Making Broth

 

 

On a regular basis I make soup broth. Currently I have a pot simmering on my 1960′s countertop with a couple quarts in the fridge from last weekend waiting to be made of. We are a soup family regardless of the time of day or season.  I wrote a post about making broth back in 2010 but since then the topic has been brought up time and time again with friends. I am often surprised at how many people have never considered making this simple concoction.  With that said along with my passion for home cooking I felt the need to write about it once again.

 

 

 

 

I make chicken broth more often then any other type of broth.  Beef & vegetable broth I make occasionally. There is no need to follow a recipe.  I usually cook it in a crock pot  anywhere from 7 to 24 hours on low depending on my mood needs.

 

Anytime we eat meat with a bone, mostly chicken I throw the carcass in a bag into the freezer.  Same goes for any extra veggies you may have. You can even go as far as saving carrot peelings, celery ends, and potato peels.

This will take like 5 minutes to whip up and then the crock will do the rest of the work….

• Place chicken carcass in crock pot
• Fill with water leaving a little space for veggies/herbs
• Splash (1/4 – 1/2 cup) of vinegar, I have also heard white wine, lemon or anything acidic.  It helps to sap the nutrients and minerals out of the bones.
• Add an onion, couple carrots, couple celery stalks, garlic if your feeling adventurous
• Couple bay leaves, several peppercorns, sprinkle of kosher salt, and if desired whatever herbs are handy (basil, oregano, thyme, rosemary).  I usually throw in 1 or two herbs, whatever is in season or dried.
• Cook, cool, strain, use for soups, gravies, whatever your heart desires or store for future use.  It also freezes well.

*Modifications…for beef broth use beef bone, for vegetable broth I don’t use vinegar and I use a wider variety of vegetables, whatever left overs I have  fresh or frozen including but not limited to potatoes, zucchini, and tomatoes.

It’s a fairly simple process.  I encourage everyone to try it at least once and compare it side by to store- bought stock.  Pretty sure you’ll be done with buying broth other then for back up stash in your cupboards.  That’s all it took to covert me a few years back.
 

Making Goats Milk Cheese

This is my first attempt posting using Windows Live Writer so bear with me, blogger has has some issues lately so I figured I’d try something different.  This past winter I gave one of my neighbors a Muscovy (not live, the ready for the oven kind).  In trade she said she’d give me some goat milk come Spring when her does were freshened.  She did just that!  With that milk I made goat cheese and Maine Man absolutely loved it.  He has recently figured out he has issues with milk products yet this cheese I’d created did not bother his gut.  Long story short……we purchased a goat.  Another one of those things I’d said I would never do again…LOL.  Her name is Dolly.  We are not quite sure what breed she is, maybe an Alpine/Nubian mix.  Regardless she is a big girl and she is sweet as ever and we’ve really enjoyed having her around.  She is producing between 1 – 1 1/2 quarts twice a day.  EXCITING….scratch another item off my grocery list ….MILK.  Besides using it for cooking & drinking I’ve only used it to make this cheese.  It is a FAVORITE with MM & Flower Girl and I like it too.  It’s also Wicked EASY to make so that helps. 

• Slowly heat milk to 185 degrees
• Add 1/4 cup of vinegar
• Keep temp @ 185 stirring occasionally for 10-15 minutes.  Soft curds will form.
• Line strainer with cheesecloth then pour curds/liquid into strainer (remove liquid)
• Sprinkle cheese with salt (I use a coarse sea salt)
• Tie corners of cheesecloth together and hang allowing it to drip for a few hours.
• Add seasonings (dill, pepper, and/or garlic) if desired
• Break up with fork & refrigerate

 

Baker in the Making

Last week Flower Girl baked the best Ginger Snap's Ever! She got the recipe from All Recipes.com , Mom's Ginger Snaps. Love that site, great resource! She made the first batch with a little help from me. Then the following night she made a double batch all by herself. Half for her class and the rest my workplace X-Rated Dining Divas luncheon. The third night when I got home from work she had made another batch independently once again. Not to shabby for an 8 year old. Last night she made peanutbutter cookies. Now I just need to train her to do the dishes after ;) Hoping her love for cooking continues!

