Bone broth soup is all the rage now. The benefits of the collagen and the gelatin are coming to the forefront in the food-conscious arena. But bone broth soup has been part of my regimen for a long time. I discovered almost 40 years ago that if my husband, Bob, and I have at least two servings of my home-made broth a week, we have no problems with our joints. I can’t honestly say that I remember how I made the connection, but I did. I also forgot once for five or six weeks and my knees suffered. I had a hard time walking up and down stairs.
When I make my bone broth, I put everything that I can get my hands on into it. Vitamins and minerals are water and fat soluble so they are leached out of whatever is used in the process. The more that is added, the more benefit is available. I also cook it at a very low boil for about 48 hours.
Bone Broth Recipe:
All ingredients should come from organic vegetables and pastured, organic meats. If you don’t have all of these ingredients, don’t worry. Use what you have. Add anything that’s handy. I rarely have all of these greens, but I add as many as I can.
• bones of one chicken
• 4 or 5 chicken feet
• 2 or 3 cleaned chicken gizzards
• a beef bone or two
• a small piece of beef liver
• one or two beets
• two or more carrots
• one onion
• beet greens or a package of frozen beet greens
• carrot tops, if available
• kale
• Swiss chard
• parsley
• spinach
• purslane, if available
• ¼ cup white wine or vinegar
Directions
1. Put all of the ingredients in a pot or crock pot, add clean water (no chlorine or flouride) to cover, cover, bring to a boil and simmer for two days (you might add a bit of water after the first day). Don’t let the boil be a rolling one but a gentle one.
2. Once the soup is cooked, strain it out with a colander and let it cool. Add a teaspoon of salt.
3. Once cooled, strain again through a strainer filling pint-sized can or freeze jars and freeze.
4. When serving, heat and drink from mugs or use in recipes.
Celeste Longacreand her husband, Bob, have lived sustainably for more than 35 years. They grow almost all of their vegetables for the year and preserve them by freezing, canning, drying and using a home -built root cellar. Celeste ferments much of the couple’s produce and makes her own sauerkraut, kimchee, and fruit and beet kvass. She is the author of Celeste’s Garden Delights and writes a gardening blog for The Old Farmer’s Almanac. For more information, visit Celeste’s website, and read all of her MOTHER EARTH NEWS posts here.
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