Green Tea Pot Stickers

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I've been feeling uninspired. I've been cooking, but I didn't feel particularly excited about anything. I'm trying to cook my way out of the funk, so I tried something a little different -- green tea pot stickers. I mixed some green tea powder in the dumpling dough, which adds fragrance and a little bitterness that complements the bok choy filling very well. I tried steaming them, but learned (the hard way) that bamboo steaming baskets need to lined with cheese cloth, NOT parchment paper, unless you want puddles of water under your dumplings. But thankfully, I was able to save the dumplings by quickly pan frying them.

For these green tea pot stickers, you will need:

• 5 bok choys, rinsed and cleaned
• 4 ounces vegetarian ham (or extra firm tofu)
• 1 pint shiitake mushrooms (or wood ear mushroom)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon grated ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• salt to taste
• 1 portion green tea dough, recipe below

For the green tea dough, you will need:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup warm water (about 160 degrees)
• 2 tablespoons green tea powder
• pinch of salt

In a large mixing bowl, mix together all-purpose flour, green tea powder and salt. Slowly pour in warm water and mix well with flour. Knead gently for a few minutes until the dough comes together. Set aside for 15 to 30 minutes to allow the dough to relax.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Quickly blanch boy for 30 seconds. Remove and allow to cool. Add bok choy to food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Place finely chopped bok choy into a cheese cloth and wring out any excess liquid. Place bok choy in a large mixing bowl. Add vegetarian ham and mushrooms into food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Mix together with bok choy, soy sauce, sesame oil, grated ginger, and white pepper. Adjust seasoning with salt, if necessary.

Divide the dough into about 36 equal pieces. Roll out each piece to thin rounds. Add about 1 tablespoon of bok choy mixture onto the dough. Fold dough over and pinch to shut. Steam and serve. Dough will turn deep green after cooking. If you want to pan fry them, place dumpling into a hot, greased non-stick pan fitted with a lid. Pour in enough water to cover the bottom of the pan. Cover and allow dumplings to steam until water completely evaporates. Repeat 2 more times and serve.