Potato Dumplings

Potato dumplings are an Oscar Sanner family favorite. Oscar and Clara made them often for their large family.

Making Potato Dumplings

It all starts with the recipe:
(According to Floyd and Peggy and Glenn and Harriet)

You will need at least two roasting pans filled to one third with simmering water.

Ingredients:
5 pounds of red potatoes
2 cups whole wheat or graham flour
2 large yellow or white onions
white flour - enough to make dumplings stay together when placed in simmering water
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Grind peeled potatoes and peeled onions and mix with the rest of the ingredients. Place dumpling on slotted spoon that has been dipped in boiling water. Place dumpling carefully into simmering water and leave it long enough to "set" before stacking dumplings in roasting pan(s).
Simmer at least one hour at 350F. Serve with side pork or thin pork chops and water gravy made from the pork. Season gravy with salt and pepper. Add "Kitchen Bouquet" for color and taste, if needed.

Hints: It works best to mix the dumpling mixture with your clean hands.


Peggy instrucing Dolores on how small to cut the potatoes to fit in the grinder?

Floyd and Al doing the grinding

Dolores makes another version of potato dumplings to which she adds Allspice. We guess that Oscar and Clara had many recipe alterations over the years.

Potatoes, onions, salt and pepper.

Ready to add the flour.

Muriel, Dennis, Susan, Dolores and Allen looking at some old pictures Muriel brought. (See recent blog)

Placing the dumplings into the simmering water.

Looking at the old pictures

Placing and moving the dumplings is a delicate process. Peggy instructing Susan to make sure dumplings aren't moved before they are set.

Muriel and Dennis

Oh, yes, the cards. A game of "Nickels" may be a more recent Sanner tradition.

Floyd, Peggy, Jan, Royce, Dennis, Muriel, Dolores, and Al