Save the Carcass!

With the holiday season about to hit the ground running, we will all have more than our fair share of temptations and nutritional challenges.

There's some good to come out of all of this as we will get to spend quality time with those that we love. Even better will be the look on their faces when you ask if they are throwing away the carcass and, if so, can you keep it?

Roasting the carcass with carrots, celery and onions prior to simmering in a pot of water all day is not only a great way to make use of every part of the animal; it will render up some stock with some serious nutrient qualities that will help warm you all winter long.

Remember the days when Granny’s soup was the best cure for a cold? That’s because Granny used the bones when she made stock and the vitamin and mineral content of her soup beat the pants off of anything you can purchase premade in a store.

Of course, I’ve long learned that telling people that food is good for them isn’t a great selling point if you want them to try it so I’ll also add here that there are very few, if any, pantry staples that will add this much life to just about everything you cook. We use stock for cooking rice, pasta and virtually every grain we use. Quinoa, kamut, barley—you name it, they all turn out fantastic flavor when cooked in “the good stuff.” When someone is sick in this house, it’s a breeze to pull some stock out of the freezer and whip up some seriously tasty soup. And we all know that soup really is good for the body and the soul.

So, please, I beg of you….save the carcass! What will you do while it simmers away the day? Clean your house, wrap holiday gifts and listen to Christmas music. Or, catch up on you DVR’d television and let me know what’s going on this week on Parenthood and 30 Rock. Just kidding, I’m already caught up.

Here’s how it’s done: How to Make Stock From Bones

Let the Holiday Season begin!


Lynn
The Country Tart