Recipe: Cream Cheese Wontons!

Over the past week I have been craving Chinese food. And not just any Chinese food... Specifically, Cream Cheese Wontons. They have them at the Chinese buffet we eat at, they have them at the quick Chinese place I sometimes swing into if I'm in town... but it's out of the way to ask my husband to pick some up on his way home from work, and for the two to three dollars it costs for a serving of six wontons, it's not worth the drive all the way there and back. So I did a bit of research, and found out how to make them at home! It turns out to be cheaper to make them than to buy them. And it's soooooo easy. Here's what you'll need.

Wonton wrappers
1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 Tbsp green onions, sliced thin
Oil

Prep time: ~5 minutes
Cook time: ~1 minute

If you have a deep fryer, you can cook them in your deep fryer. Otherwise, fill a pot on the stove with about 2-3 inches of oil or shortening. Heat the oil to 350 F. If you are heating it on the stove, use a thermometer to make sure the oil is at the right temperature. (I made mine in the deep fryer.)

In a small bowl, cream the green onions into the cheese. Put about a teaspoon of the mixture in the center of a wonton wrapper. Fold the wrapper diagonally and press the edges together (rubbing a little water on the wrapper can help it stick together if needed). Pressing the edges together firmly is what keeps the cheese inside the wrapper and stops it from leaking out. Then take the two furthest corners and press them together. I took all three corners and twisted them together, but however you do it will just determine the shape of your wontons.

To test if your oil is ready, simply drop a small piece of a wonton wrapper into it. If the piece seems to bubble up, it's ready.

Drop a few wontons at a time into your oil. They only cook for about a minute, until they start to brown. Once they are a light brown, remove them from the oil. The longer you leave them in, the darker and harder they will get, and they have a higher chance of the cheese leaking.

Put them on a plate and enjoy!

My first batch of wontons ♥ I made 12, which is 2 servings from a restaurant, and I only used about half of the cream cheese!

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Note:
Not all stores seem to carry wonton wrappers. But not a problem! You can make them at home and they are super easy!

To make your own wonton wrappers:

1 egg
3/4 Tsp salt
1/3 - 1/2 cup water
2 cups flour (more as needed)

Prep time: ~45-60 minutes

In a small bowl, lightly beat the egg and salt together. Add 1/4 cup of the water, mix well. Sift the flour into a larger bowl. Add the liquid mixture to the flour. Slowly add the rest of the water, a little at a time, until it forms into dough. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes, adding more flour as necessary, until it becomes smooth and workable. Cover and let it rest for about 30 minutes.

Lightly flour your surface again, then roll out the dough into a thin layer (I made mine less than 1/8 inch). Cut it into 3.5 inch squares. You can stack them with a piece of wax paper in between them so they don't stick together. They are now ready to use, though they can be refrigerated or frozen until needed.

My homemade wonton wrappers, in two stacks, with wax paper between them. One batch made me enough wrappers for over 2 dozen wontons!