Chicken & Dumplings

There's almost nothing I find more comforting in the autumn and winter months than homestyle chicken and dumplings. I took my first stab at making this classic dish last night. I have to say it turned out really good! My recipe is a hybrid between Paula Deen along with a collaboration between my partner and I:

Times: Prep 30 min; Inactive Prep Cook 50 min
Total: 1 hr 20 min

Ingredients
Chicken:
1 (2 1/2-3 1/2pound) chicken, cut into 8 pieces
3 ribs celery, chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 fresh ear shaved white corn kernels
6 cups homemade chicken stock
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can condensed cream of celery
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pat of butter
sea salt (to taste)
garlic powder (to taste)
fresh ground black pepper (to taste)

Dumplings:
2 cups pancake mix
Ice water

Directions
To start the chicken: Place a pat of butter (1 tablespoon) and some good olive oil in the bottom of a Dutch oven. Brown chicken on medium high until all sides are golden bronze. Remove from pot and add another pat of butter and onion. Sautee the onion until nearly translucent, then add celery, corn and chicken into the pot. Add 6 cups of chicken stock and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Season to taste with sea salt, black pepper and garlic powder. Simmer the chicken until it is tender and the thigh juices run clear (about 40 minutes).

Remove the chicken from the pot and, when it is cool enough to handle, remove the skin and separate the meat from the bones. Return the chicken meat to the pot. Keep warm over low heat. Add the cream of celery soup to the pot with the chicken and simmer gently over medium-low heat.

To prepare the dumplings: Mix the pancake mix and ice water together in a mixing bowl until you have a thick batter. Let the batter relax for several minutes. Pull a scoop of batter and drop into the simmering soup. Repeat until the batter is gone. Do not stir the chicken once the dumplings have been added. Gently move the pot in a circular motion so the dumplings become submerged and cook evenly. Cook until the dumplings float and are no longer doughy, 3 to 4 minutes.

To serve, ladle chicken, gravy, and dumplings into warm bowls.
Cook's Note: If the chicken stew is too thin it can be thickened before the dumplings are added. Simply mix together 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/4 cup of water then whisk this mixture into the stew. Enjoy!