the boiling water, cover, and reduce heat to a rolling simmer. Cook for 30 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain.