{Recipe} Homemade Chicken Stock

Mom's Turkey Soup

I grew up eating homemade stock only in the winter and during Thanksgiving/Christmas season.  Every year, my Mom would make a turkey and create the most lovely turkey stock which was turned into turkey soup.  For her, this included the "innards", bones, meat still on the carcass, celery, carrots, salt, pepper, and LOVE.

The smell of the turkey stock cooking would permeate the house while cooking for at least a whole day.

She would then strain the broth, then pick the turkey from the bones (not a funtastic task at all!).  The Broth and meat was then portioned together and frozen for use throughout the winter.  YUM.

I have longed to do the same at my own home, and I have tried to do this for over a year without getting that perfect stocky flavor using chicken.

Mistakes I made:
*using onion (end result was onion soup)
*using carrots (bitter tasting)
*using too many spices (not good tasting)
*not cooking it long enough (not a good chickeny stocky flavor)

This week my house finally smelled similar to my Mom's house the day after Thanksgiving when the turkey stock was cooking all day.  Hooray!

Here's what I did...

First, I cooked a small whole chicken in the crockpot.  I seasoned it with garlic salt, pepper, and paprika.

Then, I picked the chicken.  You know, taking the meat off the bones after it is finished cooking.  I really dislike this part...but it is worth it!  Since I want to make soup from this, I left a good amount of meat on the bones to cook with the stock (mainly the dark meat, which is awesome for soup!).

Next, I put all the trimmings back into the crockpot.  This included everything...bones, meat, skin.  I filled the crockpot with cold, filtered water and let it sit for 30 minutes before starting it up on low.

I didn't add any veggies or any extras this time.  I figured I could season it later if it was a little bland.  And, oh am I so glad I didn't season it!  It smells amazing, and I finally achieved that sort of golden color with stock!  Yay!

Then, I cooked the heck out of it!

 I let the first batch cook for at least 12 hours on low in the crockpot.  I actually cooked two whole chickens this time and put all the trimmings together in the crockpot.  I got 3 batches of stock out of this which yielded about 3 gallons.

When it has the color taste you are looking for, strain the trimmings from the stock using a mesh strainer.  I put the stock in gallon sized canning jars.  Let it sit on the counter to cool before putting in the fridge.

2nd batch of broth, a little lighter than the first but still pretty!

After it has cooled in the fridge for a while, the fat will harden and rise to the top.  Skim this part off before storing or using.  Although, I might keep the fat separately this time and use it in other cooking...we'll see...

And the trimmings?  Well, my least favorite part is picking the trimmings.  My Mom always had 3 bowls for sorting:  one with the trimmings, one to keep, one to pitch.  This can be super tedious, but so worth it in the end!

Portion, freeze, and soup's on!

Potato Soup

Around Thanksgiving, I bought a giant bag of potatoes on sale for $1.99.  I just realized they are still sitting on my pantry floor, and haven't (amazingly) sprouted yet.  I need to make some delicious winter potato soup!

STEP 1:
Wash, peel, and cut potatoes.  The smaller you cut them, the faster they will cook.

STEP 2:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add potatoes, and boil until tender.

STEP 3:
Drain potatoes, and return potatoes to pot.

STEP 4:
Mash potatoes.  I usually hand mash, but I did purchase a new stick blender that I may try.

STEP 5:
Add butter, milk, salt, pepper, and parsley to taste.  This is just like making mashed potatoes, but add milk until desired consistency is achieved.  I just went to the farm and purchased some REAL MILK, so that will make this soup extra nourishing!

STEP 6:
Heat soup to desired temperature for serving.  Enjoy!


I also usually serve this with smoked sausage with a little melted cheese on top.  I do this because it's what my Mom did when I was growing up.  Use grass-fed cheese to up the nutrient value for this meal.

Recipe: Beef Barley Soup

Beef Barley Soup - Yum!

Since winter made a comeback this weekend (brrrr!), I decided to post this recipe for a hearty, warm winter soup.  My Mom makes this soup at home a lot, but I think she originally got the recipe from Lenten Soup Suppers at church.  It's very easy to adjust for flavor and veggies, and I typically just throw whatever I find in the freezer into the soup pot.  Super easy, yummy, frugal, and satisfying.

Beef Barley Soup   1 lb. ground beef (I use grass fed beef from Greenwood Farms!) 1 T olive oil (or your choice cooking fat) 2 c. chunky med. salsa (or whatever level of hotness you want.  Last time, I used 1/2 medium & 1/2 hot, and it was pretty hot!) 2/3 c. quick barley (I usually add extra barley to make it heartier.) 2/3 c. cauliflower and/ or frozen peas (in the picture above, I used peas, green beans, sliced zucchini, and frozen corn) 2 T minced dried onion 5 c. beef broth (add some water if you used extra barley) 1 C julienne strips of carrots (I used whole baby carrots...lazy...) 1 T basil (adjust based on how many veggies or barley you add) 1 (15 to 16 oz.) can red beans, rinsed   Brown beef and onion in olive oil, drain grease, if necessary.  Add broth, salsa, carrots, barley, beef, and basil to a large stock pot.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce to simmer, cook uncovered 10 minutes.  Add cauliflower and/ or peas.  Cook 5 minutes.  Then add beans and cook to heat throughout.   Very easy!  Basically, you just dump and cook.  I typically double the recipe, let cool to room temperature, portion and freeze for later consumption.  You could definitely double this recipe but only use 1 pound of beef for an extra frugal way to stock your freezer (I LOVE my deep freezer!).