Gluten Free Turkish Dumplings: Manti

Happy New Year! With a new year, I decided I would finally start the blog that I have been wanting to do for a while now. What has stopped me from doing it? TIME! Anyone that knows me knows that I am a busy woman and I usually fill any of my "down" time with more things to do. Recently we have made some big changes which have given me more time. I am a Physical Therapist and an avid cook. My coworkers, patients and friends have always enjoyed my tasty creations and eventually convinced me to start my own instagram site. I've been starting to get more hits on my pics and thought it was time to start to share my recipes! So here we go....

My husband is Turkish and I'm always trying to find ways to give him a taste of home. One of his father's favorite meals is manti, which are Turkish dumplings with yogurt and spiced oil. We have made it a New Year's tradition to make these.

You have been warned, this is no small undertaking! It took us about 2 hours to complete these but it was worth the work. The creation of the dumplings would be a great job for kids. My husband remembers his mother calling his brother and sister into the kitchen as soon as the dough was cut and dollops of filling were placed in the center. Little fingers are perfect for making these tiny purses!

My suggestion is to make a double batch and freeze half of them after you bake them. It's also nice to make the garlic, mint yogurt the night before so all the flavors can blend into the yogurt. It isn't necessary but it adds depth to the flavors. I hope you enjoy! Afiyet olsun!

Gluten Free Manti

Prep Time: 1 hour 30 min

Cooking Time: 30 min

Servings: 4

1 batch of gluten free wonton wrappers

2 cups plain yogurt (my husband loves Trader Joe's European Style Yogurt)

4 garlic gloves minced

1 1/2 tablespoons dried mint

1/2 lb ground lamb (can use beef as well)

1 small yellow onion grated

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 1/2 tablespoons Turkish red pepper (aleppo pepper)

1. Make the wonton wrappers according to the directions and allow to rest before rolling out.

2. While you let the dough rest, make the yogurt sauce and meat filling. Combine the yogurt, garlic and mint in a bowl and refrigerate it (can make this the night before). Mix together the meat, grated onion, salt and pepper really well. Make sure there aren't any large pieces of meat and onion separated. 

3. Work in batches rolling out the dough (I did it in 4 different batches) as thin as you can. Make 1.5 inch by 1.5 inch squares. 

4. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line two large rimmed baking pans with parchment paper. 

5. Place between 1/4 and 1/2 teaspoon of filling in the center of each square. Bring the four corners of the square together, pinching all the seams closed. Place them on a baking sheet. When done with the batch, cover the dumplings with a damp cloth to keep them from drying out. Repeat with the remaining of the dough.

6. Bake the dumplings for 12-15 minutes. They will brown slightly on the bottom.

7. While the dumplings are in the oven, start a large pot of water and salt boiling. Add the dumplings to cook until tender, about 15-18 min. Drain the dumplings when done, return to the pot and pour a little olive oil to make sure they don't stick. 

8. While the dumplings are in the boiling water, put the oil in a large skillet and heat over medium heat. When the oil is warm, whisk in the tomato paste and cook for 3 min. Add the Turkish pepper and cook for another 2-3 min to profuse the oil. 

9. To assemble: divide the dumplings between the 4 bowls. Spoon about 1/3 cup of yogurt over the top and spoon some of the spiced oil on top of the yogurt. Place the remaining of the yogurt on the table for people to add if wanted.