7-Vegetable Chicken Stew with Dumplings

A delicious meal on a cold evening. You can also use skinless boneless chicken thighs if you prefer dark meat. I sometimes add mushrooms too, making it an 8-veg stew!

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 2  lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, each breast cut in 2 or 3 pieces
• 4  small potatoes, preferably red ones,cut into quarters
• 2  carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 2  onions, peeled and quartered
• 2  stalks celery, sliced
• 1 1⁄2 cups  cubed, peeled  rutabagas
• 1 1⁄2 cups  cubed, peeled sweet potatoes
• 4  cups  chicken stock
• 1  teaspoon dried thyme
• 1⁄2 teaspoon dried sage
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1  cup  frozen peas

• Dumplings

• 1  cup all-purpose flour
• 2  tablespoons  chopped fresh parsley
• 2  tablespoons butter or 2  tablespoons margarine
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 cup milk, preferably lowfat milk

Directions

1. In a large pot, combine chicken, all veg except peas, stock and spices; bring to a boil over high heat.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes; stir in peas.
3. Meanwhile, in a food processor or by hand, make dumplings: combine flour, parsley, butter, baking powder and salt until mixture is in coarse crumbs; stir in milk, then drop by tablespoonfuls onto the hot stew; you should have about 6 mounds.
4. Cover pot and simmer-- don't boil hard and DON'T lift the lid-- for 15 minutes or until dumplings have risen.
5. Note: to reduce sodium content in this recipe, replace stock with water.