Nothing is better on a cold winter day than a big bowl of stew. And while most people think of beef at the mention of stew, chicken is a great substitute for those looking to cut back a little on their red meat consumption.

The following recipe, which I came up with after contemplating what to do with leftovers from the tasty Hutterite chicken (a 5-pound-plus beauty) that we had for Sunday dinner, is seasoned with herbes de Provence and a bay leaf and contains the other usual ingredients found in stew — potatoes, carrots, peas, onion and celery.

I can’t think of a better meal to have before this week’s spring thaw.

Chicken Stew
2 cups cooked chicken, cut into bite-size pieces
1 quart chicken broth
2 carrots, slice 1-inch thick
3 potatoes, quartered
1 cup frozen peas
2 stalks celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
3 heaping tablespoons flour
1 cup water
Cook carrots and potatoes in broth until tender. Remove from pot. Mix flour and warm water and then stir into broth to thicken. Return carrots and potatoes to pot along with remaining ingredients. Simmer for about 1 hour.
Yield: Serves 4.