Bashir Munye, who used to be known for his stuffed french toast at the Brickworks Farmers’ Market, has now returned to Canada, with a new concept…globally inspired dumplings! His new company, My Little Dumplings, creates 3 new types of dumplings at the market every week. He’s giving the standard dumpling a new kick using fresh, local and organic ingredients, always with a seasonal twist – how awesome is that? From cheeseburger dumplings (seriously!) to spicy sweet potato and strawberry shortcake, there is no end to Bashir’s creativity. He assures us that he is working on vegan and gluten-free options, for those of you who follow that lifestyle, but my sister and I have been enjoying them for a few weeks already! He doesn’t use nuts in his recipes or kitchen which is great for my sister. She was most excited to see Bashir after being away from the market for years – and they remembered each other!
Last time I was at the market, I had a nori dumpling stuffed with wild sockeye salmon, served with a Japanese style barbeque sauce and garnished with sesame seeds. Let’s just leave it at that they didn’t last very long on my plate, and as I write this, I am getting an urge to have a couple more, too bad I will have to wait for next week! My sister had a trio of strawberry and ricotta cheese dumplings, along with some of Bashir’s chocolate and blueberry dumplings. We’ve also tried cheeseburger dumplings served with garlic scape pesto and their homemade ketchup. spicy sweet potato, chocolate, blueberry with whipped cream and others in past weeks. They are all worth trying, and he and his team even take the time and care to plate their dumplings beautifully, especially considering they they are at a farmers’ market!
With Bashir back at the market, it’s very difficult to choose getting a crepe from Tim and Angelica, a grilled cheese from Ezra or a plate full of dumplings. Oh, there is no end to this predicament for me.
Don’t be afraid to try new flavours that you haven’t had before, he combines them and makes them all taste amazing. You’ll be able to easily spot him and his market kitchen by looking out for the white tablecloth and his crew in black “My Little Dumpling” shirts!