What Makes Me Tick ~day 13

A couple months back I was talking with one of the doctors at work who loves to cook. He said "I love to cook because food makes people happy and I like making people happy."

I couldn't have said it better. So true!

I thought about posting this tonight while I was making Flower Girl a batch of soup at 8pm for her lunch tomorrow. She wanted no part in bringing in a little can of Campbell's. I've created a monster ;) After the ROUGH week I've had what I really wanted to do was kick back but sometimes you just do things out of love.

In the end it always pays off. When I came up to bed she had a glass of ice water on my bedside table, and "I Love You" stick-it note on my computer, she had folded and put away the laundry that was on my bed, and a BIG thanks for making her soup.

And it also helps when Maine Man says things like.......

"I love that you love to cook. I love that you cook with the kids. And I love to eat the food you cook"

If he only knew I wrote down what he said to me way back on 12/31....I'm not to be trusted, lol. God I love that man!

My Little Onion Chopper ~ day 11

No need in crying when your cooking up dinner.

Clever and effective idea the kids came up with.

In the past I have refrigerated the onions prior to cutting them up.

I thought that was effective but I am not always good at planning that far ahead.

Sad to report but these are store bought onions. (ha, actually this picture just above is celery, lol) Last year's harvest was marginal. This year Maine Man will try to grow them in ash as it has been said to be an effective way of growing onions. What about you? Do you have any tricks to cutting up onions without fighting back tears? How about growing onions? Any gardening tips to share? Would love to hear all your secrets!

Duck Eggs- day 8

Duck eggs are my ABSOLUTE favorite to bake with! I cherish them in the winter because it is the only season of the year I get them. The rest of the time the hens are either sitting on a nest of eggs for hatching or they are free ranging at the pond. They don't seem to be as ritualistic as chickens laying in the same spot. They are real good at hiding their eggs.
The shells are like 100 times thicker then a chicken's egg
(slight exaggeration on my part but you get my point)
Not like a chicken egg. If you have hens you know the deal. You slip it in your pocket, accidentally lean against something and you have a pocket full of yokey nastiness. Do you know how many times I have done that?
I have lost track. Even did it once at the kids school.
Waiting for them to get out, stuck my hand in my pocket and you know it.
I learn lessons hard and slowly.

Have you ever baked with duck eggs?
You must try just once. The only way to describe the end result is "fluffier".

Wicked Easy Yogurt - day 4

This recipe comes from one of my co-workers. I will make it again for sure!

Supplies needed: 1 gallon of milk, 1 small plain Greek yogurt, cheesecloth (a fine strainer may do the trick)

• Pour milk in pot and heat to 190 degrees, whisk as heating.


• Cool to 120 degrees (I place the pot in a larger bowl with cool water running into the bowl until it reached temperature)


• Add yogurt


• Place in a container, then I put it in one of the kids insulated lunch boxes. My friend says she uses a cold/hot bag


• Place it in the oven overnight


• In the morning pour onto cheesecloth and let drain 2-4 hours


• Stir & refrigerate.

I typically do not care for plain yogurt but I liked this. Just had to add some granola to spice it up a bit. Next time around I may try to flavor it. Anyone have any experience with this? I could use a little direction. I am also curious as to how long it is good for?

Making Crutons - day 3

The other day I had a few bread ends I thought I'd make use of.

It was super quick & easy!

1. Cut the bread into cubes
2. Drizzle w/ melted butter
3. Add spices - I used garlic & onion power, basil, and oregano

Bake at 225 until crunchy (15 minutes or so)

The kids LOVED them and so did Maine Man.

It is always nice when you make everyone happy!

2010 in Review

Last night I skimmed though the last year of posts. It was great to look back and reminisce 2010. In this digital era where photo albums are often lacking I am thankful that I document some of our journey here. The goal for 2011 is to post a picture everyday but I have yet to decide if that is doable so we will see. I made 2008's archives into a book and when I have some extra cash I will be ordering 2009 & 2010 through blog2print. The kids, family & friends love looking through it and it is a great back up of my blog if and when the internet ever crashes.



As I looked though the posts there were a few I thought would be worth sharing again before they were buried in the archives.

