Recipe: Chicken and Dumplings

1 stick butter

1 portion (1-2 cups) of Easy Shredded Chicken (see below for ESC recipe)

5-6 cups of water

1-2 cups Bisquick

1-2 cups milk

Salt & pepper to taste

Bring butter, chicken & water to a boil. You can use more or less water depending on how thick you like the sauce. Mix bisquick and milk to a "droppable" consistency. The Bisquick box says to use a 1:1 ratio for dumplings. I never measure, but I think I probably use a little less milk than Bisquick. Drop spoonfuls of batter into boiling mixture. Lower heat to a very light boil (keep it high enough to cook the batter, but low enough so it doesn't all burn and stick to the bottom). Cook for 10 minutes uncovered, then 10 more covered.

This amount feeds my family with 2 adults and 3 good-eating 7 year olds with no leftovers other than the bottom of the pot to scrape out for the dog. As the kids get older I'll have to make a larger batch!

Part of the Bisquick cooks up as the dumplings and part combines with the water and butter to make a yummy thick sauce. It takes a lot of salt to flavor this, but I say why eat it if it's not yummy, so salt away!

I served this tonight with a salad, but I think it would also be great with another green veggie and there have been nights where we had it without any sides. Definitely a "sticks to your ribs" comfort food.

Easy Shredded Chicken (ESC)

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts - the frozen kind work great. One bag fits easily into my crockpot and yields about 5-6 servings.

water

spices like salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, etc.

Place chicken breasts in crock pot. Sprinkle spices generously over chicken. Add water to crock pot until chicken is partly to mostly covered. Cook on high for 4-5 hours, then low for a few more. You want the chicken to be super soft and moist. Remove the chicken from the crockpot. Allow to cool slightly then shred it using pretty much any utensil. It should be soft enough that it doesn't take much effort. If it's not then you need to keep cooking it. Separate into 1-2 cup portions. Store in quart baggies or small plastic containers. Allow broth in crockpot to cool then strain and freeze it as well. When it's time to use it you can thaw in the fridge overnight or quickly in the microwave. Use in recipes like chicken and dumplings, chicken and noodles, Southwest Chicken Soup, etc.