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Celebrating with Food
Rebecca is my daughter. She’s a very good cook. While I couldn’t get her to chop an onion when she was growing up, she’s become a cook who tries everything now—successfully. She also is the Manager of The Good Cooking Store in our little Lancaster County town of Intercourse, PA. She taught Language Arts to middle-schoolers for 7 years. Now we benefit from all of her energy and good ideas. Don’t miss what she has to say!
As I was growing up, my family liked to mark all celebrations with a meal. Sometimes it felt like we’d even stretch the importance of a celebration just to ensure that we’d have a chance for a special meal. At times we’d go out to eat, but the celebratory meals often occurred at home.
I continue to mark celebrations with food. Rob and I enjoy remembering each milestone of our relationship—our first date, the day he proposed, and, more traditionally, our wedding anniversary. This year marked ten years since he asked me to marry him. He is a romantic and planned an event-filled, thoughtful day ten years ago.
I thought the least I could do in order to celebrate this anniversary, was to plan a tasty meal for him. I’m lucky because I married someone who thoroughly enjoys food (and also happens to be a fantastic cook himself). When planning a meaningful meal, I often like to try new recipes. I also don’t mind making something that takes a little extra time. Here’s what I’m thinking I’ll make to show Rob how thankful I am for the last ten years we’ve had together:
Appetizer – Salad with Apples, Bacon and Homemade Dressing
Vegetable – Roasted Broccoli
Entrée – Sunday Chicken Stew with Dumplings from Fix-It and Forget-It PINK Cookbook, page 262
Dessert – My mom’s Cherry Cobbler
How do you mark celebrations in your family?
Sunday Chicken Stew with Dumplings
Fix-It and Forget-It PINK Cookbook, page 262
Makes 6 servings
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cooking Time: 6 ½-7 ½ hours
Ideal slow-cooker size: 5-qt.
Fix-It and Forget-It PINK Cookbook, page 262
Makes 6 servings
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cooking Time: 6 ½-7 ½ hours
Ideal slow-cooker size: 5-qt.
½ cup flour
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. white pepper
3-lb. broiler/fryer chicken, cut up and skin removed
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 cups chicken broth
6 large carrots, cut in 1-inch-thick pieces
2 celery ribs, cut into ½-inch-thick slices
1 large sweet onion, chopped into ½-inch-thick slices
1-2 tsp. dried rosemary
1 ½ cups frozen peas
Dumplings:
1 cup flour
½ tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 egg, beaten
½ cup milk
1. To prepare chicken, combine flour, salt, and pepper in a large resealable plastic bag.
2. Add chicken, a few pieces at a time. Shake to coat.
3. In a large skillet, brown chicken in olive oil, a few pieces at a time.
4. As the pieces brown, remove to a platter and keep warm.
5. When all the chicken is brown, gradually add broth to skillet while bringing to a boil. Stir up the browned, flavorful bits sticking to the skillet.
6. In a 5-quart slow cooker, layer in carrots, celery, and onion.
7. Sprinkle with rosemary.
8. Add chicken. Carefully add hot broth.
9. Cover. Cook 6-7 hours on Low, or until chicken juice runs clear, vegetables are tender, and stew is bubbling.
10. Stir in peas.
11. To make the dumplings, combine flour, crushed rosemary, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
12. In a separate bowl combine egg and milk.
13. Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients until just combined.
14. Drop by spoonfuls into simmering chicken mixture.
15. Cover. Cook on High 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in dumpling comes out clean. (Try this after 25 minutes; otherwise, do not lift the cover while simmering.)
Serving suggestion: Serve each person with a “scoop” of dumpling topped with vegetables and broth, with a piece of chicken on the side.
Tip: The dumplings cook best if you use an oval, or wide, more shallow slow cooker.
Lucious doesn’t even begin to adequately describe how wonderful this dish sounds and oh my, a slow cooker too!! Got to make this soon.
Thanks for posting.
we mark birthday celebrations with stuffed shells. My daughter requests it almost every year. This year i made them for Christmas by request of my youngest daughter. We also had a roast and other good food to eat.