• In January I did a post on Grapenut pudding - I often retrieve this recipe from my archives. Good way to use up milk and eggs if you have an abundance and it is popular with the older population, Maine Man likes it too.

• I have been saving bacon fat since I wrote about making bird food. I plan to make it again soon.

• It is nice that I no longer have to purchase pie crust at the grocery store when I can make it at home for a fraction of the cost.

• Soon we will be planting leeks. I look forward to cooking up some more of this potato leek soup

• This year I plan to pickle some of the fiddleheads I forage. Can't wait to go out this Spring!

• If you ever visit Maine you must visit Acadia National Park. 36 years in Maine and this year was the first time I ever went there.

• We had an amazing growing season in 2010 thanks to the greenhouse that supplied us with produce from April to December. Next year we plan to plant earlier for winter greens.

• This morning I at some of this garlic scape pesto mixed with farm fresh eggs along with the BEST toast ever.

• Tonight I made up some yummy broccoli soup using my own chicken stock. I cannot even stand the thought of buying that stuff in the store as it can be made at home for pennies and there is no comparison in taste & quality. I usually have a stash in the freezer and even canned some this year but with soup season in full swing my stock is depleted. Now I have to plan ahead.

• This summer our fresh air child will be returning for 2 weeks instead of one. We can't wait to see her again.

• Lastly..... do you remember the duck that hatched out 26 ducklings? That is just crazy!

Looking forward to MANY more Adventures in 2011!

Making Cranberry Sauce

I have never been a big fan of cranberries until recently when my friend gave me a big bag of local cranberries. I made a few treats that came out better then expected and on Thanksgiving morning I decided to try and make some cranberry sauce.

Very easy....I used approximately 2 cups of berries, added cranberry juice (water can be used) a couple inches up the pan. Boiled for 15 minutes. The berries popped as they cooked...that was kinda cool. Then I added 1 cup of sugar and cooled and served. It can also be canned via water bath for future use. My family liked it, nothing like the stuff you buy in a can.

Guess what kind of berry picking I want to do next fall?

Grateful

Holidays are a time to reflect on and foster peace on earth, good will towards all, and to simply savor the good times we have with friends & family.
A time to count our blessings.

And remember those less fortunate.

Hope Everyone Enjoyed Thanksgiving with their loved ones.
Flower Girl made her first Apple Pie today.
It was delicious! Her Daddy would agree, he ate most of it :)

Cooking & Clara

Have you ever watched any of the You Tube videos about about Clara, a 94 year old great grandmother that recounts her childhood during the Great Depression as she prepares meals from that era? Maine Man and I laid in bed the other night with smiles on our face as we watched one video or her after another on my lap top. Love her stories, some which remind me of my own grandparents whom lived through those rough times. Here are a few links to some of her recipes I'd like to try....

• Egg drop soup.... having difficulty linking this for some reason but you can google search it.
• Dandelion salad
• Baked Apples

Check her out! I am sure you will enjoy!

Flower Girl's Applesauce

For the last 2 years I have blogged about Flower Girl and her famous applesauce. It was fun to go back and look her in 2008 and 2009 and marvel over how she has grown. So I will carry on the tradition and document her creations as long as she continues to do so.

I chuckled looking back at these pictures because this apple (FG) didn't fall far from the tree.


Although I do not remember being so animated at her young age.


I was in my prime by age 16


Which leads me to wonder what I will be in for when she hits 16.

I have faith that she'll be good kid.

Please God, no pay backs for how I behaved!

Supplies needed: apples, honey, cinnamon & a crock pot. See previous posts (above 08' & 09') for exact measurements.

Quick & Easy Biscuit Mix

I came across this idea & recipe in Backwoods Home Magazine (May). I am always looking for new ideas that are easy and inexpensive. This is the mix I made up:

• 10 cups flour
• 10 Tbsp. baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 4 tsp cream of tartar
• 4 Tbsp. sugar

Mix, Make your first batch, Store remaining for future biscuit making.

I used a tuna can to cut the dough. They were a big hit with the family.

Then wrote the directions on my storage container because I'd never remember.

This is what you do....

