Skinless chicken is the basis for this delicious stew with cornmeal dumplings made with low-fat milk.

For the stew:

1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 C. onion, coarsely chopped
1 medium carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
1 stalk celery, thinly sliced
1/4 t. salt
1 pinch ground cloves
1 bay leaf
3 C. water
1 t. cornstarch
1 t. dried basil
1 10-oz. package frozen peas
black pepper, to taste

For cornmeal dumplings:

1 C. yellow cornmeal
3/4 C. sifted all-purpose flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 C. low-fat (1 percent) milk
1 T. vegetable oil

For stew:

1. Place chicken, onion, carrot, celery, salt, pepper, cloves, bay leaf and water in a large saucepan. Heat to boil; cover and reduce heat to simmer. Cook about l/2 hour or until chicken is tender.
2. Remove chicken and vegetables from broth. Strain broth.
3. Skim fat from broth; measure and, if necessary, add water to make 3 cups liquid.
4. Mix cornstarch with 1 C. cooled broth by shaking vigorously in jar with tight-fitting lid.
5. Pour into saucepan with remaining broth; cook, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to boil and is thickened.
6. Add basil, peas and reserved vegetables to sauce; stir to combine.
7. Add chicken and heat slowly to boiling while preparing cornmeal dumplings.

1. Sift together cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt into large bowl.
2. Mix together milk and oil. Add milk mixture all at once to dry ingredients; stir just enough to moisten flour and evenly distribute liquid. Dough will be soft.
3. Drop by full tablespoons on top of braised meat or stew. Cover tightly; heat to boiling. Reduce heat (do not lift cover) to simmering and steam about 20 minutes.

YIELD: 6 servings SERVING SIZE: 1 1/4 cups stew with 2 dumplings

NUTRITION ANALYSIS PER SERVING: Calories, 307; Fat: 5 grams; Saturated fat: 1 gram; Cholesterol, 43 milligrams; Sodium, 471 milligrams