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| Me and my groovy granny, sometime in the '70s |
My grandma passed away last fall. I am very sad and miss her but also understand that she had a good long life and is no longer in pain. Plus, I am very lucky to get to be my age and still have had a living grandparent. I have been comforting myself with fun memories. With this grandma, memories include cooking and baking. There were always cookies in the house and we all knew where to find them (coffee can in the freezer). She shared recipes, tips and advice with me over many years in the kitchen. I'll share some with you in this post and in future posts as well.
Chicken soup with dumplings or home-made egg noodles
This is my version of a more recent meal I learned from Grandma, and she reminded me more than once as I made this at her house that the secret is NO PEEKING. When I talked to her earlier in 2020, I reminded her of this and she was adamant once again that this is the secret to soft fluffy dumplings. It seems some people can never seem to resist a peek. Tough dumplings for them! I have pots with glass lids so I can see what is going on without peeking. At Grandma's I was using chicken "boobs" and broth someone else had cooked up for her, no salt added for her dietary reasons, and I made the dumplings with (secret ingredient alert!) Bisquick. Here, I have added some seasonings I think she would have enjoyed, still keeping low-salt but more flavorful, and mixed up the dumplings from scratch. I have posted about chicken soup before but to keep the full recipe in one spot, will add it again in this post.
If you are in a pinch for time, you can use store-bought broth (I prefer the low-sodium so I can adjust the salt and seasonings to my taste) and pre-cooked (rotisserie) chicken. Just jazz it up with kosher salt, pepper, and your preferred seasonings - I like Justice from Penzey's for all of my soups (adds a ton of flavor and it is salt free). Thyme, parsley, or rosemary are also good.
Chicken and Broth
Use the carcass of a rotisserie or roast chicken (best for flavor, and I will often put the carcass in a large plastic bag and keep in the freezer until I am ready to make stock) or whatever chicken I have on hand (usually boneless skinless breasts) Simmer in a large pot of water with an onion, a couple carrots and some celery (all chopped up), a couple cloves of garlic (peeled but whole) and some herbs, fresh or dried (thyme, bay leaves, parsley, peppercorns). Simmer until chicken is done (if raw) or until it falls off the bone (for leftover whole chicken). Skim off any fat or that foamy stuff. I remove all the veggies and the bay leaves (bay leaves don't get to stay in anything, and the veggies will have all the flavor cooked out anyway). Chop the chicken into bite-size pieces and toss it back in the stock. Taste the stock and add seasoning as needed. I like Justice from Penzey's spices for no-salt option with a ton of flavor - use generously. If you like, you can add some salt (coarse kosher works best).
At this point, you have options - so many options! Add veggies (fresh or frozen, almost any kind), add more chicken if you were using carcass with little meat left on it, add a starch - noodles thick or thin (Grandma's recipe for egg noodles below), home-made or store-bought; rice brown, white or wild; or dumplings.
Dumplings (Betty Crocker’s recipe – my notes in parentheses)
3 Tbsp. shortening
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
¾ C milk
Can add ½ tsp dried herbs such as thyme, sage or celery seed, or 3 Tbsp chopped fresh herbs such as parsley or chives, or for a cheesy dumpling add ¼ cup shredded sharp cheese with the flour.
Cut shortening into flour, baking powder and salt with pastry blender until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in milk. Drop dough by spoonfuls (or use Pampered Chef or similar scoops – I have found the medium size PC one works perfectly) onto hot meat or vegetables in boiling stew/soup (do not drop directly into liquid, if you can help it – they fall apart). Cook uncovered 10 minutes. Cover and cook 10 minutes longer (DO NOT PEEK!)
Makes 10 dumplings.
Egg Noodles (recipe from Grandma)
3 eggs + 1 tsp salt (beat)
1 Tbsp butter
2 C plus 2 Tbsp flour
Add flour and butter to eggs and salt. Mix into stiff dough. Divide dough in 2. Round up into a ball, roll thin and let dry slightly. Fold over into a roll and cut into ¼” slices (a pizza cutter works well). Toss apart and dry thoroughly. Cook in rapidly boiling broth or soup.
Serves 6-8
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