Ugh! I've been fighting the crud for 4 days now and there's no end in sight! Every morning it seems like I wake up worse than I was the day before. What started in my throat has moved into my head and chest. But, on the bright side of things, all the snow has melted away and it is very pleasant and sunny outside. So, I opened my windows and I can hear the birds singing...that, in itself, is making me feel better already!
After "starving" myself for two days, last night I decided to make a big pot of chicken & dumplings...so good! Nothing better than a big bowl of comfort food to make you feel better...
...and, it did just that! I think I'll have some more for lunch today! If any of you are interested, I got the original recipe from Rachael Ray, but changed it just a tad:
Ingredients:
2 pounds chicken breast tenders [hormone/antibiotic free]
1 tablespoon organic olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
2 tablespoons butter [organic un-salted]
2 medium organic russet potatoes, peeled and diced
2 medium organic carrots, peeled and diced
1 medium organic onion, chopped
1 rib organic celery, diced
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons flour
1 quart low sodium organic chicken broth
1 8oz. box biscuit mix - I use Jiffy Buttermilk Biscuit Mix
1/2 cup warm water
Handful fresh organic flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup frozen organic green peas
Directions:
Cut chicken tenders into bite size pieces and set aside. Don't forget to wash your hands!!
Place a large pot on stove over medium high heat. Add oil, butter, vegetables and bay leaf and cook 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Stir in broth and bring to a boil. Add chicken to the broth and stir. Let this simmer while you prepare the dumplings.
Place biscuit mix in a bowl. Combine with 1/2 cup warm water and parsley. Stir until it's well mixed and sticky. Drop tablespoonfuls of prepared mix into the pot, spacing dumplings evenly. Cover pot tightly and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings 10 to 15 minutes. Remove cover and stir chicken and dumplings to thicken sauce a bit. Stir peas into the pan and cook for about 2 more minutes, then remove chicken and dumplings from heat and serve in shallow bowls. You may want to add a little more salt and pepper. I personally love more pepper!
Enjoy!!! It will make you feel good, I promise!
Happy Super Bowl Sunday!! love and peace always ~ Kathy
"Don't let one cloud obliterate the whole sky." ~ Anais Nin