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Soups are always a great choice; they ‘re healthy, flavorful and filling, and there are so many ways to customize them to your liking, so you ‘ll always end up with something you love! Some people would argue that chicken noodle soup is the epitome of comfort food, but we ‘re here to test that theory. You see, we love chicken noodle soup, but we absolutely adore homemade chicken and dumpling soup!

Chicken and dumplings is generally considered a southern dish where the dumplings replace the noodles in a given dish; a combination of milk, flour and cheese, the dumplings are cooked in the broth of the soup and are light, pillow-y bites that add both flavor and texture to your dish. Tasty and relatively simple to make, this soup will keep you going when it ‘s cold out and you ‘ll find yourself turning to it when you need a little boost or some extra comfort!

Chicken Dumpling Soup

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

Soup:

  • 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 3 carrots, chopped
  • 3 ribs celery, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 64 oz. low-sodium chicken stock
  • 1 (10 oz.) can cream of chicken soup
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon dried mustard
  • kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
  • chowder crackers

Dumplings:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions

  1. In a large stockpot or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium-high heat and saute carrots, onion and celery until softened. About 10 minutes.
  2. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, add garlic and cook until fragrant.
  3. Pour in chicken stock, and chicken soup and add bay leaf. Stir until stock and soup are combined.
  4. Add dried mustard and season with salt and pepper. Stir well and bring to a boil.
  5. Cover and reduce heat. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes.
  6. In a medium bowl, combine dumpling ingredients (flour, milk, cheese, butter, salt and pepper) and use a fork to mix together until everything is incorporated.
  7. Bring soup back up to a boil and add cubed chicken.
  8. Drop 1-2 teaspoons-worth of dumpling mixture into soup.
  9. Cook for another 10-15 minutes, or until chicken and dumplings are both cooked through.
  10. Discard bay leaf, ladle soup into serving bowls and serve with chowder crackers.

Recipe adapted from A Spicy Perspective