This week, Beets, Beer Bread, and Bone Broth!
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-JT
what kind of bones did you use for the broth?
I roast beets in foil like you described. Bone broth is a staple on our home-I’ve been making it ever since I got a copy of Nourishing Traditions 10 years ago. I found Nourishing Broths to be a bit more relaxed than NT. Far more do-able recipes, though many in NT are easy enough as well. The meatloaf with gingered carrots is so good!
Did you use only bones or add bones to a whole chicken? Using a whole chicken seems to work best for me. I would love to find a source for chicken bones as picking the meat off is a time consuming task. Sounds pathetic I know, but between homeschooling my six kiddos, getting them to activities and working part time, I need ways to streamline.
Start with roasted bones. These are the hardest thing to get any more as they are taking the bones out of darn near every piece of beef they can. Sometimes you can talk the butcher into selling them to you. Other times you have to buy the "short ribs" cut is best you want the marrow.
Brown the bones and meat uncovered in the oven.(About an hour at 350 will do it)
De-glaze the roasting pan with vinegar water (I use 1/4 cup unpasteurized apple cider and about two cups of water) Scrape up all the brown bits and pour into a stock pot.
If you want to pick the meat off for something else then let them cool and pick. Throw the bones and anything that is not meat into the stock pot.
Now here is where some planing ahead is needed.
Every time I fix vegetables I keep the scraps. The bottoms of asparagus spears, corn cobs, carrot tops, beet stalks, celery bottoms, leek tops, they have all been put in a bag in the freezer. Also all the liquid that I have drained off canned vegetables has been saved in a gallon jar in the fridge. And all of it goes in the pot.
Now we cook, fill the pot to the top with water and leave it at a simmer. I have a large pot and can turn the stove way down so I leave it on at night.
You cook it for 72 hours minimum, 96 is better.
Keep adding water as the water cooks off. This, by the way will keep the air inside your house moist which is why this is a winter project for me.
In the last you can add in bay leaf, a couple of onions, carrots, celery or whatever suits your fancy.
Now let it cook for 12 hours more.
Now it is time to strain.
The bones should look very strange and may even be a bit crumbly. Toss all of this, it has given it's all. DO NOT give the bones to dogs.
Pour the strained liquid back into the pot to cool and then put in fridge. A disk of fat will form on the top. You can take this off and discard it, use it to make Yorkshire pudding, make candles, what ever floats your boat.
Pour the bone broth into quart sized plastic containers and freeze.
Funny! I made two loaves of beer bread yesterday that the kids polished off at dinner tonight. Same recipe as posted. It’s so quick and easy and satisfies that fresh bread desire when I’ve waited too long to make the real thing. Very tasty! Also a good way to clear out old beer in the fridge. We’re not big drinkers so that happens often.
My daughter wants to grow beets this year so she can use it to dye wool. She raises angora rabbits and wants to practice with natural dyes. I can’t wait to see how it turns out! I’ll make her knit me a beet red scarf!
I love this food magazine put out by the Ontario Liquor Board. There are some great recipes here that I have tried-beet and sweet potato fries, risotto etc. I love beets in any form.
My recipe for beer bread is about the same-sweeter, and I have played with making it savory or herb flavored etc. It is great to make quickly and eat with lots of butter.
3 cups of self rising flour
7 Tbls of sugar (more or less)
1 12 oz can of beer(not lite or 3%)
Mix till moist-do not beat, and bake @ 350 for 45 min. Add 1/4 cup of melted butter if desired, and bake additional 15 minutes.
Good enough to use for sandwiches, if we run out of bread and need a quick fix.
Bone Broth - I have for years used every turkey or chicken carcus to make broth, and recently started using Sally Fallon’s recipes from my daughter’s cook book. I also used to buy wings and necks to make broth and chicken pie as they were very inexpensive.
Now wings are expensive, necks hard to come by, and bones from beef even more so. Whenever our super market happens to have some bones or short ribs, I buy quite a lot and stick it in the freezer. During the summer, the local farmers market sometimes has beef raised locally, and soup bones or shanks can be purchased.
I like pickled beets, and sometimes can some up from our garden, if we get enough. I really like a steak with a wedge of lettuce salad, and some beets sprinkled with feta or blue cheese.