Like Grandma’s Chicken Dumplings?

A recipe titled “Like Grandma’s Chicken Dumplings” is a loaded one, for me. My grandmother never cooked (not that I remember; she was always busy shifting through mounds of paperwork, perhaps life insurance rates and retirement benefits?). But seemed to always serve Campbell’s tomato soup and tuna fish sandwiches. It was fine with me, because I loved tomato soup and disliked Chicken Dumplings. Yuk.

Buuuut…. I couldn’t let my kids grow up without once trying Chicken Dumplings, now could I? What kind of mother would I be?! So I found a recipe that made it easy. I can’t say it’s very tasty… they liked it OK, but I didn’t care for it. It is certainly palatable, but I don’t like cream sauces… and this had more sauce then chicken. The original recipe is at Disney Family Food (a new recipe website I’ve discovered). I altered it a little. Here’s what I did.

Like Grandma’s Chicken and Dumplings

Ingredients
2 cups cooked chicken
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
2 soup cans water
4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 can refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (8 biscuits)

Directions
1. Mix all ingredients, except biscuits, in 4 1/2-quart CROCK-POT® slow cooker.
2. Cut biscuits into quarters and gently stir into mixture. Cover; cook on LOW 4 to 6 hours.

Tip
Don’t add water to the CROCK-POT® slow cooker, unless the recipe specifically says to do so. Foods don’t lose as much moisture during slow cooking as they can during conventional cooking, so follow the recipe guidelines for best results.

OK, I doubled the recipe. The “2 cans” soup water made for a LOT of water. I did it anyway….

Looks… interesting….

It was just too watery. So I added potatoes. And carrots. All the Chicken and Dumpling recipes I ever saw had potatoes and carrots. This was turning more into a Chicken Stew…. but I wasn’t going to eat canned cream of chicken soup and chicken cubes! It just didn’t seem enough. Adding the potatoes probably diluted a little of the saltiness from the “bouillon” granules (I used Ramen packets). So more salt is necessary.

End result?

Not TOO bad. I skipped the refrigerated biscuits and served fresh rolls instead. The kids liked dipping the rolls into the soup. And the chicken was marvelously tender and moist. But the overall taste….. eh. OK. It’s always the creamy sauce stuff that I don’t care for.

So this was an OK recipe. I don’t intend to make it again, unless the kids beg me. And they probably won’t. The WILL beg me for Tortellini with Edamame and Kielbasa, which I am going to make again.

Crockpot Manhattan Clam Chowder

This is a savory, wonderful chowder. It’s perfect for rainy summer days, or winter evenings. I don’t know if it will win you any Vegas vacations in a cook-off but it will definitely win the heart of your family! And it’s so easy on the budget, it’s amazing. My kids all love it, and it is so easy to make. My recipe is not very soupy- it’s got lots of chunky goodness. Make all your ingredients slightly smaller than bite-size. And this chowder is even better made a day before and heated up.

Like everything I do, this is completely customizable. If you like spicy chowder, add a dash of Tabasco sauce. Don’t like bacon or sausage? Use ground turkey sausage. Like more greens or yellows? Throw in some freshly chopped spinach or leftover corn. Just keep in mind that the more you add to your chowder, the more dilute the seasoning becomes. Always do a taste test before serving, and add salt or pepper or garlic powder accordingly. This is my tried-and-true chowder recipe.

Crockpot Manhattan Clam Chowder
Serves 6-9

1/2 pound of bacon, cooked, drained, and chopped
1/2 pound ground sausage, cooked and drained
4 cans undrained, minced clams– save that juice!
2 28oz cans of petite, diced tomatoes
4 medium potatoes, diced into small cubes (I leave the skins on the potatoes)
1 large Vidalia onion, chopped well
1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 Tablespoon basil
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce
Throw everything in the pot, including the clam juice. Stir a few times. Cover and set on LOW for 6 hours or HIGH for 8-9 hours. Add salt and pepper to taste. Allow to cool off a little before serving.

This chowder is terrific served with garlic bread and a small, light salad.

Photo courtesy of LATimes.

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Crockpot Macaroni & Cheese

I do crockpot meals once or twice a week, because I babysit a bunch of kids, and have to serve meals for 10 (yes, 10!!!) four times a week. With the crockpot, I can throw everything into the pot at 10am, and LEAVE IT BE allll day. Wow, let’s give some hearty huzzahs to the dude who invented the crockpot!

But the troops are getting tired of the same old chili, stew, and chili-with-stew recipes. I found a terrific Macaroni and Cheese crockpot meal at Frugal Upstate. For 10, I’d have to double it. Also, the recipe looks a wee bland (these kids like spicy foods), so I’d probably perk it up with Cajun seasoning or garlic. You can also add extra doodads for kicks, like cooked ground sausage (yum) or sliced kielbasa or broccoli. If you do, I suggest you add a little bit of water to the pot, lest the extra ingredients dry out the pasta too much.

Crockpot Macaroni & Cheese
serves 5-6

16oz cooked and drained pasta (elbows, shells, whatever– you can even used leftover pasta if you have enough)
3-4 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 12oz. can of Evaporated Milk
1 1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons flour
2 Tablespoons butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning or cayenne pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)

Grease the inside of your crockpot with butter or margarine. Mix everything together and pour into Crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours. Don’t stir, it will firm up as it cooks. In the final few minutes of cooking, you can add bread crumbs or sprinkle some dried parsley on top.

Photo is from Kitchen Wench, who, incidentally, has a spectacular Mac and Cheese recipe at her site, too. Be forewarned: it’s loaded with heavy ingredients. She calls it Mac Heart Attack n’ Cheese!

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