chicken and dumplings

Recipe by: Fannie Flagg's Original Whistle Stop Cafe Cookbook Place chicken in a heavy 2½-qt saucepan. Add 6 cups water, and stir in salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and simmer 45 mins to 1 hr, or until very tender. Remove chicken from broth; let cool. Remove chicken from bones and dice. Add milk and margarine to broth; bring to a simmer. Cut shortening into flour using a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add ½ cup water and stir with a fork just until dough leaves side of bowl. For rolled dumplings, roll out dough to ⅛-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut into 4- x ½-inch strips or 2-inch squares. For drop dumplings, pat dough to ½-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; pinch off dough in 1 ½-inch pieces. Gradually drop dumplings, one at a time, into boiling broth mixture. Cover, reduce heat, and boil gently for 15 mins, or until dumplings are cooked. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Stir in chicken and heat through. NOTES : These dumplings are light and fluffy. If you want your sauce to be thicker, like gravy, stir 2 Tbs flour into ¼ cup milk until smooth, then stir into the simmering broth and stir until thickened.