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Bone Broths Revisited
November 26, 2011
It is the season for the warming, nutritious bone broths which are so healing all by themselves or the basis for wonderful, flavorful soups.
Keep in mind one of the main reasons for making bone broths is to pull the wonderful minerals from the bones and cartilage. It’s so important to consider the quality of the bones you are using. Certified organic and grass fed is the way to go here.
Beef or lamb: Use approx. 2 pounds of bones for each quart of water. These can be roasted @ 275 degree until browned for a deeper flavor. I like to use my Nesco to make a BIG batch at one time. The strained stock freezes beautifully in 1 quart or 1 pint containers.
Chicken: 1 whole chicken or a couple of chicken stock packages from our farm store or Stewing hen or save bones in the freezer from previous meals until you have enough for a pot full.
Add: 2 Tablespoons cider vinegar or lemon juice per quart of water. The extra acidity helps dissolve the bones and puts more minerals into the broth.
Simmer the beef or lamb up to 72 hours on the stove, in a crock pot or a Nesco roaster (my favorite). Chicken (Turkey or Duck works well too) doesn’t need to cook as long due to the softer bones. I usually go 24 hours. Keep covered to prevent evaporation. Strive for a very gentle, barely there simmer.
If using a whole chicken or the chicken stock package, cook until the meat is done (as short as 1/2 hour), then remove the meat and save for the finished soup or a different meal. Throw the bones back into the pot to finish simmering. If you leave the meat in the the whole cookding process, it will be totally flavorless. Add more water as needed to keep covered. When finished cooking, strain through a colander and discard bones.
For more flavor, add coarsely chopped onions, carrots, celery, garlic, parsely and/or sea salt at anytime in the process. Simmer these until very soft, then strain out with the bones and discard. At this point all the nutrition (and flavor) has gone into the broth.
Chill in the refrigerator so the excess fat will solidify on top and can easily be removed. Put into containers, label and freeze.
Quick Turkey Breast Bake
July 23, 2011
This receipe is an adaptation of several Thai recipe’s. I like it because it is quick and basically can be ignored in the oven. The juices from the turkey blend with the coc0nut milk mixture and make a really nice “gravy” to put on a bed of rice.
Thaw a GrassWay Farm turkey breast. Make slices about 1 – 1 1/2 inch thick. Place slices in 9×13 pan.
On the stove in a kettle, put:
1 can coconut milk
1 – 2 inch piece of ginger, minced
lime juice from 1/2 to 1 whole lime
salt/pepper
cilantro (chopped). I’m crazy about cilantro, so I use about 1/2 cup chopped.
Heat gently on stove and pour over turkey breasts. Cook in 350 degree oven until turkey is done, about 30 minutes. Serve with rice and a spoon to catch all of the juices.
Foods that contain the most pesticides are smart place to spend bucks on organic
February 24, 2011
Blueberry-Lemon Crisp (my version is GF) with Pine Nut Topping
January 2, 2011
This recipe comes from Mark Bittman’s book, The Food Matters Cookbook. I picked this up at our local library and found several really nice recipes. I made it for desert, but I’m going to use the leftovers as a breakfast topping for rice pudding. Sounds yummy, doesn’t it? I’m always on the look out for a fast and healthy breakfast, so I think this may give us another option.
Blueberries are SOOOO good for us – and we have a wonderful frozen wild blueberry product called Wyman’s of Maine in our store. I didn’t have pinenuts on hand (we’re had them on and off in our store – but of course not today when I wanted to make this recipe), so I used pecans instead. I suspect it was no big step down.
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, softened.
4-6 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup pine nuts (I used pecans)
1/2 cup sugar (try brown sugar)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (I used coconut flour since I’ve developed a gluten intolerance.)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
pinch of salt
grated zest of 1 lemon
1. Heat the oven to 375 degree F. Grease an 8 or 9 inch square or round baking dish with a little butter. Put 3/4 pine nuts (pecans) in a food processor along with the 4 T butter and sugar. Let the machine run until the nuts are finely ground and the mixture is creamy and fluffy. My mixture never got fluffy (probably because of the coconut flour vs wheat flour), but the results were really good anyway.
2. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the whole pine nuts, pecans, flour, nutmeg and salt and stir with a fork until crumbly.
3. Spread the blueberries in the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the top with the lemon zest. Crumble the topping over all and press down gently.
4. Bake until the billing is bubbling and the crust is just starting to brown, 30-40 minutes. (Mine was done at 30 minutes). Serve immediately, or at least while still warm with real whipped cream, sweetened just a bit with some vanilla added.
Baked Pecan Crusted Salmon
October 2, 2010
Don’t try to grill this salmon. It is MUCH better in the oven. It’s so easy and so good!
2 pounds salmon fillets
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
salt & pepper
1/4 cup crushed pecans
dash brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Mix in syrup and heat until warm, then turn off heat. Spread the pecans on a plate. Salt and pepper fish to taste. Dip salmon, one at a time, in the sauce, then in the pecans. Place fish in a greased baking pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes.
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