Josephine's Chicken and Dumplings
Josephine Courville was a pioneer woman. She could scratch a living from the poorest farm, patch together a quilt from random scraps, and see the beauty in every child she ever held. She knew about self-sufficiency, hard work, and surviving in the face of hard times. She outlived three husbands, most of her contemporaries, and the way of life that she exemplified. A lot can be learned from a woman like Josephine, but biographers seldom chronicle the lives of simple folk. It's usually the flashy politician or the military man whose superficial thoughts get written down for posterity. I was fortunate enough, however, to have had the opportunity to learn many things from Josephine directly, since she was also "Grandma;" the matriarch of my family. I would love to pass along everything she taught me, but that could take a lifetime so instead I will share just one special lesson: Josephine's chicken and dumplings.
The first step in attempting to make Josephine's chicken and dumplings is procuring the chicken. One of those antiseptic plastic-wrapped carcasses from the supermarket won't do. It has to be a real chicken: a real dog-chased, bug-eating, heavyweight chicken. It takes time, exercise, and weight to produce the right flavor, and a chicken can't get that sitting in a cage eating arsenic. It would be simpler to get one from the supermarket, but it just can't be done. This principal is referred to as"garbage in garbage out" in present day vernacular; the selection of the right hen is the critical input that determines the quality of the output. Grandma always raised a large flock of her own and would select an older "stewing hen", as she called them. They were the larger hens that had been...
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...offee mingling with that of the simmering chicken gave the dish an extra panache. I have tried substituting fireplace smoke with some success, but have been unable to duplicate the smell of the boiling coffee using that method. A wood cookstove or parlor stove topped with an old- fashioned percolator is preferable if one can be obtained. The meal should be eaten in the kitchen where it was prepared and served on a table large enough for everyone to gather around. Conversation, laughter and reminiscing should be encouraged throughout the meal, and please, no television.
This recipe is neither easy nor quick. Don't expect success the first try, or even the second. In fact, it may take a lifetime to master, but I assure any who try that the reward is well worth the effort. Josephine's chicken and dumplings will not only fill the stomach but enrich the soul as well.
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... treasury in 1934 (Abbott, Leonard, Noel, 2013, pp 479). Josephine was an inspiration to others and was a driven woman. She wanted to help others and that is exactly what she did in her life. She helped women and their families, as well as mine workers. Her successful life ended in 1976 in Washington, DC.
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Soon, we all sat around the dinner table enjoying my grandma’s culinary specialties. There was one dish that had stuck in my mind though, possibly because it was the last dish served that night.