One of my favorite reads so far this year is RONIA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER by Astrid Lindgren, the author of PIPPI LONGSTOCKING. It’s such a delightful children’s book, complete with a brave heroine, fierce friendship, and an enchanting yet perilous fantasy world. It’s exactly the sort of book that would have become my entire personality if I’d read it when I was 10 years old! I’ll definitely read it to my own kids when they’re old enough. For now, I’ll content myself with making some of the delicious food from the story. Today, we’re making the tasty chicken soup made by Ronia’s mother, Lovis. Let’s get started!

Since RONIA is set in a fantasy version of Scandinavia, I sought out authentic Scandinavian recipes for this menu. Today I’ll be using a slight variation on a Norwegian chicken soup recipe I found on The Norwegian American. It starts with a rich, homemade stock using roasted chicken bones and lots of aromatics. Then it goes on to add carrot, onion, shredded chicken, and rutabaga (a new-to-me addition, which I loved). In the last ten minutes, you spoon in some quick, from-scratch batter to make dumplings.

I gotta say, I LOVED the final product. I think the rutabaga was my favorite part. I was nervous about it at first, but it has this starchy, lightly sweet quality that I found really pleasant. I think I like it better than potato as a soup add-in, since it doesn’t get grainy or mushy when reheated.

So if you’re huddled up in Matt the Robber’s fort with a storm raging outside and harpies screeching in the sky, just hunker down with a comforting bowl of this Norwegian chicken soup with dumplings! Enjoy!

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Norwegian Chicken Soup with Dumplings

“Lovis served chicken soup that night to make up for everything with her robbers. They sat sulkily around the long table . . . but when the powerful scent of Lovis’s chicken soup spread down the long table, the robbers stopped sulking. And as soon as they had eaten, they sang and danced as they used to do . . .”

— Ronia the Robber’s Daughter

 

INGREDIENTS:

• For the Stock
  • 1 whole chicken, roasted
    • To roast the chicken, separate the chicken into sections and place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Evenly coat with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Place in a 375°F oven for 45-60 minutes until cooked through. Reserve the skin. Remove meat from the bones and shred. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. The skin and bones will be used in the stock.
  • 1 large onion, quartered
  • 3 ribs celery, roughly chopped
  • 3 carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 4 whole peeled cloves garlic
  • 1 3-inch thumb of ginger, sliced into coins
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 Tbsp kosher or sea salt
  • NOTE: This isn’t original to the recipe, but I always like to add in a corn cob and a 3-inch Parmesan cheese rind to my soup stock.
• For the Soup
  • Chicken stock prepared above (mine made 6 cups)
  • 1/2 large onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 rib celery, chopped
  • 2 carrots, sliced into coins
  • 1/2 large rutabaga, peeled and cubed
  • 2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken, reserved from stock
  • 1/2 cup frozen peas
  • chopped fresh parsley
  • Salt to taste
• For the Dumplings
  
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 cup flour
  • strong dash of salt

 

Makes approx. 10 cups of soup

 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. FOR THE STOCK. Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Arrange the chicken bones and skin in an even layer on the baking sheet and roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes, turning the bones once halfway through.
2. NOTE: The skin will get golden and salty and crisp, and it will taste incredible. Allow yourself one bite…or two…or three…but save the rest for the stock. It will be the hardest thing you’ll ever do, but you’ll thank me later!
3. Heat 1 Tbsp of olive oil in a large pot (I used a Dutch oven) on medium heat. Add the onions, celery, carrots, garlic, ginger, bay leaf, and salt. Cook until golden brown, stirring regularly (about 5-10 minutes). Add chicken bones, skin, and 3 quarts of water. This is also where you will add the corn cob and Parmesan rind, if you’re using them. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 90 minutes. Strain the stock.
4. FOR THE SOUP. Wipe out the pot and strain the stock back into the pot. Bring the stock to a simmer on medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot, and rutabaga. Simmer for 10 minutes or until the rutabaga is fully cooked (it can have a faintly bitter aftertaste if undercooked). Add the shredded chicken and peas and cook 5 minutes more. Add parsley and salt.
5. FOR THE DUMPLINGS. While shredded chicken heats, whisk the egg and milk in a small bowl with a fork until thoroughly combined. Whisk in the flour and salt. Drop the batter into the pot in spoonfuls, using a regular size spoon. You may have to push the first two dumplings off the spoon, but after that the fats in the soup should coat the spoon and make the other spoonfuls of batter slip off easily. The dumplings are done when they have approximately doubled in size and float to the surface.
6. Serve to the robbers of Matt’s Fort after a hard day of avoiding the sheriff in the forest.

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