• 2 cups of mix
• 6T. of butter (softened)
• 1 cup of milk

(or buttermilk for fluffier biscuits)

I mixed the biscuit mix with butter in my kitchen-aid then added milk. Turned onto a floured board & kneaded for 30 seconds. Do not overwork dough. Pat into 1/2 inch-thick circle and cut with biscuit cutter or tuna can). Place on ungreased oven at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes.

P.S. Country Boy & Flower Girl want to send a Hello & THANK YOU out to their Great Aunt in Florida!!

Keeping It Simple - Crustless Quiche

I am all about throwing together a meal in a few minutes. It doesn't happen often but I recently came across a simple recipe that makes for a quick, delicious, nutritious meal that can be eaten at anytime of the day.

I have made in 3 times in the last couple weeks using different ingredients and everyone has liked except Country Boy. He is a little finicky compared to the rest of us. Have I ever mentioned that Flower Girl eats just about ANYTHING? Love That! In comparison to most kids CB isn't too bad. I guess I'll keep him ;)

So this is what you need:

1 1/2 Cup of chopped meat (cooked) and sauteed vegetables
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup of dairy (milk, half/half, and or heavy cream)
handful of shredded cheese
Salt, pepper, and an herb or two


For meat- I have used ham and sausage, bacon would be good too.
Vegetables...onions, peppers, shredded carrots, mushrooms...basically what ever you have around that needs to be used up.
Dairy- whatever is available. I usually combine 2 of the above. I am sure all cream would be very tasty but not without the price of 1,000 calories per serving so I mix to help preserve....for desert;)
Herbs- I have used garlic and basil but next time around I may use dill.

Preheat oven at 350 degrees, grease a pie plate or shallow round glass container with a slab of buttter. Spread meat and vegetables at the bottom of the pan, sprinkle with a handfull of cheese, mix eggs, dairy, and spices and pour atop. Cook for 30-35 minutes. Isn't that SIMPLE?

Best Potato Leek Soup

Over the years I have heard of leeks but I had yet to try them. I considered asking Maine Man to plant some but I thought it may be a good idea to give them a try first.

I googled "Best potato Leek Soup" and I came across this recipe at Pinch My Salt's blog.

It is a MUST try! I will be making a crock full for Tuesday's celebration at work for Doctor's day per request of my co-workers that sampled this SACRED soup.

I encourage you to peak over at her blog. There is a story behind this recipe, it was her late mother's. She also has a photo tutorial that walks you through all the steps. For whatever reason I put my camera up after sauteing the onions & leeks. This is the ingredients as posted on Pinch My Salt. I will write my modifications below.

3 Tablespoons of butter

3 leeks, thinly sliced

1 medium onion, chopped

6-8 russet potatoes, thinly sliced 3 1/2 cups chicken broth (or enough to barely cover potatoes)

1 cup of heavy cream
salt and ground pepper to taste

1. Melt butter, add onions and leeks. Cook until limp and just slightly brown.

2. Add potatoes and broth. Cook until potatoes are tender. Mash potatoes until desired consistency.

3. Add heavy cream, salt & pepper. Cook on low for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.

So here is what I did for modifications:

*I did not use russet potatoes, used what I used what I had on hand

* I used homemade chicken broth rather than store bought. I have been making broth since 2008. I refuse to buy it in the store when it can be made for virtually nothing and there is NO doubt that it is better for you.

*For dairy I used nearly 2 cups. Instead of heavy cream I used half half & half and half whole milk. That is what I had in the fridge and the substitution saved on calories.

* After sauteing the onions & leeks I put them aside in a bowl rather then cooking with the potatoes. I think it preserved it's crispy nature. I did mash the potatoes but left them chunky.

I do not know about you but I prefer chunks to puree. I'll have my share of puree when I'm in "the home". ;)

Flower Girl is big on soups. Actually that girl will eat just about ANYTHING! She said this was "the best soup you've ever made" and "make sure you write down the recipe." So here it is FG!

p.s. MM liked it too!

Simply Delicious

This past summer I won a pair of apple bakers at local fundraiser. Last night I dusted them off and put them to use for the first time. Approx 45 minutes @ 350 degrees. Flower Girl LOVED it and Country Boy passed it to me. Too bad for him and GOOD for me!

Local, organic apples drizzled with maple syrup & cinnamon.

Simply Delicious!

