Faux Chicken and Dumplings, and a Pretty Pot to Cook It In

Coming to you a little late this week, but better late than never... I hope you enjoy the vegan recipe below, which we devoured, little and big, last night for a wonderful comfort food meal. It was great with a simple salad to start off with——just lettuce and tomatoes, topped with a mustard vinaigrette.

Faux Chicken and Dumplings

serves 6-8

When you’re craving some comfort food cook up this easy meal. It is rich, hearty, and delicious, and makes the cows and chickens smile. Warning: the recipe is dumpling rich, so if you’re into lower dumpling ratios consider cutting the dumpling ingredients by 1/3.

Ingredients
Broth
1/4 cup Earth Balance buttery spread
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 cup organic celery, chopped
1 cup organic carrot, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup flour
6 cups water + bouillon or 6 cups veggie broth
1 package faux chicken, like Westsoy Seitan Strips or Lightlife Chick’n Smart Strips

Dumplings
3/4 cup soy or rice milk
1 tsp. vinegar
2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup Earth Balance buttery spread

1. Sauté the Earth Balance, onion, and celery in a large soup pot. Add carrot and bay leaf and cook until vegetables are tender. Add flour and stir to combine. Mix in broth and bring to a boil. Add faux chicken, cut into bite size pieces.

2. Mix milk and vinegar and set aside for 5 minutes. In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in Earth Balance until crumbly. Add milk mixture, and combine with hands until the dough is a cohesive, sticky ball.

3. Form dough into golf-sized balls and drop into broth. Cover pot and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until dumplings are cooked through. Do not overcook.

Product:

Le Creuset Round French/Dutch Oven

With a suggested retail price of $215 you better love this pot, but I’ve yet to meet someone who owns and uses one and doesn’t. It is both beautiful and versatile, sturdy and homey. And “tools” like this make cooking fun!

When considering the price, consider the durability of the product, which has a (limited) lifetime guarantee. If you still think it’s over your head you can look for irregular ones, which usually only have very minor paint flaws, at places like Home Goods.


“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated” -Mahatma Gandhi