Random Recipe! Chicken and Dumplings

My father had his own variant of Grandmother's Chicken Soup. I have modified it. I'm sure my daughter will modify mine when she starts making it for her children. I like that it has so many colors in it. Red onion, yellow squash, orange carrots... mouthful of rainbow.

The Soup
2 cartons Chicken Broth
3 Telma Chicken low salt consumme cubes (These can usually be found in the Jewish section of the grocery. It's like bullion cubes.)
2 large Carrots
1 large Leek
1/2 Red Onion
1 large Yellow Squash
1 Celery Heart (take just the tender inside stalks and leafy stalks)
1 Tbsp slivered Ginger
1 Tbsp minced Garlic
1 sprig fresh Rosemary
3 Bay leaves
1 Tbsp Italian Seasoning blend
3 boneless skinless Chicken breast halves
3 Tbsp Italian Dressing
2 Tbsp Honey
1 Tbsp Sazon Completa (The green cap spice stuff)

 Dice chicken into small bite sized pieces. Chop all veg into small pieces.

 See the celery heart? Chop everything, including the leaves into bits like the rest.

 That green leafy thing is a leek. It's part of the onion family. I just slice it leaves and all at 1/2 inch sections. Those little cubes are diced squash.

Toss everything - broth, spices, herbs, veg, telma cubes and chicken into the crock pot. Set it on med/hi (or just hi depending on your crock pot) and walk away for 5-8 hours.

The Dumplings
2 c All purpose flour
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp Adobo crillollo (spanish garlic salt)
2 eggs
2 tbsp Olive oil
2 tbsp water

*** Note: I've tried every kind of flour on the shelf and the one that works the best is straight All Purpose flour. Don't add whole wheat to this unless you are willing to let the noodles cook for twice as long. It's like brown rice vs white rice. White is more tender. 

Mix all dry ingredients into a bowl and make a well. A well is a large dent or hole in the center of your dry ingredients. Add the liquid ingredients and stir until a chunky furry bowl of flakes happens. Knead the dough with your hands on a lightly floured board until you get a nice smooth ball. If the dough is still too dry, add water by the teaspoonful until you get a nice smooth dough. If the dough is sticky,  add a little more flour to your board and knead it in.

Break the dough into 3 balls. Roll each on a well floured surface. Dough should be 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.

Slice the dough into noodles. Pops always liked his wide and a little long.

The noodles should be nicely coated with flour. This thickens the soup as it cooks.

Drop the noodles into the soup one at a time, stirring to distribute them. Go back, roll & cut the next batch and toss them in too. Once all your noodles are in the pot, cover it and let it cook for another hour. First day soup is pretty awesome. Second day soup is even better. 

 Nom nom nommity!