Making Butter

What's a girl to do when someone gives her a few pints of heavy cream? My initial thought was to recreate a vanilla bean ice cream I made a few weeks back. Well at 236 calories per 1/2 cup I opted to give butter making a try since I won't eat that by the bowl.

It was quick and easy! Here are the steps I followed:

1) Pour the cream in the mixer, start on low.


2) As it starts to thicken (a few minutes), increase speed to medium.
3) Mix for a few minutes then increase speed to high.

After a while the cream eventually turns into whipped cream.

4) At this point you want to watch it closely as it turns to a crumbly butter-type texture.


5) As soon as you start to noticing liquid accumulation, drain off into a bowl. After that I mix a bit then drain liquid, repeating this cycle a couple times. Then form the butter and rinse the remaining buttermilk off.

The buttermilk can be used for cooking.

I made a batch of plain butter adding approximately 1 teaspoon of salt per pint.

Then I made cinnamon honey butter using 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 cup of local honey.

My all time favorite was garlic/dill. A couple crushed cloves and 2 Tablespoons of dill.

Skinning A Pig by Maine Man - processing part 1

Some say you can't skin a pig you must scrape it. Around here we reserve the C word for special occasions. I have found by letting the carcass cool for a few hours the loose greasy fat hardens and the hide takes on a leathery quality. Today's 40 degree temps were just perfect for cooling your hog. After skinning the animal down just past the tail I placed a small rock about 1/2 the size a baseball under the hide and wrapped it tightly with a slip loop. I then let off the clutch on the tractor in super low range. One could do the same thing by hanging the animal from a large branch and pulling with a truck. One word of caution this process requires a great deal of pressure and if your knot slips or the branch breaks there's 200lb of meat coming your way at 100 mph (pigs can fly). I used double slip loops on each hind leg, one set carried the load. The second set carried little to no pressure and acted as a safety lanyard in case the first rope slips or brakes. A high quality 5/16 rope will snug up tighter than 1/2 inch and is far less likely to slip. Guide the intestines out of the way with your knuckles this method will open them like a zipper and more importantly it'll keep the poop off the bacon.

Happiness comes from a large stack of meat ( you betcha). Here's a ham, 2 sides of bacon, and the fat back (or back fat which ever your prefer). We have a book called Basic Butchering of Livestock and Game that is written by a DR of Veterinary Medicine, John Mettler. It's a good reference for all you weekend warriors and backyard butchers like ourselves and has some great recipes as well.

Pork chop!!! ( the other white meat) although it kinda pink isn't it.

Oh yes, lovely bacon. Here I am slapping on a mixture of salt, brown sugar, and maple syrup. This is our first time making bacon, we'll let your know how it comes out. It needs to set for 7 days in fridge with this solution and then a few hours of smoking to be complete. As of now we have no brilliant plan for the smoking but, necessity is the mother of invention.

Some fine fat indeed the kidneys are encased in this pure snow white fat which is the consistency of Crisco.



Ok, back to me. It was nice to have Maine Man do a post, don't you think? Since he does not regularly follow my blog (he says he lives it) I told him about the responses I received on to post or not to post the pictures and he said "they are not gory pictures and it is for educational purposes." I hate to admit but he is RIGHT. Hope I do not have to say those words again anytime soon. ;)

Back to the fat. Some of was packaged up and put into the freezer for future soap making. I plan to combine it with cow fat. I previously read over at Throwback at Trapper Creek

this method is the way to go because if you used only pig lard it would be to soft or exclusively cow to hard. I look forward to making this recipe!

Some of the lard will be made into salt pork for my dad. The lard in the above kettle can be used like you would use Crisco. I cut it up into chunks, placed it in my cast iron kettle with approx 3/4 cup of water and cooked it in the oven for 2 hours at 225 degrees. I used a strainer and a piece of cheesecloth to strain it when it was done and below is the end result. The water was drained after it hardened. It is said to be healthier than the traditional fats we buy at the grocery store. I found this post this morning but I cannot find the site I used as a reference that night. :(
Meat total: 38lbs bacon

10lbs sausage

36lbs boneless chops & roasts

14lbs ground pork

gave away a front shoulder (approx 15 lbs of pork)

= 113 lbs of meat