Chicken and Dumpling Soup

It's Christmas Eve, and it's snowy and blowy and cold. Which is just fine with me, becuase inside it is warm and happy... and there is soup! Actually, Our family's tradition is to have soup every christmas eve. We usually have chili, some other kind of soup, and... always oyster stew for my dad. I think I tried it every year, and just couldn't get into it... bleck. So in case you fall into the non-oyster stew camp like me... here is a warm and yummy comfort-food for your christmas eve celebration. But, really, I recommend it any day of the year! Enjoy, and MERRY CHRISTMAS!

1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders
1 tablespoon olive oil,
2 tablespoons butter
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced or thinly sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 rib celery, diced
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
2 tablespoons flour, a handful more or less… for a thinner ‘soup-like’ base, omit the flour
1 quart chicken broth or stock,
1 small box biscuit mix (I use Jiffy Mix)
1/2 cup warm water
Handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 cup frozen green peas

Dice tenders into bite size pieces and set aside. Wash hands.
Place a large pot on stove over medium high heat. Add oil, butter, vegetables and bay leaf and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Season mixture with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Add flour to the pan and cook 2 minutes. Stir broth or stock into the pot and bring to a boil. Add chicken to the broth and stir.
Place biscuit mix in a bowl. Combine with 1/2 cup warm water, parsley, and fresh ground black pepper (to taste). Mix until just moistened. Drop tablespoonfuls of prepared mix into the pot, spacing dumplings evenly. (or to serve more as a ‘soup’ make smaller bite-size dumplings with teaspoons) Cover pot tightly and reduce heat to medium low. Steam dumplings 8 to 10 minutes. Remove cover and stir chicken and dumplings to thicken sauce a bit. Stir peas into the pan, remove chicken and dumplings from heat and serve in shallow bowls. Best served immediately…