11/06/12 ChefElla's Chicken Pot Pie With Dumplings

CHEFELLA'S CHICKEN POT PIE WITH DUMPLINGS

Sometimes my Dad tries to tell me about the things he would eat when he was my age.  My Mom always say yum, but to be honest none of it sounds very good.  Last week my Dad said he needed my expert help in the kitchen.  He said he was making a special soup, and because I was ChefElla he needed my help.  Making the dumplings was the best part, and when we were done, it tasted so good.  Later my Dad told me it was pot pie soup.  That day I learned that sometimes even food with a funny name can taste good.
For this recipe you will need to use the stove and a knife.  If you are not allowed to use the stove or a knife by yourself you can have your mom or dad help.

1.  Wash your hands.

2.  For this recipe you will need a 1 gallon stock pot with a lid, a wooden spoon, a large mixing bowl, measuring cups and spoons, a wire whisk, a small scooper, a fork, a cutting board, and a knife.

Chicken Dumpling Soup Ingredients: (This recipe will make 4-6 servings)

2 Cups       Mirepoix (mirror-i-pwaw) Mirepoix is the french name for your soup starting vegetables.
                           Mirepoix is made up of carrots, celery, and onions.  Usually it is 2 parts onion to 1 part
                           carrot and 1 part celery, but each recipe can change.
                           For example in this recipe we are using:
                  1 Cup        Red Onion, small diced

                      -Small diced is when you cut the onion into 1/4 inch pieces.  (see ChefElla's salsa recipe
                      for more explantation on how to cut an onion.

                  1/2 Cup      Celery, small diced

                  1/2 Cup      Carrot, small diced

3 Tbl.         Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tbl.         Whole Wheat or All Purpose Flour
1/4 Cup     White Wine

                 -You can use any kind of wine you have or you can buy white cooking wine at the store.
                  The good thing about cooking with wine is once you cook it, the alcohol is gone and
                  all that is left is the flavor.

3 Tbl.          Extra Virgin Olive Oil

32oz.          Chicken Broth.  (You can buy 32oz containers of Broth at the store.)
1 lb.            Chicken Breast, Large Diced.  You can use fresh or pre-cooked chicken.

1/2 Cup      Fresh or Frozen Corn.

1/2 Cup      Fresh or Frozen Green Peas. (if you do not like peas you can leave them out)     

1 tsp.           Salt, Kosher or Sea Salt

1/2 tsp.       Tabasco

3.  Put your pot on the stove add your Olive Oil, and heat on medium.

4.  Add your mirepoix and cook for 5 minutes, stirring every minute or two.  Do not brown your
     vegetables.

5.  Add flour to your pan and mix well.  Try to get the flour all over your vegetables.  Stir 1-2 minutes.

6.  Add the wine to your vegetables and mix.  The mixture should look like a globby mess. Stir for
     30 seconds.

7.  Add your chicken stock and mix with a wire whisk.

8.  Bring your soup to a simmer.
     -Simmering is when there are bubbles gently coming up in your soup.  If there are a lot of bubbles
     and steam then you are boiling.

9.  When you soup is simmering, add your chicken, corn, peas, salt and Tabasco, and mix well.
10.  Bring the mixture back to a simmer.  Stir the soup occasionally so the soup does not stick to the
       bottom of the pan.

While you are waiting for your soup to simmer you can make the dumplings.

Sage Dumpling Ingredients: (This recipe will make about 20 - 1inch dumplings)

1 Cup          Whole Wheat Flour

2 tsp.           Dried Parsley

1 tsp.           Dried Sage

1/2 tsp.       Granulated Garlic

1 1/2 tsp.     Baking Soda

1 tsp.           Salt, Kosher or Sea Salt

2 Tbl.           Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 Cup       Water.

1.  Add all of your dry ingredients to a bowl and mix well with a large fork.

2.  Add your oil and water to the dry ingredients.  

3.  Mix slowly.  Try to incorporate all of the flour into the dumplings, but do not over mix.

     -Incorporating is when you do not see the flour anymore.

4.  The dumpling mixture will look like a sticky lump of dough.

5.  Scoop your dumplings with a scooper or spoon one by one and ease them into your simmering

     soup.  

     -Try not to put the dumplings on top of each other.  

     -The dumplings will begin to float.

6.  Put the lid on your stock pot, turn your stove down to medium low or low heat, and set your timer

     for 15 minutes.

7.  After 15 minutes you can take the top off your pot and turn off the stove.

Serve warm in a bowl.

Enjoy

-ChefElla