Lawrence Welk’s Favorite Chicken & Dumplings
Makes 6 servings
Chicken:
2 broiler-fryer chickens (2 pounds each), halved
Water
1 carrot, coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon chicken bouillon paste
1/4 cup butter
1 cup flour
1 ounce cooking sherry
Juice of 1 lemon
Dash of seasoning salt
Yellow food color
1 cup cooked sweet peas
Dumplings:
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons shortening
3/4 cup milk
1. To prepare chicken, place in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Simmer about 40 minutes or until chicken is tender. Remove chickens and set aside.
2. Debone chicken and place larger bones in pot with simmering chicken stock.
3. Add carrots, celery, onion and chicken bouillon to pot and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Remove stock from heat and strain to discard bones and vegetables, reserving stock.
5. In a large skillet, melt butter and using a fork, gradually stir in flour, working mixture together until smooth. Add this roux to the strained chicken stock returned to simmering put and simmer 5 minutes before adding sherry, lemon juice, seasoning salt and food coloring.
6. Prepared cooled chicken meat by removing skin and any other bones, and place meat in a greased glass casserole. Cover meat with prepared sauce and top with a layer of peas. Set aside.
7. To make dumplings, in a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.
8. Cut shortening into the flour mixture, working mixture until it resembles cornmeal.
9. Stir in milk to mixture until well-blended.
10. Fill a large saucepan with water, about 2 inches deep. Use a wire rack or basket that is 2 inches above the simmering water. Cover the rack with a piece of greased wax paper, greased side up. Place balls of dumpling dough, about the size of a large walnut, onto the wax paper, leaving room for dumplings to expand. Steam 8 minutes uncovered, then turn and cover and steam 7 minutes longer.
11. Plate hot dumplings and cover with the warm chicken, sauce and peas.