Chicken and Dumplings

Courtesy of Passionate Homemaking

Ingredients:

• 2 cups carrots, chopped (about 4 carrots)
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 2 potatoes, chopped
• 2 celery stocks, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 cups water or chicken broth
• 2-3 cups shredded or cubed cooked chicken
• 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp sage
• 2 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup milk or further water

Other vegetable additions, if desired: green beans, peas, corn

Dumplings:

• 2 1/4 cups whole grain flour (spelt, kamut or millet work well)
• 1 cup milk, kefir or cultured buttermilk (use kefir or buttermilk if you desire to soak. You may also use water and lemon juice if you are dairy intolerant)
• 3 Tbsp coconut oil (or you can do all butter or all coconut oil as well)
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

For Dumplings:

1. Soak flour and kefir or your choice of acid medium, and melted coconut oil/butter.
   
2. Cover and soak overnight or approximately 12-24 hours.
   
3. After soaking, add remaining ingredients. You may need to add a little more liquid to keep it moist. If you do not soak, simply combine all ingredients.

For Filling:

1. Saute chopped vegetables in coconut oil and spices for approximately 5 minutes.
   
2. Add water/broth and heat to a boil and then simmer for about 10 minutes.
   
3. Add cooked chicken and milk in the last 5 minutes.
   
4. Pour into a 13×9 baking dish. Top it off with a dash of each of the spices again (sage, thyme & garlic powder).
   
5. Scoop dumplings by rounded tablespoon onto the top. Cook for about 18 minutes at 425 degrees.

Italian Cream Cheese Chicken Casserole

Another great recipe from a blog I follow Naturally Knocked Up . I'm not usually a fan of casserole's, but this one was easy to make, tasty and most importantly provided enough leftovers for another meal. I'm always a fan of taking a night off from cooking, but still being able to eat a good meal at home.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoon butter
• 2 tablespoon flour or cornstarch
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1 tablespoon Good Seasons Italian Dressing Mix or a great homemade version Italian Dressing Mix
  
• 1/2 tablespoon dried minced onion
• 1/2 tablespoon dried minced garlic
  
• 2-3 cooked and cubed chicken breasts
• 1 box rotini pasta or 1 1/2 cups uncooked basmati rice
• 1/2 head of steamed broccoli or 1/2 bag of frozen broccoli

Directions:

1. Cook chicken in a little olive oil, salt and pepper and set aside.
   
2. Cook pasta until al dente or slightly firm. If you're using rice, boil 3 cups of water and cook until done.
3. In a deep skillet, melt the butter over medium heat and whisk in the flour or cornstarch to make a rue.
   
4. Whisk in 3 cups of chicken broth
5. Once at a gentle boil, whisk occasionally and simmer for 5 minutes until thickened (won't be super thick).
6. Stir in the cream cheese and all the seasonings. Mix well and taste.
7. Let simmer for a few minutes while you grease a 9x13 pan.
8. Dump the pasta (or rice), chicken and broccoli into your pan followed by the cream cheese mixture.
9. Bake for 20min. at 350 degrees.