Venison stew with bacon & parsley dumplings

Ingredients

• 800g Field & Flower diced venison
• 500ml Field & Flower beef or chicken broth
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 200g pearl onions or small shallots
• 4 medium carrots (chopped to the same size as the shallots)
• 3 celery sticks (cut into bite-sized chunks)
• 3 tbsp plain flour
• 500ml Guinness
• 1 large thyme sprig
• 4 star anise
• Seasoning to taste
• 100g Field & Flower smoked bacon (finely chopped)
• ½ tbsp oil
• 1 tsp thyme leaves
• 125g self-raising flour
• 60g beef suet
• 1 egg yolk
• 30g parsley (stalks removed and finely chopped)