Salsa Verde Chicken Soup with Dumplings

This is a good chicken stew recipe. I loved the addition of salsa verde! I made a few adjustments such as, I added cumin, carrots and celery to the recipe because that is what I like in my chicken soup. I also used homemade chicken stock, which made the recipe extra flavorful. I wasn't crazy about the dumplings though. I think that it would be better with noodles instead of dumplings.

Serves 8

Source:http://savorysweetlife.com/

Chicken
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) butter ( I used 1 tbsp)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour ( I used 1/4 cup)
1 can (14.5 ounces) chicken broth
1 jar (15 ounces) salsa verde (2 cups)
1 can (5 ounces) evaporated milk
4 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 large celery stalks, finely chopped
1 tsp cumin
1 large rotisserie chicken, meat deboned and left in large chunks (about 6 cups)

Dumplings
1 cup whole milk ( I used 1%)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups bleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallion greens
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS:
Chicken: Heat butter over medium-high heat in a large (11 – 12 inch), deep ovenproof skillet or 5-6 quart Dutch oven. Add in carrots, celery and cumin. Mix well and cook until semi-soft, about 5 minutes. Whisk in flour to make a paste. Mix broth, salsa verde, and evaporated milk and whisk in all at once. Whisk, vigorously at first, until mixture simmers and thickens to sauce consistency. Stir in chicken, heat through, and cover to keep warm. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees.
Dumplings: Heat milk and butter in a small saucepan until steamy. Mix flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, scallions, and cilantro in a medium bowl with a fork. Stir in milk mixture to form a smooth, firm dough. Pinch off Ping-Pong-ball-size pieces of dough with your fingers and drop onto chicken mixture. Return chicken to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cover and transfer pan to oven and bake until dumplings are cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve.