Beautiful Broth

I really don't understand how anyone can cook a roast chicken and then just throw away the carcass. Chicken stock is divine, easy to do, healthful, and it makes your house smell amazing on a cold early spring day. What's not to love?

This stock was particularly beautiful. Leek tops, celery leaves, carrots, and of course the carcass of the roast chicken we enjoyed the night before. Cover it all with water and simmer for at least a few hours.

If you plan to make soup, it's important to pick any remaining meat off the bones before you begin. If you leave it on and boil it with the stock, it will get tough and overcooked and not good for much.

After a few hours, here's what we have. Not quite as pretty, but boy did it smell amazing!

The last step is to skim any foam off the top and strain out the solids. The light in this picture is a little weird, but you can see what a beautiful color it is, with a nice layer of yellow fat at the top.... you can tell this was a pastured chicken (local of course)! It's is an incredibly nutritious liquid, and will make a rich, satisfying soup. 

I always make enough to make one batch of soup and extra to freeze. That gives me at least three meals out of one chicken - good for the pocketbook, and a really nice way to fully utilize the animal.

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White Tea

One thing about breastfeeding is that it makes you hungry and thirsty pretty much all the time. I've never been a very good water-drinker, especially this time of year when the chill in the air makes any cold liquid unappealing. I've been craving hot drinks of all kinds, and this has become my pre-bedtime ritual.

When I say "white tea", I don't meant the caffeinated beverage that's derived from the tea plant. That kind of white tea has become somewhat trendy these days. No, this is a favorite beverages from my childhood, no caffeine, no actual tea involved at all. An old lady friend used to make it for us kids, and we'd drink it with her and her husband when they had the more adult version - black tea. My memories are vague, but I believe Edie (that was her name) came from somewhere on the East Coast. Her family, I remember, came from the Isle of Man - I used to be so intrigued by her stories of the land where cats have no tails...... 

Anyway, white tea. I've learned since that it's also sometimes called "Cambric Tea," named after the white fabric. It's the simplest thing - 1/4 milk, 3/4 hot water, and a spoonful of honey. I know it doesn't sound too exciting, it's not really, but it is just the thing to warm you up before going to bed on a cold winter night.

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