We don't eat a lot of beef or pork, mostly chicken. So yesterday morning I pulled a bag of chicken breasts out of the freezer and remarked to no one in particular,
"We're having chicken something tonight for dinner. I don't know what kind, but it has chicken."
To which my ever loving teenage son responded,
"What else is new? We always eat chicken."
That remark sent me on a quest for a new and delicious chicken meal that did not contain anything that my two younger children were allergic to. I was bound and determined to find something great that everyone could eat and would still taste delicious!
I finally came across this recipe. I love to take what I want from a recipe and change it around to what I like, so here's what I did.
- 4 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 quart organic chicken broth
- 2 tsp dried leaf thyme
- 2 tsp garlic salt
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 2 cups chopped carrots
- 3 large potatoes chopped into bite sized pieces
- 2 cups baby portabella mushrooms cut in half
- 1 sweet yellow onion, diced
- 1 1/2 cups sweet corn kernels, frozen
- 2 tablespoon dried parsley
- 2 cans (14.5 ounces diced fire roasted tomatoes with juice)
- 3 tablespoons arrowroot
- cold water
Cornmeal Dumplings
- 1/4 cup white rice flour
- 1/4 cup millet flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca starch
- 1/4 cup arrowroot
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 scant teaspoon salt
- 1 stick butter (butter substitute. I use Earth Balance)
- Hemp milk
Place chicken breasts in a pot and cover with water. Boil until done. Remove chicken breasts. Add chicken broth to the pot of remaining water. Add potatoes, carrots, onions and corn and bring to a boil. Meantime, chop up chicken breasts and add them back into the pot.
In a separate cup, add about 1/4 cup water and arrowroot and mix together. Pour into pot and stir.
In a separate bowl, add the flours, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Cut in softened butter. Add enough milk to make a thick batter.
Add tomatoes to the soup, bring to a boil. Drop batter by teaspoons into the boiling soup. Make sure to continue stirring in between drops. Once all batter has been dropped in, reduce heat to simmer and cover, making sure to stir occasionally. Simmer for about 15 minutes or until dumpling are done.
I had this ready by the time my teenage son got home. He was all excited when he walked in the house and smelled food cooking! It was a hit with the whole family...even the teenager who complained about having to eat chicken once again. He thanked me over and over for a good meal, so I must have done something right!
