warming the heart and soul (and tummy)

It’s that time of year…everyone around you (or maybe you!) either has a nasty cold or worse, the flu.  When you’re feeling down and under, all you want to do is sleep and sometimes the last thing on your mind is food (me…I’m usually always hungry haha but sometimes when that stuffy nose takes away your taste buds, food is just not as fun). But our bodies need nutrition (e.g. minerals, amino acids) and all that good stuff to fuel us and get us better! One simple way to get these into your system quickly is bone broth – doesn’t it sound ancient?…like what your great grandmother would make or something consumed often in the medieval times?  But that’s the thing…it’s tried, tested and true. Home made is way better than the store bought boxed stuff, and you’re not just making chicken broth but you’re exposing the insides of the bones to allow the marrow and minerals to release into the broth.  Bone broth is easy to digest, easy to eat, and the nutrients are easy for your body to absorb.  It’s loaded with collagen, amino acids such as glycine and proline, and other important goodies.

Our little ones have been slightly under the weather this week – and then my husband got hit with it as well (man cold?) – it was a perfect week to make this wholesome stuff. Plus it warms us up in this cold January weather!

Note:

1. You will need a large cleaver or a very hard rolling pin to smash the bones (you need to expose the bones’ insides) – be sure the kids are far way (bone shards may fly off the cutting board!).  If you can’t do this part, perhaps you could ask your butcher to split the bones for you.
2. I made a roasted chicken one night and kept the bones from it – I used these bones for the broth. You could do the same, or use any other chicken bones from another meal).

prep: 15 minutes    cooking time: 1.5 hours   yield: ~8 cups of bone broth

what you need:

• bones from 1 whole organic chicken
• 9 cups of water
• 1/2 head cauliflower (optional)
• salt and pepper for seasoning, if desired

what to do:

1. Bring 9 cups of water to a boil in a large pot.
2. Smash the bones, splitting them and revealing the inside.
3. Add bones to the water, bring to a boil again, then turn it down to simmer, for 1.5 hours.
4. Turn off the heat and allow it to cool slightly.
5. Prepare another pot and place a fine strainer on top – strain the broth to remove bone shards. (You could stop here and serve the broth plain and simple)
6. Place pot with clear broth back onto the stove, bring back to a boil.
7. Clean and chop cauliflower into bite size pieces – add to the broth and simmer for about 15 minutes, until cauliflower is soft and tender.
8. Season lightly with salt and pepper, to taste. Enjoy!