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thehungryhungryhiker

Chicken & Dumplings

Chicken and dumplings are a cold weather comfort food favorite. Skip the packaged foods and make this hearty soup from scratch for a nutritious, healing soup the whole family will enjoy.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 6 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American

Ingredients
  

For the soup:
  • 2 quarts chicken broth or stock
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 bag frozen cauliflower, 16 ounces
  • 1 + ½ lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 cup full fat coconut milk from a can
  • ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 1 bag frozen mixed vegetables of choice, 16 ounces
  • dried parsley for garnish
For the dumplings:
  • 1 cup almond flour
  • cup coconut flour
  • cup tapioca flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • pinch sea salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 tbsp butter, melted and then slightly cooled
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ¼ cup full fat coconut milk from a can

Equipment

  • Dutch Oven
  • Immersion blender

Method
 

  1. Add the chicken broth and water to a large Dutch oven (I used 6 quart) over medium high heat and bring to a soft boil. When boiling, add the cauliflower and chicken thighs and reduce to a simmer over medium heat. Simmer for 25 minutes, until chicken thighs are cooked through and cauliflower is fork tender.
  2. When the soup has 10 minutes left on the timer, make the dumplings. Add the almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, and sea salt to a medium bowl and stir with a spoon. Stir in the eggs, butter, honey, and coconut milk. Batter will be thick. Set aside.
  3. When the timer sounds, remove the chicken thighs from the soup and place on a large plate. Use two forks to shred.
  4. Remove the Dutch oven from the stove top and place on a trivet. Using an immersion blender, CAREFULLY blend the soup until the cauliflower is blended and mixed into the soup completely. If you aren't comfortable using an immersion blender in your Dutch oven (or don't have one), you can blend in batches in a high speed blender until combined.
  5. Return the Dutch oven to the stove top over medium low heat. Add the shredded chicken back along with the coconut milk, black pepper, nutritional yeast, and mixed vegetables. Mix to combine.
  6. Use your hands to create 1" diameter balls from the dumpling dough and drop them into the soup. Cover the Dutch oven and simmer on medium low. Check the soup after 20 minutes to see if the dumplings are done. They will have floated to the top and appear firm and dry on the tops, and a toothpick inserted will come out clean.
  7. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with a dumpling or two. Garnish with dried parsley, serve hot, and enjoy!