Chicken Stew With Herb Dumplings

Place the chicken, carrot, celery, onion, bay leaf, peppercorns and salt in a large pot.

Add cold water until chicken is just covered and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to a bare simmer and cook for 45 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the pot and let cool for 15 minutes. While the chicken is cooling, continue to boil the remaining water and vegetables in the pot. When the chicken has cooled enough to touch, strip away as much of the meat as you can. Return the chicken bones to the stockpot and continue to boil, on high heat, until the stock has reduced to approximately 3 cups. While the stock is reducing, cut up the chicken meat into pieces you'd like to see on the end of your fork. Strain stock through a sieve or colander. Press down on solids slightly to extract more stock. Discard solids (chicken bones and veggies). (the chicken and stock can be cooked up to a day ahead and kept refrigerated).

Remove the layer of fat that forms on top of the stock after it has been refrigerated, and discard.Prepare the filling: In a large saucepan, melt butter on medium heat.

Add the onions, fennel, carrots, celery, mushrooms and garlic, and cook until the onions are translucent, about 10 minutes.

Add the flour and cook, stirring, one minute more.

Mix flour, baking powder, salt, oregano and parsley in a medium bowl.

Combine egg and milk and stir into dry ingredients.

Mix gently with a fork until a soft dough is formed.Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of dumpling dough on the surface of the chicken stew (you should get about 15 dumplings); cover and simmer until dumplings are cooked through, about 15 minutes. Do not peek - the steam is what cooks your dumplings through.Spoon portions of chicken, sauce, vegetables, and dumplings into soup plates and serve immediately.