Recipe: Chicken & Dumplings

Have you ever had chicken and dumplings? I hadn’t until my mommy friend brought over a great big pot of chicken and dumplings. Where have I been? It was one of the most satisfying meals I’ve had in a long time, and I couldn’t resist a second bowl for dinner that first night. That was a week ago, and I’ve already looked up the recipe and made it again myself. This time I showed self restraint and only ate one bowl, but I can’t wait for tomorrow so I can have the leftovers for lunch.

The recipe my friend made is from Williams-Sonoma, and you can find it here. I had some trouble with the dumpling dough but a few frenzied texts with our mutual friend and I was able to straighten it out. Here are my recommended modifications:

1. I had to add more milk to the dumpling dough because it didn’t look right and that’s how my friend suggested to fix it. I think I added about 1/3 cup.

2. I added an extra 4 cups of chicken broth because Trig loves brothy stews and soups.

3. I added more peas to bulk it up a bit.

4. I skipped the onion because Raffi doesn’t like onions yet and it wasn’t worth it to me to have to go picking out all the onion for him at dinnertime.

I wonder if there is a way to lighten up the dumplings because they call for a stick of butter. I’d like to add this meal to our dinner rotation without wondering if that butter is going to stick to my waist. Anyone have any experience in dumplings?

With two kids under two I never thought I’d have time to cook real meals this early on, but here I am making it a priority. I have a lot of recipes I’d like to try, and I hope to make it through them all this spring and summer. This type of dish is not in my blood or already memorized from childhood memories, but I made it and it was perfect. I can’t wait to tackle the next dish on my list.