Collard Greens Wonton Soup

I'm still in health pack mode, and the New York Times told me it was alright to chop up a bunch of leafy greens and jam them in some dumplings. So that's what I did. Then I cooked those dumplings in a hot broth with more vegetables. And was cured.

I make no claims for authenticity here, and the collards are a little strange at first. But I found I really liked their bitterness with the other ingredients and was happy with just how many of those big wrinkly leaves you can eat when you chop them up all tiny like. Health! (But here's another dumpling recipe that would sub into this soup just fine if you aren't keen on the greens.)

1 packed cup very finely chopped collard (or other) greens (These were one big bunch to start with; I used a food processor to chop the leaves super fine)
2 tablespoons finely chopped ginger
1 finely chopped red jalapeño or other spicy pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro, leaves and stems
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 small onion, finely chopped (about 1/4 cup)
8 ounces seitan, finely chopped
1 tablespoon red or rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
50 or 60 round wonton wrappers

Combine all the ingredients (except the wrappers!) in a large mixing bowl. Spoon teaspoonfuls of the filling into wonton wrappers. Dip your finger in a little water and run it around the edge of the wrapper, then fold and seal. Check out this youtube video (also thanks to the NYT) for advice on wrapping.

Makes about 50 or 60 dumplings

about 1 quart low sodium vegetable broth
soy sauce to taste
other soup veggies, thinly sliced (I used about 5 leaves bok choy and 1 tiny bell pepper; scallions would be good here though I was out)
12-14 dumplings

Bring the broth to a boil. Once boiling, gently toss the dumplings, and any veggies you plan to include, into the soup. Boil until the dumplings rise to the top and look translucent and brain-like (wrinkled). Season the broth to taste with soy sauce, maybe a little hot sauce, and serve.

Serves 2 as dinner.