Chicken Stew with Cornmeal Dumplings

This dish isn't fancy, but it's so simple and so good on a cold evening. It's also very quick. My family and I prefer this over traditional chicken and dumplings.

• Ready In: 1 hr
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 3 1⁄2-4  lbs chicken, cut up and skin removed
• 4  cups  chicken stock
• 1  bay leaf
• 2  stalks celery, thinly sliced
• 4  medium carrots, peeled and sliced about 1 inch thick
• 6  small  white onions, peeled and halved
• 4  sprigs fresh thyme
• 1  bunch kale, stems trimmed,leaves coarsely chopped
•  salt and pepper

• Cornmeal dumplings

• 1  cup unbleached flour
• 1⁄2 cup cornmeal
• 2  teaspoons baking powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 2  tablespoons  cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2⁄3 cup milk

Directions

1. In a wide, deep pot, combine the chicken, stock and bay leaf- bring to a boil then reduce the heat to medium, cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes.
2. Skim the broth of any fat.
3. Stir in the celery, carrots, onion and thyme.
4. Contine to simmer over medium heat, partially covered, until the vegetables are tender (about 15 minutes).
5. Stir in the kale.
6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
7. Dumplings: Mix the dry ingredients together, then cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly (a food processor makes this really easy).
8. Add the milk and mix just until combined.
9. Drop tablespoons of the dumpling batter in clumps over the top of the stew.
10. Discard the bay leaf and thyme sprigs and serve.