Directions

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour.

Heat oil in a Dutch oven and brown the chicken. Remove the chicken from the pot and add the onions, carrots celery, jalapenos, thyme and cayenne. Stir and cook for about 3-4 minutes. Add chicken back into the pan. Add the chicken stock. Simmer for 20 minutes.

In the meantime make the dumpling dough. In a bowl add the flour, Crisco and milk. Using your hands mix until it forms a dough. Knead it a few times to ensure it comes together. Set aside.

Remove the cooked chicken from pan. Remove the skin and discard. Using 2 forks shred the chicken and place it back in the pan. Add ½ cup of heavy cream. Stir and make sure it is mixed well. Using a tablespoon scoop 16 dumplings and drop them into the pot. Cover half way with the lid and simmer for 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Directions

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the thyme, chile flakes, garlic, and bay leaf and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 2 minutes. Add black-eyed peas and vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until the flavors have melded, 10 minutes. Discard bay leaf and sprigs of thyme and transfer the pea mixture to a blender; purée until smooth. (Sprinkle in a little water if mixture is too dry.) Season with salt and pepper; transfer to a bowl.

Drizzle olive oil over slices of bread and toast in oven until golden brown.