The Kidlet is cooking! And I mean actually cooking, not just stirring the pot a few times or measuring out a bit of flour or salt. She made this stew almost entirely herself. I helped with chopping, but only to apply enough pressure to cut the hard root vegetables; she was the one actually wielding the knife. I gave her some advice on how much salt to add, but she decided that it was under-seasoned and needed a bit more. I was still in the kitchen, but I was very much in the role of sous chef. She took the lead on this one. Proud parent moment!

Note: The Kidlet chose a mix of rosemary, thyme, and sage for her "hard herbs" and a combination of parsley, cilantro, and dill for the "soft herbs".

Herby Chicken Stew

Slightly adapted from the Munchy Munchy Cookbook for Kids by Pierre A. Lamielle

Ingredients

• 2 carrots
• 2 potatoes
• 1 onion
• 2 celery stalks
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter
• 2 Tbsp. hard herbs¹
• 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 2 Tbsp. flour² (optional)
• 1L whole (3.25%) milk
• 1 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 c. heavy (35%) cream
• 1 c. soft herbs³
• black pepper (optional)

Directions

1. Peel and chop the carrots.
2. Chop the potatoes. (The original recipe says to peel them, but I like leaving the skins on: More vitamins, less work, and less waste!)
3. Peel and chop the onion.
4. Chop the celery.
5. Melt the butter over medium heat.
6. Add the chopped vegetables and cook for 10 minutes.
7. Finely chop the leaves of the hard herbs while the vegetables are cooking. (Discard the stems or save them for making soup stock.) Once the vegetables have cooked for 10 minutes, add the minced herbs.
8. Chop the chicken thighs and add them to the pot.
9. If you would like a thick stew, sprinkle in the flour and stir to combine. If you would like a thin stew, omit the flour.
10. Cook for 5 minutes.
11. Add the milk and salt and give the stew a stir.
12. Cook, uncovered, on low to medium-low (keep it at a bare simmer) for 1 hour, stirring every 10 minutes.
13. Stir in the cream.
14. Tear up the soft herbs and stir them into the pot.
15. Adjust seasoning to taste and serve immediately.
16. Top with black pepper and additional soft herbs if desired.

---

¹ Hard herbs are usually a bit tough and often require cooking to achieve optimal flavour. Some hard herbs include: sage, rosemary, thyme, and oregano. ^Back
2 The original recipe didn't call for any flour and we didn't use any. The stew came out delicious, but the broth was very thin. The photos in the cookbook showed a very thick stew with creamy sauce/gravy that clung to the veggies and meat. Ours definitely didn't come out like that. If you do want a thick stew, I would recommend adding a couple tablespoons of flour to help thicken the broth. ^Back
3 Soft herbs are usually very tender and can be eaten fresh. Their falvour may be destroyed or reduced by excessive cooking. Some soft herbs include: chives, parsley, cilantro, mint, basil, and dill. ^Back