This is probably my favorite food memory from childhood. These dumplings are a food memory that immediately makes me think of fall or winter meals. The savory smell of roast chicken with onions and paprika would permeate the house while the steam condensed on the kitchen windows. All the while we waited impatiently for my father to return home from work so we could eat.

These are a dense dumpling more akin to a spaetzli than the light and airy (and in my opinion – disappointing) dumplings some plop on top of baked dishes that make me think that someone forgot and poured gravy all over some drop biscuits.

These dumplings are not chewy but they are toothsome. They will fill you up and stick to your ribs. They are the kind of dumpling that helps you take a 3 pound chicken, feed a family of seven and have leftovers.

I loved these dumplings and would have made a meal out of them and the pan drippings, if my mother would have allowed it. They hold a special place in my memories and my heart. That’s why, when my eldest daughter asked me for the recipe I couldn’t help but feel a little pride that, in her mind, maybe my dumpling are as good as my mother’s were to me.

The following recipe is scaled back to provide enough for two people. Feel free to scale it up if you need more, though you will want to add the water a little at a time to make sure the consistency is correct.

Ingredients:

2 – large eggs

1 – C of unbleached flour

1 – tsp roasted garlic seasoning (optional – feel free to leave it out)

1/4 – tsp black pepper, fine ground

1/2 – tsp salt

3 – T cold tap water

Directions:

1. Crack the eggs in a medium size bowl and beat them like you would for scrambled eggs.
2. Add the water and beat them until the water and eggs are combined.
3. Add the seasonings and beat until combined.
4. Add the flour and slowly incorporate it into the egg mixture until you have a gooey, thick paste.
5. In a large skillet or sauce pan, bring some chicken stock to a boil, reduce to a simmer and, using a cutting board and the back of a butter knife, start scraping the dumpling dough into the stock. I found the board I use in a small shop in Arkansas when my daughters were very young, but a cutting board with a smooth surface will work.
6. Simmer the dumplings until they float and continue cooking them for 3-5 minutes (smaller dumplings require less time and larger ones more).
7. Take them out of the stock and drain them in a colander placed inside a bowl.
8. At this point the dumplings are ready to eat. But this is where my mom would put them on top of her roast chicken, put the lid on the roasting pan and bake them for 15-20 minutes so they could absorb the flavor.

However you choose to make them, I hope they bring you as much joy as they do me.