Sunday dinner — Tiffani Thiessen’s Pull Up A Chair cookbook was a Christmas gift and apparently so was the ’tis the season cold I had last week. Huge ugh! Still slightly lingering around, Tiffani’s chicken and dumplings recipe sounded perfect. The chicken is succulent, quantity of flavors and a touch of dry sherry. Apparently recipes including alcohol is a recurring theme for me throughout 2018 and the New Year, Lol. 

My Mom used to cook chicken and dumplings with Campbell’s chicken & rice soup, boiled chicken water, salt and Bisquick’s dumpling recipe. Distinctly remember my Dad was not fond of the dumplings, he liked the broth though. 

This recipe does require a little kitchen time —past and present Sundays are the bigger-gather around the table meal compared to the quick weekday Rice-a-Roni or hot dogs we had as kids. Your taste buds will appreciate the outcome! 

#sundaydinner #inspiredtotrynewrecipes #foodforthesoul 

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, chopped 
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick 
• 1 small bulb fennel, trimmed, quartered and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick 
• 1 parsnip, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick 
• 2 cloves garlic, minced 
• 10 tablespoons all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 cup dry sherry 
• 4 1/2 cups chicken broth 
• 4 to 5 sprigs fresh thyme 
• 3 to 4 sprigs fresh Italian parsley 
• 2 bay leaves 

Dumplings:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder 
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
• 3/4 cup buttermilk 
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted 
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh Italian parsley 
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill 

Directions:

For the stew: Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, add half of the chicken and cook until golden on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.

Add the butter to the same pot and melt over medium-high heat. Add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots, fennel and parsnip and cook until just tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and when it releases its fragrance, stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the sherry and stir, scraping up any bits stuck to the pot. Add the broth and stir to combine.

Tie the thyme, parsley and bay leaves together with kitchen twine, drop the bundle into the broth and add the chicken, taking care to fully immerse it in the liquid. Bring the stew to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked, about 1 hour.

Remove the pot from the heat and transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Remove the bundle of herbs and discard. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones and discard. Tear the meat into bite-size pieces. Using a skimmer or wide spoon, skim the fat from the surface of the sauce in the pot. Return the chicken and any drippings to the pot and bring the stew to a simmer.

For the dumplings: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and pepper. Add the buttermilk, butter, thyme, parsley and dill and stir to form a thick, very sticky dough.

Using your hands, roll the dough into balls about the size of a golf ball. Drop the dough balls into the stew spaced about 1/4 inch apart. Cover and simmer over low heat until the dumplings are firm and cooked through, about 15 minutes.