MIDWEST MINI DIPPERS (A Tailgating Trio)

In the Midwestern tradition of “work hard, play hard, and eat hearty,” these dumpling-sized game-day mini pies put classically flavored comfort in a perfectly pop-able package. We’ve done them three ways: Potroast & Porter with Horseradish Cream; Reuben Sammy with Thousand Island Dipping Sauce; and Wisconsin Beer & Cheddar Brat with Grain Mustard Aioli.

For easiest crimping, I use a little 4-inch dumpling press, moistening the edges of the dough before clamping shut around the filling. And for best results, make the fillings and pie dough the day before you bake them, to give the dough the chance to rest and the fillings some chill time.

NOTE One batch of the pie dough recipe here makes 38 to 40 mini dippers, enough to wrap any one recipe of these fillings. To make mini-dippers for all three fillings, you’ll need three batches of the dough.

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE PIE DOUGH

• 3 cups flour, sifted
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• Pinch salt
• 2 ¼ sticks ice cold unsalted butter
• 4 to 5 Tablespoons ice water
• Egg wash made with one egg and 2 tablespoons milk

FOR THE POTROAST & PORTER MINI-DIPPERS

• Small (1 ½ pound) well-marbled beef chuck roast
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium onion, peeled and cut into wedges
• 5 garlic cloves
• 1 cup porter
• 1 cup low sodium beef stock
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce, divided
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1 tiny rosemary sprig
• 3 small potatoes, cut into very tiny cubes
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 12 ounces cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 teaspoon both salt and pepper

FOR THE REUBEN SAMMY MINI-DIPPERS

• 1 ½ pound corned beef, prepared according to package directions
• 1 cup Bavarian sweet sauerkraut, with caraway seeds
• ½ medium onion chopped, cooked until soft in 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 8 ounces grated Jarlsberg Swiss cheese
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon finely ground pepper

FOR THE WISCONSIN BEER BRAT MINI-DIPPERS

• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 can pilsner beer
• 1 pound bratwurst links
• 8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon finely ground pepper

FOR THE DIPPING SAUCES

• Horseradish Cream: ½ cup sour cream, ¼ cup heavy cream 2 Tablespoons prepared horseradish, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste.
• Thousand Island: ½ cup mayonnaise, 2 Tablespoons ketchup, ¼ cup sweet pickle relish, ¼ cup finely chopped onion, 1/8 tsp finely grated garlic, 1 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp finely ground black pepper.
• Whole Grain Mustard Aioli: 1/2 cup mayonnaise, ¼ cup whole grain Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon beer.

INSTRUCTIONS

MAKE PIE DOUGH: Sift flour into large bowl. Add sugar. Cut ice-cold butter into small cubes and dot over the flour. Using your fingers, lightly break up butter into the flour. Once mixture is like wet sand, lightly stir in water 1 Tbsp at a time—use only enough until a handful of the mixture squeezed forms a ball. Gather dough into a ball. Flatten, wrap, and refrigerate.

MAKE POT ROAST: Turn oven to 300F. Rub pepper and salt into pot roast. Place olive oil in a Dutch oven. Over medium heat, brown roast on all sides. Remove from heat. Mix porter and low-sodium beef stock together and pour over meat. Add onion wedges, garlic cloves, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf. Cover and roast in oven for 3 ½ to 4 hours until meat is extremely tender and garlic and onion are very soft. While meat roasts, simmer tiny potato cubes in water until tender. Drain water. Refrigerate potatoes. Remove pot roast from oven and cool to room temperature. Remove meat, onion, and garlic from Dutch oven and pour liquid into a bowl. Chop and shred meat/onion/garlic into small bits. Refrigerate both cooking liquid and chopped meat overnight.

PREP REUBEN SAMMY FILLING: Press all liquid out of the sauerkraut. Chop corned beef into small bits. Mix beef and sauerkraut with the soft-cooked chopped onion and grated Swiss cheese. Stir in Dijon mustard and finely ground black pepper. Refrigerate.

PREP WISCONSIN BEER & CHEESE BRAT FILLING: Over medium low heat in a heavy skillet, cook onion in oil until very soft and caramelized. Remove onions from pan. Add beer to the pan and cook brats in beer until completely cooked through. Reserve 3 tablespoons of the beer/brat cooking liquid. Chop brats into very small bits. Combine brat bits with caramelized onion, 3 Tbsp of the beer/brat liquid, grated sharp cheddar cheese, Dijon mustard, and pepper. Refrigerate.

PREP POTROAST & PORTER FILLING: Remove chilled chopped meat mixture from fridge. Remove chilled reserved cooking liquid from the fridge; this should now be a solid gel. Scrape off and discard any fat from the top. Add ½ cup of the reserved cooking liquid gel to the pot roast mixture and stir to combine. Add 12 ounces of grated cheddar, the remaining 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, pepper and salt.

FORM AND BAKE MINI-DIPPER DUMPLINGS: Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out dough. Cut dough into circles just a bit larger than your dumpling press. Spoon a small amount of your choice of filling into center of the dough circle in the dumpling press. Crimp shut. Trim edge of dough as needed to form neat edge. Place mini-dipper on a parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat until you have used all of the dough. Brush mini-dippers with egg wash. Bake at 375F for 20 to 23 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm with dipping sauces.