Apple Nutmeg Dumplings

APPLE NUTMEG DUMPLINGS: Preheat oven to 375° F. To prepare pastry, combine flour, sugar and salt. Cut in butter until the texture of coarse meal. Add egg yolk and water and blend just until dough comes together. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 15 minutes.

While pastry is chilling, prepare filling. Peel and core apples. Mix ¼ cup sugar with ½ tsp cinnamon, nutmeg and dash of cloves. Dip apples in mixture to coat. In a separate bowl, combine raisins with breadcrumbs, remaining 2 Tbsp sugar, ½ tsp cinnamon and brandy.

Roll out pastry on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle ¼-inch thick, about 20 by 12 inches. Trim edges of dough and cut into 6 squares. Place an apple in the center of each square and fill middle of apple with raisin filling. Wet edges of pastry squares and bring corners up to meet at top of apple and cinch together. Place dumplings in an ungreased baking dish (quite close together).

To prepare syrup, bring water, sugar and spices to a simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter (this can be prepared ahead of time). Pour over dumplings. Bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown on top. Serve warm.

VARIATION: In Step #3 above, before placing dumplings in ungreased baking dish, you can use excess pastry to cut leaf shapes and stems and place over dumplings as garnish – secure with water. Serve warm, drizzled with Crème Anglaise(recipe follows).

Bring cream with scraped seeds of vanilla bean to just below a simmer. Whisk together egg yolks and sugar. Gently whisk cream into egg mixture and return to pot. With a wooden spoon over medium-low heat, stir sauce until it coats the back of a spoon, about 4 minutes. Strain and chill.

Yield: 1 1/3 cups.