Weekly Recipe: Sausage, Egg and Cheese Cro'Sumplings by Brooklyn Dumpling Shop

Breakfast is one of the most delightful meals. It can be savory or sweet, wrapped in a burrito or stamped between two pieces of gooey, cheesy bread.

The first meal of the day sits at the frontier of food experimentation, and at New York City’s Brooklyn Dumpling Shop, that frontier takes the classic sausage, egg and cheese combo and puts it in a croissant-dumpling—a Cro'Sumpling, if you will.

See also: Weekly Recipe: Pumpkin Spice Coffee Cake by Innocent Yesterday

The delicious creation was conceived by Brooklyn Dumpling Shop owner Stratis Morfogen, and as author of the cookbook Damn Good Dumplings, she knows a thing or two about wrapping a tasty morsel in a bite-size blast.

"It's the best of both worlds,” Morfogen says. “Similar to what a Cronut is to a doughnut, here you've got croissant dough shaped like a dumpling with omelet style fillings and a side of Hollandaise sauce for dipping."

We’re lucky to get the exact recipe for Brooklyn Dumpling Shops breakfast treat. It’s more involved than scrambled eggs, but the pay-off is big!

Sausage Egg & Cheese Cro’Sumplings

Ingredients:

• 8 pork sausages
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 5 slices (4 ounces) of American cheese
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh onion
• ½ tbsp chopped scallions
• 2 g, salt
• 2 g, black pepper
• ½ g, crushed Red Pepper
• 1 cup of oil
• 24 circular dumpling wrappers, rolled thick

Dough Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 2 cups of white all-purpose flour
• ½ tsp salt
• ⅓ cup of water, plus more if needed

Directions:

1. Using a medium bowl, lightly beat the egg. Add water and beat until foamy for 2 minutes.
2. Using a larger bowl, combine the flour and salt and mix well. Then pour in the egg and water. Mix well. If the mixture is too dry, increase the amount of water, one teaspoon at a time until pliable dough is formed. Cover the bowl with damp cloth and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
3. On a lightly-floured surface, knead the dough until elastic. Cut the dough into two equal balls, then cover with damp cloth for 10 minutes.
4. To make thicker wrappers for the filling, cut each ball into half. Roll each piece into 10½ inch squares, ¼ inch thick. Cut each rolled square out into smaller 3 inch squares.
5. Using a large pan over medium heat, cook the sausage until browned on both sides, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels. Chop the sausage into fine pieces.
6. Using a large nonstick sauté pan over medium heat, add the butter and let it melt and bubble slightly. Add the beaten eggs and cook, stirring constantly until soft curds begin to form, 8 to 10 minutes.
7. Add the sausage, American cheese, fresh onions, chopped scallions and red pepper to the eggs, then continue cooking for an additional 4 to 5 minutes. The eggs should be fully cooked and dry, not runny.
8. Fill a small bowl with water and set aside.
9. Place an ample teaspoon of the filling in the center of the dough. Fold the dough up the sides of the mixture but do not cover the top. Dip your finger in the small bowl of water; run your finger along the outer rim of the dough. Carefully fold the dough over itself, to create the classic dumpling style. Place the finished dumpling on a sheet pan and cover with a damp paper towel for moisture. Continue making dumplings until you have used all the filling and wrappers.
10. Pour ¼ cup of water into a saucepan. Place sufficient dumplings into the water and close with lid, allow to steam for 4 to 5 until dumplings are cooked through
11. High heat a 12” pan, add oil and heat to 365F (185C). Carefully place 4 to 6 dumplings into the pan (frying too many dumplings at one time will lower oil temperature and make your dumplings greasy instead of crispy).
12. Fry the dumplings on one side for 3 to 4 minutes until light brown, then flip and fry the second side for the same time.
13. Drain the dumplings on paper towels and continue with the remaining dumplings. Ready to serve!

Visit Brooklyn Dumpling Shop online and in NYC, and buy Chef Morfogen’s book Damn Good Dumplings for more delicious recipes.