Broth vs. Stock

Look at that broth!
This is from the bones of a whole chicken and a turkey breast.

Do you know the difference? The terms are used pretty much interchangeably, but there is a difference. Stock is made by boiling meat, vegetables and/or herbs and broth is made by boiling only the bones, usually slowly at low temperatures. Nutritionally, broth is the way to go because by boiling only the bones you can access the marrow, which according to the Weston A. Price Foundation:

...contains minerals in a form the body can absorb easily—not just calcium but also magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur and trace minerals. It contains the broken down material from cartilage and tendons--stuff like chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine, now sold as expensive supplements for arthritis and joint pain.

I learned how to make my own bone broths from my friend, MommyBee who has a great tutorial on how to do this. The only thing that I might add from my own research is that if you want to cook chicken bones for more than 2 hours you need to do it at a super low temperature, as in a slow cooker. It is also important to skim off the fat to get rid of impurities and toxins.

Making a stock is pretty similar to making a broth, but you don't simmer it for as long; usually less than two hours. It is really easy to make a vegetable stock, and just as you save the bones from meat, you can save your vegetable scraps/peels and even less-than-fresh produce for a great stock. The best veggies to use for your stock are:

...onions, garlic, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, celery, mushrooms, peas, corn (empty corn cobs can also add lots of flavor to veg. stock), parsley, green beans, beets, bell peppers, scallions, green onions, shallots, fresh basil or other herbs, etc., etc.

I will usually just save my scraps in a plastic bag in the freezer and when I get a bag full, I cover them with water, throw in some whole spices (like a bay leaf), cover and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour. Then strain and you have a lovely stock to use in any recipe calling for it or broth. Easy! Be careful to use any scraps from the cabbage family, such as broccoli, very sparingly because they have an intense flavor. Apparently you can also can stock/broth if you have a pressure cooker.

This Week's Kitchen Winners

If I had a more than decent camera and some photography skills I would take gorgeous photos of my favorite recipes in all their glory, BUT I don't so you will just have to take my word for it.

Carrie's White Chicken Chili
This one wins the food storage award and it is the perfect fall/winter dish with a side of cornbread. I adapted this from Delene Bullard's "Super Simple White Chicken Chili" recipe in Gillette 1st Ward's "Lunch Club" cookbook but changed it enough that I am going to call it my own.

1 lb. of Great Northern Beans, soaked and cooked or 5 cans rinsed and drained
3 cups chicken broth or 2 cans
2 cups chopped chunk chicken (I used 2 cans of chicken); Can use two chicken breasts cooked and chunked.
2-3 small cans of green chilies
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. cumin
1 1/2 tsp. of taco seasoning (I used a spice blend with no MSG)
2 tbsp. cornstarch dissolved in cold water to thicken, if desired

In a large pot combine all the ingredients except cornstarch. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 15 minutes. Thicken with cornstarch, if desired, and boil for one minute. This should serve 6-8 adults.

Crispy Potato Chicken
This recipes wins the "Best use of Potato Flakes" award. Andrew's aunt Diane submitted this one in the famous "Purple MFR (Montgomery Family Reunion)" cookbook. I don't generally try many of the MFR recipes (there are 3 MFR's) because of the high sugar and dairy content of many of the recipes, but there are occasionally jewel's such as this one that fit our dietary needs.

1 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese (I omitted this)
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
10 bone-in chicken pieces, legs and thighs (I just used 4 large chicken thighs and it seemed the perfect amount. If I were doing more I would want to double the amount of spices)
2 eggs
2 tbsp. water
1 c. mashed potato flakes (I used less)
1 stick of butter, melted (you can use 1/2 if you do less chicken)

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bag combine spices and cheese and shake chicken in two batches (again I only did one because I was using less chicken) until they are coated. Pour the butter into a 9X13 baking pan and coat the bottom well. In a shallow bowl, beat eggs and water. Dip chicken into the eggs mixture and then coat with the potato flakes and add to the pan. Bake, uncovered, for 20-30 minutes, turn the chicken; bake for 15-30 minutes longer. Check the temperature to see if the chicken is done at 15 minutes. How long you bake it depends on your oven and how thick the chicken is. I would check the done-ness after no more than 35 minutes in the oven.

New House: The front and basement

From the main floor to the basement

Yes, I keep my mop in the foyer. That is the front entry door to the left of the mop.

The front yard which you can't totally see but I was cold and barefoot so this is what you get. I head a wreath on the door but the wind blew it away in the freak storm we had last week.

What you see when you walk in the front door.

The view from the foyer into the basement. The desk set-up is where Andrew does his school work. There is still a lot of organizing to be done, but we don't have enough shelves to put it all.

The food storage shelves get priority. We don't have much but we are working on it. My system so far is to have sugar/fruit on the right, beans/protein in the middle and canning/personal care items on the left. Our rice, oatmeal and powdered milk is in the boxes under the TP.

My future craft area! There isn't much to see really aside from a ton of clutter. We need shelves badly but until then, everything sits in boxes. There you have it!