"New" Brunswick Stew

Ingredients

3 to 4 ribs celery from the heart, chopped into big pieces
1 large onion, chopped into big pieces
3 tablespoons plus a drizzle extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 cup flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs and breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces
3 slices center-cut bacon, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, seeded and chopped into big pieces
3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated

1 bay leaf
2 1/4 cups biscuit mix
2/3 cup milk
3 tablespoons chives or scallions, chopped and divided
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (add more or less depending on your taste)
1 teaspoon hot sauce (add more or less depending on your taste)
2 cups chicken stock
2 14.5-ounce cans stewed tomatoes
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 15-ounce can butter beans, drained
1 10-ounce box frozen corn
2 to 3 scallions, sliced thinly on the bias (optional)

Yields: 4 servings

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450 ºF.

Place a heavy-bottomed saucepot over medium-high heat with a drizzle of EVOO. Add the bacon to the pan and cook until crispy golden brown, 3-4 minutes.

While the bacon is cooking, season the chicken with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Combine the flour and poultry seasoning, and sprinkle it over the meat, tossing it lightly to combine.

Remove the crisp bacon from the pan and reserve it on a paper-towel lined plate. Cook the seasoned chicken in two batches, adding 1 tablespoon EVOO to the pot, about 1 turn of the pan, with each batch. Cook until golden brown, 5-6 minutes. Remove the browned chicken from the pot and reserve it on a paper-towel lined plate.

Add the remaining tablespoon of EVOO to the pot, about 1 turn of the pan, and toss in the onion, celery, pepper, garlic and bay leaf. Season the veggies with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and cook until tender, 8-10 minutes.

While the veggies are cooking, combine the biscuit mix, milk, 2 tablespoons chives, smoked paprika and reserved crisped bacon in a medium-size mixing bowl. Drop eight biscuits onto a nonstick baking sheet and bake until light golden brown, about 10 minutes. When the biscuits are done baking, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.

Once the veggies are softened, add the hot sauce, chicken stock, stewed tomatoes and Worcestershire to pot and bring up to a bubble. Add in the reserved chicken, butter beans and corn to the pot, and simmer until chicken is cooked through and stew is slightly thickened, 5-8 minutes.

Serve the stew topped with a sprinkling of chives or green onions and a couple of biscuits alongside.