Mulligatawny Stew

When we were in Calgary a few weeks ago I ordered Muligatawny Stew at the Limerick Pub while we were discussing Noel's bobsleigh ride.  It's such a wonderful comfort food and has so many variations.  I thought then and there that I would like to find a recipe to make some.  Fast forward to this past weekend.  I was looking through a "Montana Cookbook" that my mother had given to Noel when...lo' and behold, there was a recipe for Mulligatawny Stew.  Although other recipes I've found call for a variety of vegetables and no apples, we found this version to be wonderful...slightly sweet due to the apples and immensely comforting.  Serve it with whole grain bread and pair it with Coldsmoke Scotch ale from the Kettlehouse in Missoula, MT.  Mmmmmmmmm.....

Mulligatawny Stew

1 tablespoon butter

1 ½ cups chopped onion

1 ½ tablespoons curry powder

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. skinless, boneless chicken thighs, chopped

½ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

2 cans (14.5 oz. each) chicken broth

½ cup flour

1 1/2 cups milk

2 3/4 cups chopped and peeled Golden Delicious apples

¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped

In a large kettle, melt butter.  Add onion, curry powder and garlic; sauté for 3 minutes.  Add chicken and sauté for 5 minutes.  Add salt, pepper and broth; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes.  Place flour in a bowl; slowly add milk and stir until blended.  Add flour mixture to soup and cook for 5 minutes or until soup has thickened, stirring constantly.  Add apples and cook for 10 minutes.  Remove kettle from heat and stir in parsley.

(Note:  It certainly would be a quicker recipe with boneless chicken thighs, but I prefer the flavor that the bones add.  I used thighs with the bones in and cooked it for 25 minutes after adding the broth.  I then removed the thighs and pulled the meat off the bones after they were cool enough to handle.  I chopped the chicken, put it back into the stew and continued with the recipe.  I also used Granny Smith apples rather than the Golden Delicious.)