Chicken and Dumplings?

You may not share this experience, but I have found Chicken and Dumplings to be very controversial.  Perhaps even as controversial as whether or not to put sugar in cornbread.

This started long ago with my mother's chicken and dumplings.  You see, she only made for reals ones like once in my life.  She claims they are too much work and left the real chicken and dumpling making to my Mamaw (which I have a story about for another time).  Most often, my mom would throw really random (and sometimes scary) stuff in a pot and call it chicken and dumplings and make me eat it.  It was really about the only thing I rebelled about during my teen years.  Once, my friend Tara was over and she asked what was in the pot and my mom told her "Chicken and Dumplings" and she said "Um, no it's not."  She still comments on my facebook about it, 15 years later. 

Then, in my college years, I ran across a recipe for Chicken and Dumplings in a cookbook that sounded absolutely nothing like them.  It sounds like a lovely chicken soup recipe with some biscuits thrown in , but it's not chicken and dumplings.  This recipe was very similar to the recipe posted today on the Pioneer Woman's blog.  It includes carrots, celery, onions, tumeric, thyme, and parsley.  And the dumplings include cornmeal.  Again, it sounds lovely, but it's not chicken and dumplings.

What are real chicken and dumplings?  They are the dish most similar to what is popularly served at Cracker Barrel (although theirs are super thick and could use some more salt, and they use biscuit and chicken strips out of mass production convenience).  They are composed of chicken, drop biscuits, and creamy goodness.  You can get away with the bought dumplings as long as you buy one of the brands made by small plants in the South, particularly the ones with the old lady and the scriptures on the bag. 

As I write this, I am a total hypocrite.  I have never made real chicken dumplings all on my own, I've just helped a bit.  Perhaps I should try it.

I tried to find a photo to go with this post - but none of them looked real or appetizing.  And a lot of them had peas in them.  Again, I like peas, but not in my dumplings.