Second Birthday of My Blog: Chicken and Dumplings time!

Wow... That was really fast! I am really impressed with how quickly this blog turned 2 years old.
It has gone through a lot of changes over the years, just like me. I want to thank all of you who read occasionally, regularly, and the ones who email and text me to ask why I have posted lately....


This year I decided that the second anniversary I should try to make a classic I have never made before: Chicken and Dumplings! To add to this historic event, I will let you know in advance, that this was a success and a failure both. Read on for the grim details.


Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings
Total Cost: $5.87 ($4.93 is what my meal came out to be, price per serving is $.49)
Ingredients
Soup ($3.57)
2 cloves garlic $0.16 ($.10)
1 medium yellow onion $0.57 ($.29)
3 ribs celery $0.80 ($.40)
½ lb (3-4) carrots $0.55 ($.50)
1 large (3/4 lb.) chicken breast $1.49* ($2) *I also threw in a cheese cloth with a bunch of chicken bones as I had made a whole chicken to get the chicken breast for the soup*
1 whole bay leaf $0.15 ($.08)
1 tsp dried basil $0.10 ($.05)
1 tsp dried thyme $0.10 ($.05)
freshly cracked pepper $0.05
4 cups water $0.00
1 tsp salt (plus more to taste) $0.05
Dumplings ($1.36)
1½ cups all-purpose flour $0.21 ($.15) <I use Whole Wheat Flour, DON'T DO THAT>
1½ tsp baking powder $0.15 ($.08)
½ tsp salt $0.02
½ Tbsp dried parsley $0.15 ($.10)
6 Tbsp cold butter $0.90 ($.50)
¾ tsp sugar $0.01
⅔ cup milk $0.41  ($.50)
Instructions
Mince the garlic, dice the onion, and slice the carrots and celery into small pieces. Add the garlic, onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, basil, thyme, chicken breast (my chicken was already cooked so I didn't add the chicken, just the bones in the cheese cloth), water, and some freshly cracked pepper to a slow cooker. Stir to combine and then cook on high for four hours or low for eight hours.
After cooking for four hours on high or eight hours on low, remove the chicken from the broth and place it on a cutting board (if you cooked on low heat, turn it to high now). Use two forks to shred the chicken. Return the chicken to the pot and stir in 1 tsp of salt to the soup. Keep the slow cooker covered as much as possible during this process to retain heat and maintain the temperature.
Allow the soup to continue to cook on high while you mix the dumpling batter. In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt, parsley, and sugar. Mix well. Add butter in small chunks and cut it in or work it in with your hands until the mixture resembles damp sand. Add the milk and stir until a very soft paste-like mixture forms.
Remove the lid from the slow cooker and drop the dumpling batter into the soup by the heaping spoonful. Return the lid to the slow cooker and allow the dumplings to steam for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes they should have fluffed and expanded from the heat. Although they may look moist on the outside, they will be light and fluffy on the inside. Serve hot.

Besides the dumpling, it was very nice!

Looks like a strange meatball...not a dumpling. That should have been my first clue!

There something in the water....

The dumplings turned into a strange gloop that was a major fail. The soup on the other hand, was spectacular! Pigeon and I decided that the soup wasn't hot enough to cook the dumplings properly (it had been on low all day verse high for a shorter amount of time). Add a less than bubbling soup and the incorrect flour (here I was thinking I was making the right and healthy choice...), the dumplings were the strangest consistency and while not inedible, not attractive to look at.


I have decided I need to try this dish again, but stove top next time.