Vinegar Dumplings
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Sweet, sour, and melt-in-your-mouth buttery, step back in time and enjoy this easy old-fashioned vinegar dumplings recipe for dessert tonight.
A recipe dating back to the late 1800s and again in the Great Depression when fruit was scarce, vinegar dumplings have stood the test of time. As you can see from the recipe below the ingredients are common in your household pantry. Some people referred to this recipe as vinegar pie but when you look at them, you can see they sure are dumplings.
This recipe can be found in Christy Jordan’s book Sweetness. Here is an excerpt from Sweetness about vinegar dumplings: “I wish I had this recipe when my grandmother Lucille was still alive. She often talked of a vinegar pie that her mother made when they ran out of fruit to bake cobblers. She said her mother always made somethin’ sweet at the end of supper and this was what she made when they used up all their canned and dry fruit. Grandmama described it as tart like a lemon but I would describe it as buttery and tart but more of a dumpling than a pie.”
To make this vinegar dumplings recipe, we’re going to boil the sweet and sour vinegar mixture (sweetened with butter and sugar), make the dumpling dough and then cook them in the vinegar. These homemade dumplings are a quick and budget-friendly dessert (music to my ears) that tastes sweet, sour, tart, and buttery all at once. Sign me up!
Recipe Ingredients
- Apple cider vinegar
- Granulated sugar
- Butter
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Milk
How to Make Vinegar Dumplings
Stir together the vinegar, sugar, 1/2 cup of butter, and one cup of water in a medium-size saucepot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.
Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium bowl.
Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly.
Stir in milk until the mixture forms into a dough.
This vinegar dumpling dough will look like the picture above.
Create spoonful-sized round balls from the dough and carefully drop them into the boiling vinegar mixture.
Simmer until the dumplings are nearly firm. The syrup will also thicken as above. This will take approximately 10-15 minutes.
Serve immediately covered in the sweet and enjoy!
Storage
While I recommend enjoying these homemade dumplings hot and straight from the pot, you can store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat them in a low oven or the air fryer so they don’t remain soggy.
Recipe Notes
- Add 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg to the vinegar mixture for added flavor.
- You may also enjoy serving your dumplings with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
You may also enjoy these dumpling recipes:
Easy Chicken and Dumplings Recipe
Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup butter (one stick) plus 2 tablespoons
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 6 tbsp milk (any kind you like)
Instructions
- Combine the vinegar, sugar, one stick of butter, and one cup of water in a medium-sized saucepot over medium-high heat. Bring this to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup butter (one stick)
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the remaining two tablespoons of butter until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in the milk and the mixture will form a dough.1/2 cup butter (one stick), 1 cup all-purpose flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 6 tbsp milk (any kind you like)
- Form 1/2-inch to 1-inch spoonful-sized round balls of dough and carefully drop them into the simmering liquid. Simmer for about 10-15 minutes until the syrup thickens and the dumplings become somewhat firm. Serve immediately covered in the sweet dumpling sauce and enjoy!
Nutrition
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I so admire the creativity and resourcefulness that came out of the Depression!
This is one I’ve never tried or thought of. But looks super yummy and since we have an abundance of apples (no longer in depression era) I could see adding some baked apples to the dumplings top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream! Heaven in a bowl!
I have not heard of vinegar dumplings. I will be making these this weekend.
I can’t wait to try these – they look delicious!
Never heard of vinegar dumplings. Will def have to try these. I agree it sounds like they would be good on a berry or fruit cobbler.
I am 82 years old and thought I had cooked just about everything, but this one threw me a curve. I have never heard of vinegar dumplings before, but will sure try them one of these days soon. I love to make fruit dumplings from scratch and usually take the syrup recipe and multiply it 1 1/2 times as we like to have plenty syrup.
This is a Vinegar pie that my MIL made during the depression days. She passed the recipe to me many years ago.
*GRANDMA GUFFY’S VINEGAR PIE*
Jessie Ruth Guffy
VINEGAR PIE
1 cup sugar
1 cup molasses
Mix in 1 cup flour
1/2 tea salt and add
1 cup vinegar or use
1/2 cup vinegar & 1/2 cup water (Less sour)
butter, walnut sized (Oleo)
Nutmeg and lemon flavoring to taste
3 cups hot water cook over low heat,
stirring constantly until thick and
pour into already baked pie shell
Wayne’s mother made vinegar pies when her children were growing up
and even years later when they were grown. The pies were very tasty,
Vinegar pies were a substitute for lemon pies when times were lean and lemons were not in season or on the grocery shelves.
Becky, our daughter-in-law made a family recipe book a few years ago.
She wanted to personalize some of the recipes, so she asked Wayne if
he had eaten many of his mother’s vinegar pies.
He replied “bleep” yes, I was raised on them”.