Chicken and Dumplings

Last week I whipped out my new Le Creuset pan to make chicken in dumplings.  I slightly modified a recipe that I found on momswhothink.com.  This recipe is interesting because the dumplings are made with cornmeal.  Here is what I came up with:



Ingredients in Stew:

1 lb. chicken, skinless, boneless, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup onion, coarsely chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled, thinly sliced
3 stalks celery, sliced
1/4 teaspoon salt
to taste black pepper
1 pinch ground cloves
1 bay leaf
3 cups water
1 teaspoon cornstarch
8 brussel sprouts (I know, weird, but they worked)
1 teaspoon dried basil

Ingredients in Dumplings

1 cup yellow cornmeal
3/4 cup sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup lowfat milk
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon honey

First, I added all of the ingredients from the chicken through the water to a sauce pan.  I brought the mixture to a boil.  Then, I reduced the heat to a simmer for 30 minutes.  Then, I skimmed for fat.  Next, I added the cornstarch to 1 cup of the cooled broth (which I don't think I cooled long enough).  I added this back to the stew.  Then, I added the basil and brussel sprouts and heated the stew slowly up to a boil while making the dumplings.

For the dumplings. I added the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.  Then, in a smaller bowl, I mixed the milk, olive oil, and honey.  I added the wet mixture to the dry and mixed it until moistened.  I dropped the dumplings by spoon into the stew.  I covered the pan and then reduced the heat to simmering.  I let the chicken and dumplings simmer about 20 minutes or until the dumplings were done.

Overall, I liked the cornmeal dumplings.  They were different, but tasty.  I do think that they needed the honey--which was omitted from the original recipe.  There was something off about the stew.  I am used to chicken and dumplings having cream in the stew so, maybe that is what was off.  Next time, I will trying adding some milk.