So… does it still count as an anniversary dinner if you have it two weeks early?
We did, and I’m calling it close enough. After four years of marriage, I’ve learned that some things are worth arguing about and many are not. Sometimes you pick your battles — and sometimes you pick chicken and dumplings.
Almost four years ago — okay, maybe four years and a week — I remember the small moment that became a funny memory. My husband walked into the bedroom wrapped in two of those ridiculously soft, fluffy towels we’d been given at our wedding shower, and I lost it.
Towels, you say? Yes. Towels. I’d been less than thrilled about moving into his bachelor pad, which still proudly displayed framed WWF wrestler photos and a collection of things that felt like they belonged to someone else’s past. The fluffy towels felt like the last straw — delicate, new, and perfectly suited for a bright, feminine bathroom I pictured for our future home.
I overreacted. I’m embarrassed to admit it now, but in the moment it felt like betrayal: you used the new towels? You don’t even love me? How will we survive living together? It was dramatic and ridiculous, and I’m sure he wondered what he’d gotten himself into.
Thankfully, the hysteria passed within a day. I had just woken up to a dresser full of die-cast cars and a dusty stuffed turkey — not exactly the romantic scene I’d pictured — and my reaction was probably more shock than anything else.
But the funny outcome: he never used the nice towels again. He reverted to the same worn, familiar towels he’d had for years. To this day, he refuses the new fluffy ones and insists on his old favorites. I’m pretty sure it isn’t about my tantrum as much as it is about his attachment to the familiar — leaving a man cave for a shared life is an adjustment — and it drives me a little nuts. Now I nag him about not using the towels, which somehow feels both petty and endlessly amusing.
That towel story barely scratches the surface of the small, funny, and sometimes ridiculous moments that shape a long-term relationship. Like the morning he wouldn’t speak to me and, when I finally demanded to know why, he opened the shower door and yelled, “Can’t you ever turn the garage lights off? They’re always on!”
I burst into tears and confessed, “Because I’m scared of the dark — and the basement is full of bugs and probably monsters!” Real life, right?
In four years — even two, even one — we’ve learned to pick our battles and respect what makes each of us tick. We compromise. I stopped trying to serve him fancy, peach-and-goat-cheese-stuffed chicken drizzled in garlic oil when he asks for a simple chicken dinner, because apparently that is not “chicken.”
So I make chicken like this: familiar, comforting bowls that feel like home. This crockpot version is simple, mostly hands-off, and perfect when you want real comfort food. You can speed it up with canned biscuits for the dumplings if you’re short on time, or make them from scratch for an even cozier result. Serve it like a stew or, as I prefer, a generous bowl of chicken and dumplings with a little broth to float in. Trust me — this dinner wins the small domestic battles.
Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings
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Ingredients
- 1 sweet onion, diced
- 1 cup chopped carrots
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon flour
- 56 ounces low-sodium chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 cup half and half
dumplings
- 1 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 cup milk, whole, 2% or 1%
Instructions
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Layer the diced onion, chopped carrots, and minced garlic in the bottom of the crockpot. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, then place them on top of the vegetables.
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In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the 2 tablespoons of flour and cook for 2–3 minutes to form a roux, until it turns golden. Gradually add 2 cups of the chicken stock, whisking until smooth, then bring to a boil and cook for 4–5 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat and pour the mixture over the chicken and vegetables. Add the remaining chicken stock, cover, and cook on low for about 6 hours.
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After 6 hours, increase the crockpot to high. Shred the chicken with two forks or kitchen tongs. Stir the half and half into the crockpot, then replace the lid while you make the dumplings. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and pepper. Rub the cold butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers until coarse crumbs form. Stir in the milk until a sticky dough forms. Use a tablespoon to drop small scoops of dough into the hot liquid, placing them around the outside first, then the center. Cover and cook for another 1 to 1½ hours, until the dumplings are cooked through but still soft. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
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Serve immediately and enjoy.
Did you make this recipe?
Thanks for trying the recipe — I appreciate it!
Short answer: yes. Totally counts.