Chicken & Dumplings

Here's a throwback recipe from the very beginning of A Healthy Makeover; it's a Winter staple in our dinner rotation now, especially on cold days!

Originally posted on January 10, 2012 (updated today with a few new pics!):

It’s winter (in most of the country…zip it, San Diego!) and I don’t know about you, but there is just something comforting about a hot meal simmering in your kitchen all day. It smells amazing and is certainly a promise for a great ending to a cold day.
Of course with the word “dumplings” comes the threat of “dimpling”…as in thighs…but I was able to come up with a delicious LIGHT chicken and dumplings recipe; perfect for those of us watching those calories AND for any leftover chicken or turkey!

Many of the ingredients are ones you probably already have on hand so just throw it in the crock pot or Dutch oven, sit back, relax...and get ready to have your olfactory senses assaulted.

For the broth:
2 cans low sodium chicken broth
1 can reduced fat cream of celery soup(feel free to use any kind of “cream of”…)
1 can reduced fat cream of chicken soup
1 can FF evaporated milk or skim milk (evap milk has more calories, but I think it adds a great flavor)
10 oz white wine (I used Pinot Grigio, but any dry white wine will work)
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
½ cup chopped onion
(you can add any other chopped veggies you like! I added 1 cup fresh green beans)
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and diced
chopped cooked chicken or turkey (I used a package of boneless chicken breast tenders, about 15oz)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ tsp sea salt
1 tsp poultry seasoning
½ tsp fresh thyme leaves
Fresh ground pepper to taste



If you use a Dutch oven, simmer your veggies in a little bit (1 T) of olive oil to soften them up, but if you’re using your crock pot, just throw everything for the broth in at one time. Your Dutch oven is going to be quicker (approx. 1-2 hours on med - low simmer); crock pot, I’d plan for 6-8 hours on low. You want to give both options the opportunity for all of the flavors to come together.

When your broth is ready (Dutch oven 20 minutes left; crock pot 30 mins left), it’s time to mix up and drop the dumplings in! Bring the heat up on the Dutch oven to a simmer.

For the dumplings:
1 cup white wheat flour or all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp sea salt
1 T melted butter
½ cup buttermilk (or 1/2 cup milk with 1 1/2 tsp white vinegar)
2 tsp dried parsley
1tsp garlic seasoning

Melt the butter and mix the rest of the ingredients in. You’ll want it to look like a sticky paste (they need to be moist). If it's too dry, just add a little bit of milk at a time until it's the right consistency.



Then drop by spoonful’s into the pot. Sometimes I have more dough than space on top of the broth, if it's the same for you, just push some of them down into the broth - yum!

NEXT: Put the lid on it and WALK AWAY! Resist the urge to peek :)



When they're done (below), dig in and ENJOY!


Nutrition:Serves 6; One serving: 1 ½ cups
Calories 331 / Carbs 40g / Fat 6g / Protein 24g / Fiber 6g / Sodium 1767mg