Chicken & Dumplins … From the Real Deep South

Bring the 2 quarts of water and bouillon cubes to a boil and dissolve well. I cook this in a ceramic-coated dutch oven and it works out nicely. Add chicken breasts and butter and cook until done. Remove chicken when done and set aside. Reserve broth and keep it on the stove on low.

Mix the Crisco, salt, water, and flour well. Don’t overwork it, but just combine everything well. Roll out the dough onto a floured surface. I do this on a granite island because it keeps the dough cool. Keep rolling the dough and adding flour to keep it nice and dry on top and bottom. Roll it really thin, about 1/8th of an inch.

Roll the dough up onto your rolling pin and re-flour the surface before cutting. Grab a pizza cutter and make long strips, about 1 1/2 inches or so. Now, cut those strips across and make rectangles. I put a little flour into a pan and use a spatula to lift the rectangles into the pan. I flour about 5 or 6 really well and pile them up in the pan. They are well-floured, so they won’t stick. When they are all cut and floured, start the broth boiling hard again. When it comes to a nice boil, start dropping individual dumplings in, but be sure not to drop them all in the middle on top of each other. Don’t stir them.

About halfway through dropping the dumplings, add the shredded chicken back in. Cook it at a nice boil for about 4 minutes. Next, add the two cups of milk and stir gently with a wooden spoon. Bring it back to a boil and it will thicken up. Take it off the heat and add the pepper to taste.

Serve it with some green beans and sweet tea and make a pound cake for dessert!