Chicken and Dumplings

After Christmas, I decided it was time to try something new! So last night I made this recipe out of a cookbook my mom had given me for Christmas. I was a little nervous about it and the cookbook didn't give too many specific details - so I was on my own for some of it. But it turned out pretty well! It wasn't as hard as I thought it might be, and the best part is that there are so few ingredients!

Ingredients:

1 large chicken, cut into pieces (you can buy them already cut)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, melted

All-purpose flour

Method:

Sprinkle the chicken on all sides with salt and pepper. Place it in a large saucepan or a stockpot. Cover with water. Cook over medium heat until tender (I cooked it for about 45 minutes). Drain the chicken but save your broth (I just used tongs to take the chicken out, then poured the liquid through a strainer). Place the chicken in a large bowl. After the chicken cools some, tear it off the bone - you will add it back in later. In a separate bowl, combine 2 cups of the broth with just enough flour to make a stiff dough (I just kept adding flour until it was stiff enough to roll out - I have no idea how much I added!). Roll out very thin on a lightly floured surface before you cut into squares (I suggest cutting into 1 inch squares using a pizza slicer). Bring the remaining broth to a boil in a stockpot. Drop your dumplings into the broth. Add the chicken. Simmer for 5 minutes.