Growing up, I had the good fortune to have a mother that liked to try all kinds of different dishes.  There was no boring repeated spaghetti night or casserole night (at least not that I remember).  The only constant was leftovers-Sunday.  Occasionally my mom would ask my siblings and me what we would want for dinner.  Those offers were gold!  The problem was, there were so many favorites and almost none of them lapped over between siblings.  To this day my mom gives us the option to pick one dish when we come home to visit and she’ll make it for us.

There are just a few dishes that I hold so dear enough that they have to be done by mom.  One of those dishes happens to be this soup.  After years of trying to learn as much as I can in the kitchen I decided that it was high time to take a stab at it myself.

This is a modified version of mom’s Chicken and Dumplings, giving it a little flair of my cooking styles.  It’s light, it’s hearty, and its jam packed full of flavor, and it makes great leftovers!  I generally make a full batch and freeze 2 cup servings in Ziploc bags.  If my freezer is full, I make a half batch and we eat that for lunch all week.  It’s great as a snack or a full meal no matter what season it is since it’s not dependent on seasonal ingredients.

Prep Time: 40 mins // Cook Time: 1 hour, 25 mins // Makes 14 servings

• 20 C. Chicken Broth (low sodium)
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 5 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
• 4 Celery Stalks (chopped)
• 4 Red Bell Peppers (diced)
• 1 1/2 Onions (diced)
• 2 Jalapenos (seeds optional)
• Salt, Pepper, Garlic Powder (at LEAST 2 tsp each but to taste)
• Thickening liquid (1/4 C. flour and enough water to mix into a liquid)

Dumplings:

• 3 C. Flour
• 1/2 C. Shortening (pea sized chunks)
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 2 tsp. Salt
• 2 tsp. Pepper
• 1 tsp. Sage
• 1 tsp. Rosemary
• 1 tsp. Parsley
• 1 tsp. Oregano
• 1 1/2 C. Water (give or take)

1. Put the broth, veggies, seasonings, and chicken in a stock pot.  Bring to a boil and lower to medium heat.  Cover and cook for about 45 minutes.
2. Pull out the chicken and shred, or chop if you prefer cubed chicken.  Put it back in the soup.
3. Put all the dry ingredients in a bowl with the shortening.  Add the water a little bit at a time and mix.  You don’t want the dough to be too wet.  If you find that it’s too wet, just add more flour or roll it out in a ton of flour.
4. Divide the dough into 3 balls and turn the heat up on the soup between med and med high.  Roll each ball in flour to about 1/8 inch thick and cut.  Go crazy and use a pizza cutter!  Makes the job super easy!
5. Drop the dough pieces into the soup a few at a time.  Once you’re counter is clean, repeat until all the dough is cut up and added to the soup!  You want to make sure and push the second and third group of dough down into the water so it doesn’t hang out at the top and stick together.
6. Cook for about 10 minutes uncovered and then turn the heat down to medium again.  Here you’re going to add the thickening liquid if you’d like.  You can always add more if it’s not to your liking.  Cook for another 20-30 minutes. Check the dumplings to see if they’re cooked all the way through instead of being chewy.