I make lunch for my husband’s entire family (if everyone comes over, there’s nine of us) every Sunday. I don’t mind it really, because I really like to cook (and bake).
Several years ago, I kind of took over the Sunday cooking responsibilities from my husband’s grandmother, Maw (as we call her). We’ve lived with her going on 10 years, and I’ve probably cooked more Sunday lunches and holiday dinners than I care to count. But as everyone knows who sits at our dinner table, I don’t cook crap and everything I make is “made with love!”
So this Sunday I made Maw’s dumplings, carrots and green beans. Yum-O!
Here is how I make a tasty Sunday lunch or dinner (made with love)!
If you use canned green beans, then start them a couple of hours before you serve lunch. I usually put in a couple of slices of bacon to give them good flavor. If you’re lucky enough to have “fresh from the garden” green beans, I would still put in a couple of slices of bacon. Then I put about one (1) teaspoon of lemon & pepper seasoning.
I bring the green beans to a boil and let them go for about 10 minutes, then I lower the temp down to the lowest setting on the stove and put the lid on them. About every 30-45 minutes, I’ll bring them back up to boil for a few minutes and then turn them back to low. Then about 15 minutes before I’m ready to serve lunch or dinner, then I bring to one final boil for a few minutes. Turn them off, drain any excess water, pour in a bowl and serve!
I make carrots two ways – regular and sweet. I like the sweet because they come out tasting a little like sweet potato casserole, but everyone else likes them boiled with salt and pepper. Today was a regular carrot day.
Everyone loves “Maw’s Dumplings” and one Sunday I had Maw talk me through making her dumplings. There were no left-overs that Sunday!
Here’s our family recipe:
Purchase a package of chicken backs. If you don’t know what chicken backs are, then welcome to the country way of cooking, darlin’! You can usually purchase chicken backs in the chicken section of the meat department. If you can’t find any chicken backs, then just use chicken stock.
When you get your chicken backs home, you’ll need to clean them… and that can be a yucky job, but it needs to be done even though you don’t eat the meat on the chicken backs.
Put the chicken backs in a large pot about 3/4 of the way full of water. Let it come to a boil and then turn the heat down until you have a low rolling boil.
While your chicken backs gently boil, prepare your dumplin’ mix.
3 cups – all-purpose flour
2 tsp – baking powder
1/4 tsp – baking soda
1 tsp – salt
1/4 cup – buttermilk
1 cup – chicken stock from pot
I then use a spoon to gently fold in the chicken stock until it comes together. It may be a little sticky, but just add 1/4 cup of flour to pull the dough away from the bowl enough to form a ball. Then sprinkle some flour on your counter, and don’t forget to rub some flour on your rolling pin. Now you’re ready to roll out your dough. I usually separate my dough into two sections. I find it easier to roll out and cut – divide and conquer!
Next, I pull the chicken backs out of the broth. Then I place my dumplins in the gently boiling broth with about 2 cups of milk, and let them cook until the dumplins are fork tender, or until my Aunt Susan says “they’re ready to eat!”
You’ll need to stir the dumplins frequently, as they may stick to the bottom of your pot. Also, the sauce will thicken because of the added milk. If the sauce doesn’t thicken, then mix a little bit of water to a teaspoon of baking powder (make sure there aren’t any clumps) and then pour it into the dumplins.
I usually serve the dumplins straight from the pot, but you could pour it into a large pot. Because there is no actual “chicken” in these dumplins, I suggest you get a couple of rotisserie chickens from the grocery store, pull off the meat, and serve it alongside your dumplins.
So once lunch is on the table, here’s what it should look like! Yummy, right?
Well, it was yummy!
Even my baby, Daisy, got to help me and Aunt Susan do the dishes!
Daisy loves to help with the dishes!
Anyway, if you decide to try my Sunday lunch recipes seen here in this post, I’d love to hear from you! And if your dumplins don’t taste right, try and try again! As they say, “Practice makes perfect!”
And don’t forget… any food you cook, make it with love! Your family will love (and appreciate) you for it!
Bon appetit and have a great day!