Chicken and Dumplings

 Chicken:

whole chicken

2 tsp salt

peppercorns

1 stalk celery 

water to cover

 

Boil and then turn down to simmer.  2 to 2 1/2 hour on low or 1 to 1 1/2 hour on higher temp on stove.  When cooked debone and strain chicken (separate 12 cups of chicken broth, will need for dumplings)

 

Homemade Dumplings:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup chicken broth

2 Tbsp oil 

Whisk the dry ingredients in a bowl.  Add the oil and broth and mix all together.  When dough forms, roll out into a circle flipping it often to make sure it doesn't stick to the counter. If it does, add more flour. Use a pizza cutter to it dumplings into strips (crisscross)

Heat the 12 cups of broth to medium-high heat.  Should be a rolling boil.  Add dumplings one at a time making sure they're not sticking together but floating first down to the bottom.  Stir. Keep adding more until all are in the stock pot cooking.  They will rise to the top.  Cook for 5 - 10 minutes. 

When all dumplings are cooked add back the chicken that was broken into smaller bite- sized pieces.  Add 4-5 tsp butter and some milk to make it creamy.  Add pepper to finish.