Dad's Dumplins

Some of my favorite chicken and dumplins are the ones at Cracker Barrel, but these dumplins put those to shame. This recipe is really for the dumplins only, and they are super easy. You can make your broth the good, frugal, efficient way by boiling a chicken, or you can do it the easy, slacker, quick way like I usually do - 4 cans of chicken broth, 1 can of water, 1 can of cream of chicken soup. We had rotisserie chicken a few nights before, so I used all the meat left over from that to go with my dumplins.

Ingredients:
1/3 C shortening
3 C self-rising flour
1 1/2 C milk

Instructions:
Add shortening & flour into a bowl and mix with a pastry blender for about 5 solid minutes. The texture will be still flour-like with just a little bit thicker crumbles than straight flour. After it is well blended, add milk, and mix together with a fork. Flour your hands, shape dough into a ball. Lay dough on a well floured surface and pat out into about a 15 inch circle, keeping the bottom floured so you don't have trouble pulling apart. Cut into strips with a pizza or pastry cutter. Drop all strips into broth that is at a rolling boil. Make sure each piece gets completely wet; you may have to gently stir them around a little while you're putting the strips in. Keep the heat pretty high (like a low boil, high simmer) and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the chicken, simmer with the lid on for about 5 more minutes. Add pepper to taste.

{Dad's scribbled-out instructions}