Chicken and Dumplings

The second the weather cools down, I bust out this comfort classic. 

Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 2 stalks of celery, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced 
• 1/2 tbsp fresh thyme, stem removed 
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 2 heaping tbsp flour
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 dried bay leaf
• 2 tbsp fat free half and half
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley 

For the dumplings

• 2 cups flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk

Melt the butter and oil over medium high heat in a large dutch oven. Season the chicken breasts on both sides with salt and pepper. Add to the pot. Cook chicken until golden brown and then flip and repeat with the other side. Remove from the pot. Chicken will finish cooking in the sauce.

Add carrots, onion, celery, garlic, and thyme to the pot and reduce heat to medium. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pot while adding the wine. Season with salt and pepper. Allow the wine to evaporate.

Sprinkle the flour over the veggies, and cook over medium low heat until the flour has turned into a paste. While stirring with a wooden spoon, add the chicken stock one cup at a time until you reach your desired thickness. 

Return the chicken to the pot, and add the bay leaf. Simmer on low until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pot onto a cutting board. Using two forks, pull the chicken and return to the pot. Stir the half and half into the sauce. 

For the dumplings, combine the flour, powder, salt and eggs. Gradually add 3/4 cup of buttermilk. If the mixture is still dry, continue to drizzle in the buttermilk until achieving a thick batter.

Using a 2 inch ice cream scoop, drop dollops of the dumpling batter directly into the sauce. Allow for a bit of space between the dumplings in the pot, as they will expand slightly. Cover the pot and simmer for 5-10 minutes until the tops of the dumplings appear dry. 

Spoon dumplings and sauce into a bowl and garnish with parsley.

Serves 4

Notes from the Chef:

-I'm a little pea obsessed - when I have them on hand, I love adding them to the sauce just before dropping in the dumplings

-For a truly rich flavor, take the extra time to made your chicken stock from scratch