Chicken and dumplings is a meal I have only ever had as an adult. Growing up, my family would enjoy matzo ball soup once a year and that was as close as I got to this comforting wintertime stew.

When my best friend Kelly and I started cooking dinners together, she introduced me to her version of chicken and dumplings. Creamy, chicken soup with veggies and thick noodle-like dumplings made with biscuit dough.

Over the years we’ve made this dish several times without paying attention to how we prepare it. After making chicken and dumplings this week an Instagram fan asked for the recipe. I figured it was about time I wrote this down.

Creamy Chicken & Dumplings

Serves 6

Cooking/prep time: about 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbs. butter or olive oil
• 2 Tbs. flour
• ½ onion, chopped
• 3 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 carrots cut into small chunks
• 1 pound of chicken (I like the breast tenderloins), cubed
• 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1.5 cartons chicken stock (about 48 oz.)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley (or 2 Tbs. fresh)
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Your favorite biscuit dough recipe

Directions:

Melt butter in a dutch oven. Add onions, celery, carrots, chicken and flour and cook till onions are soft, about 5 minutes.

Add the cream of chicken soup, chicken stock and herbs. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer. Turn down the heat and simmer while you prepare the biscuit dough.

Make biscuit dough according to instructions. Roll out dough to ¼ inch thick and cut into 2-inch rectangles (doesn’t have to be exact).

Drop the dough into the soup, cover, and cook for 30 minutes or until dumplings are cooked through.

Add the peas and simmer for a few minutes until they are heated through. If the soup is too thin, create a slurry of ¼ cup milk and two teaspoons of flour, pour it in the pot and simmer for another minute or so.

Serve on a cold day.